A khan do attitude

Although Sultan was released earlier than Dangal in India, the latter made its way to China in May last year.

Aside from enhancing Aamir Khan's popularity, already bolstered by his previous hits such as 3 Idiots and PK, Dangal soared to top the charts as the highest-grossing Indian film in China and the 23rd highest-grossing movie of all time in China.

So, is Khan concerned that Sultan, also an inspirational story about a former wrestler's dream, will be overshadowed by Dangal?

"Dangal is about a father's passion for his daughters. Sultan is, at heart, a love story. It is also about one man's quest to rise above his failures," replied Khan.

Recalling his favorite moment in Sultan, he points to a sequence featuring the protagonist standing next to a mirror to look at his out-of-shape body after being snubbed by a mixed martial arts coach.

"I had to have a potbelly for it," he explained. "When Sultan stares at himself in the mirror, realizing with humiliation and shame that he is in no form to go back to wrestling, I found it emotionally tough. I actually had tears in my eyes."

According to Khan, the script writer and director Ali Abbas Zafar had wanted to shoot Sultan for a long time.

"It represents rural Indian people. It has universally appealing emotions of love, victory and family values," he concluded.