All rise, Sultan is here. The rise, fall and rise of a wrestler packed in a super punch for audiences in Ranchi and Jamshedpur on Wednesday, with sold out shows in plexes and standalone theatres.

Bhai fans loved Salman's "raw performance" where he is a "phoenix rising from the ashes", as young Jamshedpur fan Suryansh Kumar said.

"The sports drama was real. Salman did not play a superstar, he kept it real. We literally screamed in wrestling scenes," said the fan who watched it first day, first show, in Payal Cinema in Mango.

Girls loved the Ali Abbas Zafar film produced by Yash Raj Films for Anushka Sharma's spirited turn as a wrestler. "Usually, girls are arm candy in a Salman film, but Sultan is different," said Piyali Kar, a PG student of Jamshedpur Women's College, who watched it with her gang of girls. "Anushka is not a prop, she's the driving force of the protagonist."

Piyali added that she found a lot of things to relate to in the film. "People get successful and arrogant, which Salman's character did, and then often lose their way. The film is about second chances and the treatment is no-nonsense," she said. "I also liked the supporting cast of Randeep Hooda and Amit Sadh."

In Ranchi, movie buff Rashmi Sinha came out all smiles after watching the afternoon show at Carnival Cinemas (formerly Glitz). "Watching this Salman Khan movie is like watching the football world cup. I think this movie is much better than Bajrangi Bhaijaan," she said.?

Like the rest of Bollywood celebrating the "gigantic opening" of Sultan, movie theatre officials in both Ranchi and Jamshedpur were upbeat about Wednesday's response.

"We had a slow start due to morning rain but then Salman fans poured in," said owner of multiplex Fun Cinema, Vimal Kumar, in Ranchi. "Shows from noon onwards were fully sold out, all our 757 seats were occupied. We expect the trend to continue," he added.Carnival manager Dhurv Kushwaha said the same. "Post-lunch, it was Salman all the way. All our 751 seats were occupied."

In Jamshedpur, Salmania started from morning. "The first day, first show was houseful. We had to refuse tickets to so many," said C.L. Sharma, manager, Payal Cinema.

Amrita Singh of Eylex Fun n Films on NH-33 called the response "awesome", "People loved the film, which is good for the whole industry."

ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY ARTI S. SAHULIYAR