Salman Khan is not the only actor to have shed his pants for his upcoming movie Sultan. Over the years many stars, including Amitabh Bachchan and Akshay Kumar, have done the same, says PRAKRITI ROY
Salman Khan and his filmSultan have been creating a lot of buzz lately, what with his ‘raped woman’ comments and the alleged ban imposed on Arijit Singh from doing playback for him. But what has really caught people’s attention in the film’s trailer is his langot or chaddi, as many like to call it.
The Bhai of Bollywood was quite uncomfortable with the idea of wrestling on the 70 mm screen wearing just a langot. Even director Ali Abbas Zafar says how difficult it was to convince him to wear it. But as we can all see, they managed it somehow.
When the poster was initially released, many twitterati took to trolling it, saying that it looked photoshopped. However, there are supporters as well, and none other than Aamir Khan, who said at a Press conference that Salman looks handsome in alangot. Even Salman Khan told his fans through Twitter that he designed the langot himself as “My only concern with the langot was that it shouldn’t look vulgarish #Sultan”.
Not to mention, Aamir Khan. In his next film, Dangal, he will be seen playing a wrestler too. One can surely expect a lot of skin show happening there as well.
Not many would remember that this is not the first time Salman wore something like this on screen. The actor who is infamous for being shirtless wore long swimming trunks in a song for Hum Aapke Hain Kaun. In fact, he also wore a bikini in his 1990 film Baaghi, unbelievable as it may sound.
While bikini-clad Bollywood actresses still make news (Alia Bhatt in Shaandar was the latest), an actor in his underwear makes for an even better headline. There are exceptions to this, of course. That gang of naive first-years in 3 Idiots saying “Jahanpanah….tohfa qubool kijiye” and the hooligan brothers named after days of the week from the 70s film Satte Pe Satta don’t quite make the cut.
It is when an A-list actor appears on screen sans shirt and pants that people really get talking. And our Sallu Bhai is not the first one either, now will he be the last.
One might remember veteran actor Dharmendra in the film Dharam Veer (1977). Although he did not exactly wear a chaddi, the skirt donned by him was dangerously short. Then there is Big B. Given his stature and the elegance associated with the Bachchan family, seeing the film Don now, where he wears tiny swimming trunks, will come as a shocker for many.
A memorable shot of a swimming trunks-clad actor is that of Kabir Bedi from Khoon Bhari Maang (1988). Bedi, who was nothing short of a hunk with Greek God looks even back when untoned and hairy bods were in vogue, sizzled the screen with his model-like body and his toned abs.
King Khan Shah Rukh Khan also gave the audience a peek into what he looks like in the briefest of trunks in a song for the movie Dilwale Dulhaniya le Jayenge (1995).
There is the hairy brigade, of course. Anil Kapoor played a swimming instructor in Tezaab (1988). His job description, in a way, entitles him to wear only the trunks on screen, despite how cringeworthy he may look.
Then there was the scene from Keemat (1998) where Akshay Kumar could be seen in briefs and all his hairy glory. His fans wouldn’t mind seeing him in underwear now though, as he is pretty much hairless and extremely fit.
Rangeela (1993) saw Jaggu dada aka Jackie Shroff wearing the briefest of briefs. And how can the image of Shakti Kapoor posing for a magazine in the 90s in just a blue cloth around his loins ever leave anyone’s memoryIJ
Before Salman Khan made waves with hischaddi, it was John Abraham in Dostana (2008) who had all the women, and probably even men who were so inclined, drooling over his hot bod. He had not one but two scenes in the film where his extremely worked out body was visible for all to see. In fact, audience even got a slight peek into what was beneath the trunks. The yellow swimming trunks remain etched in everyone’s memory. In fact, the scene became so popular that Tushar Kapoor paid a tribute to it with a spoof in Kya Superkool Hain Hum.
Finally, there is Dishoom that will also hit the screens soon. John will be seen once again wearing an extremely tiny swim suit. And this time, the effect will be doubled because joining him in the exact same ‘outfit’ is none other than his co-star in the film, Varun Dhawan, who described the experience as “fun”.
