No sooner did Salman Khan get bail, than his brother Sohail Khan conveyed the good news to their mother: "Mama, your son is coming home..."

"Yes, he's free again," Sohail could barely contain his joy after bail Thursday afternoon in the case involving the poaching of a chinkara.

"Everyone has been praying so hard, all of us - his friends and family - are here. The good wishes had to show results," Sohail told.

Salman, who has been sentenced to five years of imprisonment, was granted bail in Jodhpur. By late afternoon the news that the megastar was out of jail - where he had been kept in judicial custody - spread like wildfire.

Crowds jostled outside the prison in Jodhpur for a glimpse.

Actress Priyanka Chopra, who is shooting in Malaysia for "Don", was one of the first to hear the good news.

"I am so, so, so happy for Salman. He is such a wonderful human being. Not just Salman, everyone in his family is a gem. And they don't deserve this kind of stress. I am looking forward to shooting with Salman again for Rumi Jaffrey's 'God Tussi Great Ho'."

Bunty Walia, producer and events organiser, feels Salman is being victimised by the press.

"I think Salman getting into trouble has got to do with his hot-blooded adrenaline-charged nature. Sometimes he doesn't know the repercussions of his action. Salman is everyone's favourite punching bag.

"He's not the media's favourite. He sometimes rubs media persons the wrong way. So they don't think very kindly of him. All the cases that he's being punished for go back to years ago. He has to deal with these problems in a mature fashion, and I think he is. I think he has sobered down considerably now."

"Everything that he does is blown out of proportion. All of us have fights with our girlfriends. But it doesn't make headlines. I was with the family in hospital. Salman's mom is much better now. I think she had an anxiety attack. Because of his distance from the media, everyone thinks he or she's qualified to pass judgement on Salman.

"Only close friends know him for the person that he is. The smallest wrong deed of Salman is blown up into a tamasha. There's a constant attempt to highlight Salman's miseries... that he was sleeping on the floor in Jodhpur, that the mosquitoes were biting him. They are making an example of him.

"Yes, he should be punished if he's guilty. But the punishment shouldn't be so severe. It's not fair. Why don't you make an example of someone who has killed a tiger? Tigers are almost extinct."

Sanjay Leela Bhansali, who worked with him in "Khamoshi - The Musical" and "Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam", said: "Salman is my brother and one of the dearest friends I have ever had. I have enjoyed working with him immensely in the two films we did together. And I am looking forward to working in the third one.

"I have a feeling all the good deeds that he has done in his life will rescue him from the current distress. Salman is a really beautiful person. I vouch for his goodness. Because he's a good man he always comes out of his troubles," he added.