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29 March 2024

‘Sultan’ wants to meet you: UAE fans ready for Salman Khan?

Published
By Bindu Rai

It promises to be the summer scorcher at the Indian box office, perhaps even the Middle East, as Salman Khan’s ‘Sultan’ readies for its Eid-Al-Fitr mega release.

The Bollywood sports film will release across UAE cinemas on July 7, with residents now standing the chance to watch ‘Sultan’ at the cinemas and win a chance to meet the superstar himself in India.

Producer Yash Raj Films (YRF) has also not ruled out a possibility of flying down the actor to Dubai for an iftar meal as part of ‘Sultan’s’ promotional campaign.

Meanwhile, the production house has teamed up with Vox Cinemas to allow residents to get into the running to meet Khan in India by booking advance tickets for ‘Sultan’ with the UAE showcaser.

Three lucky winners will stand the chance to have their name picked out of a draw for the golden boarding pass that will take off for India to meet the superstar.

A spokesperson from Vox Cinemas further said: “Anyone who books advance tickets online for the film stands a chance to win a meet and greet with Salman Khan. We will pick three winners, who will also be able to travel with a plus one to meet the actor.”

The spokesperson added the buzz surrounding the advance ticket sales of the Eid blockbuster was ‘very positive’ with the Deira City Centre, BurJuman, Mall of the Emirates, Shindagha outlets seeing the highest number.

YRF’s head of operations for Middle East and North Africa also told Emirates 24|7 the film has already generated a ‘phenomenal response’ in advance tickets sales across the UAE.

“‘Sultan’s’ advance ticket sales are on track to be the largest for an Indian film in UAE and GCC,” revealed D’Souza. “As a ritual, Salman Khan has ruled the Eid box office for years, with last year’s ‘Bhajrangi Bhaijaan’ taking home the biggest box office collections for a Hindi film in this region.

“We hope to beat that record with ‘Sultan’.”

D’Souza further stated the movie will also command the biggest opening in the UAE and GCC, even beating Shah Rukh Khan’s ‘Fan’, which released in April of this year.

He said: “Shah Rukh’s ‘Fan’ had released across 95 locations in the UAE and the GCC market, while ‘Sultan’ will release across 99 locations; 55 of them will be across the UAE alone that could range between 150 to 200 screens.”

Khan, who is currently in Spain to perform at the International Indian Film Academy or IIFA awards, plays the title role of a wrestler who falls from grace and returns to the ring years later to reclaim his fame.

Quiz D’Souza whether Khan and his co-star Anushka Sharma could possibly be flying down to Dubai for a Ramadan iftar and the YRF rep replied: “You never know. Nothing is concrete. Anything can happen.”

Post ‘Sultan’, the next big film to come out of the production house will be the Aditya Chopra-directed ‘Befikre’ starring Ranveer Singh and Vani Kapoor, which is scheduled for a December release.

Those who want to participate in the ‘Sultan’ competition need to book their online tickets before July 5. The competition is open to UAE residents only of all ages, with people below 18 years required to be accompanied with an adult as their plus one.