Exclusive: Sachin Tendulkar on His New Biopic and Whether He Misses Playing Cricket

Few cricket fans would deny that Sachin Tendulkar is one of the greatest players of all time. But in his native India, where cricket is the most popular sport among the country's population of 1.3 billion, he is viewed as something of a demigod.

When Tendulkar retired from cricket in November 2013, India seemed to be in collective mourning. On the day he played his 200th and final Test match at Mumbai's Wankhede Stadium, his home ground, the Indian government awarded him the country's highest civilian honor, the Bharat Ratna. He joined the ranks of Mother Teresa and India's first prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, and became the first sportsman to receive the accolade.

Tendulkar began his professional career aged 16 in 1989 and during the next 24 years, he represented Mumbai and India. His legacy includes scoring the most centuries (100 runs in a single inning) by any international cricketer —100 in total—including 51 in test matches and 49 in one-day international matches.

In 2011, he solidified his hero status by helping India to win the Cricket World Cup.

Four years since his retirement, the Sachin Tendulkar craze has not waned, either in India or overseas. A new biographical film about his life, Sachin: A Billion Dreams, is released globally May 26 and his home country is awaiting it with the same enthusiasm that it greets a major Bollywood blockbuster.

The trailer for the movie—something between a fictionalized biopic and a documentary—has clocked up 23 million views on YouTube in just one month. Some of India's biggest names, including actors Alia Bhatt and Varun Dhawan, have expressed their excitement about seeing their idol's story on the big screen.

In early May, on a trip to London to accept the Asian Awards's prestigious fellowship award, Tendulkar met with Newsweek to talk about Sachin: A Billion Dreams and his post-cricketing life.

I meet Tendulkar at London's Oval cricket ground in Kennington, a suitable location for arguably the greatest batsman of all time. We sit in what might otherwise be a spacious drawing room were it not for the large entourage that accompanies Tendulkar everywhere he goes: his family, friends, an agent, a manager, film producers, personal publicists and still others.

But while such an audience may suggest an air of self-importance in other public figures or celebrities, Tendulkar, soft-spoken and five feet five inches tall, is a remarkably unassuming and gentle man. It is this side to him, he tells me, that he is keen for the world to see in A Billion Dreams.

Why did you decide to make this film about your life?

Ravi [Bhagchandka, producer] came to me and said, "This is something we want to do with your life." I have watched Rush [about Formula One racing drivers James Hunt and Niki Lauda]. I have watched Ali . I never thought because of that I should make a film. I could never imagine it...This discussion took place while I was still an active cricketer.

My first question was, "Do I have to act?" If I had to act in the film, the answer would have been no. [But] it's real-life action that we've captured already. What we've done on top of that is taken some personal family videos that nobody's ever seen.

Was it emotional—revisiting your entire life, from childhood through your cricketing career—for this film?

There were a number of moments where you're focused on what you want to do next and you forget about the past. But when you look back at those things, it feels nice. And you wonder, did all these things actually happen in my life?

What was your happiest memory?

Without any doubt it's the 2011 World Cup. I think that experience was special and the whole reason to start playing cricket was that. Yes, I loved cricket, but the reason to start playing season [cricket] was chasing my dream of winning the World Cup.

You're a private person. Did you have to convince your wife and children to take part?

There was no negotiation, as such. It was about how both of us felt, how comfortable we felt.

Now that you're retired, are your family happy to have you back home?

I'm not so sure. [Laughs] It's always nice to spend more time with the family. I started traveling away from my family from the age of 12. Everything happened really quickly in my life and I started spending a lot of time away from them. Any time I got to spend with my family between tours and matches was worth gold.

Post-retirement, I may be traveling, but I'll be back home between 24 hours and 36 hours max. It's a nice feeling to go home and spend time with your family, it's comforting. That's what I missed for so many years.

How do you assume this mantle of essentially being considered a god in India?

Your support team…I call it a support team; my family was and is extremely balanced and they have never lost that balance—the balance between handling success and dealing with the disappointments of failing.

My family has been my strength, and my friends. When your family and friends start treating you like a superstar, that's a problem. I'm not a superstar and I don't want to be one. I want to be the same Sachin I was 44 years ago. That has kept me grounded—my family, my upbringing that my parents gave me. I'm grateful for that.

Are you the same Sachin, then?

No, I think I'm a better Sachin. We all want to continue getting better. But I haven't forgotten the values, I haven't forgotten my roots of where I came from. A lot of things happened around cricket in my life and all those things contributed to making me a better person. As long as it's adding value to my life, I want to absorb all of those things. That was my mantra while playing cricket.

The million-dollar question: Do you miss playing?

No. 24 years is a long time to play. That was one part of my life. Cricket will always stay in my heart. To expect someone to continue playing on and on forever is an unrealistic expectation.

It's not that I'm completely away from the game—I know exactly what's happening.

I'm still open to playing some exhibition games, to entertain people—or entertain myself, rather. That feeling of being out in the middle has always been special. That feeling is a different feeling altogether.

Sachin: A Billion Dreams is released in theaters worldwide on May 26