Producer Ravi Bhagchandka reveals how he convinced Sachin Tendulkar for Sachin: A Billion Dreams | Exclusive

Sachin: A Billion Dreams is the documentary sports film on the life of the legendary Indian cricketer Sachin Tendulkar. The 2017 film, directed by James Erskine, delves deep into the life of the Bharat Ratna awardee and narrates how Sachin overcame personal struggles to become one of the greatest batsman in the history of Indian cricket.

Ravi Bhagchandka produced the sports documentary under his banner 200 Not Out Productions, named after Sachin's record-setting score of 200 not out against South Africa in Gwalior in 2010 when he became the first batsman in men's cricket to score a double century in a One Day International match. 

In an interview with DNA, Ravi revealed how he convinced Tendulkar for Sachin: A Billion Dreams. He said, "I knew Sachin as an acquaintance. But before even knowing him personally, I had named my production house in his dedication. When I met him, I pitched his documentary idea to him when a lot of people were pitching him ideas for his biopic. It required a lot to convince him, I chased him and told him, 'If you don't do it, I won't do anything else.'"

Ravi also shared why he decided to do a documentary on Sachin's life as he stated, "Sachin is such an international figure that I thought that if we do a documentary, it would reach out to international markets as well, rather than a biopic which would cater to a more domestic audience. We made the documentary in English as well."

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by Ravi Bhagchandka (@ravibhagchandka)

Ravi's next project is Sitaare Zameen Par with Aamir Khan. The upcoming film is the Hindi remake of the the 2018 Spanish sports-comedy drama Campeones (Champions in English). When we asked Ravi how he chose Sitaare Zameen Par as his next production after Sachin: A Billion Dreams, he told DNA, "I had picked up the rights of Campenoes at the Berlin Film Festival in 2018 itself. Then Covid-19 happened. During the pandemic, Aamir sir saw the film, he liked it, and came on board."

Aamir Khan is currently filming Sitaare Zameen Par directed by RS Prasanna. He has stated that he wants the film to release on Christmas this year. If the team is able to finish shooting and post-production by then, Sitaare Zameen Par will clash at the box office with Welcome To The Jungle on December 20. Akshay Kumar, Suniel Shetty, Arshad Warsi, Paresh Rawal, Raveena Tandon, Lara Dutta, and Disha Patani among others feature in the threequel in the Welcome franchise.

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