Sachin Tendulkar’s journey in this film looks so real. It not only celebrates the personality that he is but also Indian Cricket in all its glory. Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar is a name that has been etched in our heads as being the ‘God of Cricket’. While many may call him gifted, it is in this film, you truly see his inspiring journey and the fact that nothing comes easy without hardships. The film chronicles his journey from being a notorious child to his brother Ajit Tendulkar recognising his talent and recommending him to Coach Ramakant Achrekar to train him in the game. Being a dedicated player, a young Sachin made it to the newspapers along with co-player Vinod Kambli for making a world record of 664-run partnership, playing for Shardashram Vidya Mandir against St. Xavier’s in Harris Shield on February 24, 1988. And from there, the legendary journey began.
What people mostly perceive biopics to be is inspiring stories that is a tell all on the personality. Although, the Sachin biopic is more like an experience or I’d say in my case, as a 90s child, a run down the memory lane with the chance to relive some of the greatest matches of all time, to watch and gloat over India’s finest winning moments in a timeline that ends with the dream come true world cup dream. As we watch Sachin narrate about his dream to lift the World Cup, we can’t help but realize this is one dream we have all lived with him.
The film takes off with Sachin’s most precious moments when his daughter Sara was born. The Cricketer who may have taken a ton of perfect catches, is nervous as hell, holding his little one and in that moment is like any other newly turned father, who is scared to carry the little one around. Later, we see a dramatized version of his childhood where we see how the suburban lad became Cricketing world’s biggest sensation.
While we see Sachin’s journey going upwards, the makers keep giving us the background of the Indian setting and basically paint a picture of how at the meekest of times, people have turned to this sport to become their source of happiness. Truly, how, Cricket became India’s prime religion. As a Sachin fan, you’ll be delighted to know some little trivia about the legend like his favorite song of all time or how when under pressure, he would listen to one song on loop for an entire day. There’s also the sense of pride one derives when International players like Ricky Ponting talk about how Sachin was one hell of an inspiration to them or when Wasim Akram shares his first impression of a teenage Sachin taking on the field.
A Bollywoodish twist comes in the part where we see Sachin’s love story with wife Anjali. While some may find it a tad boring, it luckily does not take much of your time. Coming to the Cricket timeline, while Sachin addresses his captaincy stint and also the shame of spot-fixing scandal, he has nothing to say about playing under captains like Sourav Ganguly, Rahul Dravid and M. S Dhoni. Even the Greg Chapell phase is slightly rushed in the film. Sachin Tendulkar’s narration may seem slightly weird but then again he’s not an actor to be all comfortable with it. The voiceovers by Harsha Bhogle, Boria Majumdar, Gideon Haigh, all three who have been sports reporters for decades work well for the film. Popular players like Virat Kohli, M S Dhoni, Virender Sehwag, Ricky Ponting, Shane Warne, Brian Lara, Wasim Akram contribute to the film with their brilliant quotes.
Sachin:A Billion Dreams is a treat for Sachin Tendulkar fans. It’s realistic, emotional and highly inspiring. It will probably make you miss him even more on field! A 4/5 for this.