Gryphon,
This may sound a bit like being wise after the event, but every time I looked at Sambhar pics you posted, they did not look like the Indian Beast. The colour of your animals appeared a bit more reddish brown, the animals looked a bit smaller, and appeared to have a more 'tidy' coat.
I have shot a fair amount of Sambhar in the foothills of the Himalayas (Corbett country), the meat did not make very good eating , we normally went for Kakar and wild boar meat, but Sambhar skin used to make some excellent leather for boots etc.
Mpofu.