Legends bat at the box office

Films on three star cricketers—Sachin, Dhoni, Azhar— roll out this year, which one will hit it out of the park

This year the lives of three cricketers will be shown on the big screen. Two of them have retired and the third one is the current captain of the Indian cricket team.

We are talking about Tony D’Souza’s Azhar, Neeraj Pandey’s Dhoni, which are feature films and James Erskine’s docudrama Sachin - A Billion Dreams.

While Azhar is the most controversial subject given his affairs and his match fixing scandal, movies on Sachin Tendulkar and M S Dhoni also have their own merits. Azhar will be releasing on May 13, Dhoni will be out on September 2 and Sachin - A Billion Dreams will release in the second half of this year.

Mohammad Azharuddin himself has stepped out to promote the film along with lead actor Emraan Hashmi, which has helped make enough noise around the film. The movie is going to reveal a lot about Azhar’s first wife, Naureen and Sangeeta Bijlani. This is enough fodder to get audiences excited. But is this all it takes to make a sports biopic work Is it the sports person who will get the audiences to the theatres, or is it their controversial life

Virat Kohli at recent event, when asked about the biopic, had said, “I am looking forward to watch all of them but obviously, the one I am waiting for the most is Tendulkar’s film. It is because I am connected with Tendulkar’s memories for such a long time — since I was a child. I want to actually get into his head, as I have idolised him from the beginning. What has happened in his career will be portrayed in the film and I am really looking forward to it.”

Rajat: Azhar is a human drama, not a sports film

Rajat Arora, writer, Azhar

“The most difficult part about writing a biopic is ‘what not to keep’. It involves more thought than ‘what to keep’. It’s challenging because as a writer, you become greedy. You want everything and then the draft becomes too long. So then we have to figure out what needs to be kept and what needs to go. Thankfully Azhar was very forthcoming in sharing everything with me.

I am a huge fan of Azhar, so it was an honour for me to do a film on his life. Azhar is not a sports film; it’s a human drama. It is not about the last ball or a six, it is the story of a man who has dealt with a lot in life. You are not going to see his matches as much as you will get to see his personal life. Whether it’s a biopic or a movie on an incident based on someone’s life, it has to have drama. We have explored his marriage and other controversies around cricket. Even Dhoni’s teaser is about a man’s journey. You can watch his innings on YouTube; you have to explore what we don’t know about this man.

Azhar, Sachin, Dhoni—they are all heroes for millions of people. People want to know about them beyond the dressing room and the matches. We as a country look up to our sporting heroes. When the movie on Milkha Singh released, suddenly my 11-year-old son showed interest in running. Sachin’s film will help a generation of budding cricketers. He had no controversy in his career and to maintain that for so many decades is not easy. We have come around to this genre very late in the day. Look at Chak De, what an inspiring story! It did more for hockey than anything else.”

“Whether it’s a biopic or a movie on an incident based on someone’s life, it has to have drama. We have explored his marriage and other controversies around cricket. Even Dhoni’s teaser is about a man’s journey. You can watch his innings on YouTube; you have to explore what we don’t know about this man.”

—Rajat Arora

I am looking forward to watch all of them but obviously, the one I am waiting for the most is Tendulkar’s film. It is because I am connected with Tendulkar’s memories for such a long time — since I was a child.

—Virat Kohli

Dhoni will be the winner

Ahmad Afzal, writer and director, Youngistan, Laal Rang says,

“Biopics are fun because you track the journey of a person — and his/her trial and tribulations. Among the films we are looking forward to, I think the Dhoni poster is looking far more superior than the other two. I am not very sure about Azhar; it appears like a mainstream masala film, spiced up with emotions and inter-character relationships. I think Dhoni will create more excitement.”

‘All 3 look exciting’

Kunal Kohli, writer and director of Hum Tum and Fanaa

“While writing a biopic, a writer has to take care of two things — entertaining the audience and making sure that the story isn’t deviating from reality. It is quite possible that a few real incidents won’t have any story value. The challenge for the writer is to create a great story around it. All three biopics look exciting and I feel the three sportsmen are legends. They have made a lot of difference to people’s life.”

Rohan Sengupta

“Definitely Azhar since the movie is based on controversial cricketer. He was previously involved in match-fixing and I hope the movie unravels those secrets about what actually happened.”

Harnish Ganatra

“I’m rooting for the Dhoni biopic. I am aware of Sachin’s and Azhar’s story. Being a Mumbaikar, I know where Sachin trained, his coach, so on and forth. But it isn’t the case with Dhoni. I know he was a ticket collector but I don’t know what inspired him to chase his dream of becoming a cricketer. I don’t follow cricket, and yet I am interested to know how his life turned around.”

Jaydatta Nikalje

Dhoni seems interesting since he comes from a background where cricket was secondary. I believe the game got its shine back because of Dhoni. I think the story of a small town boy who makes it big is an amazing story in itself. I don’t know if it will interest urban crowds but small town boys like me would definitely want to watch this one.

Sandesh Samant

I think Azhar will be interesting since it has controversy and drama among other things. People know about Sachin and Dhoni but not much is known about Azhar. He was involved in the match fixing controversy, but I am waiting to see how much of it has been included.

Rishika Bhati

“Of course Dhoni! He is Captain Cool and has enviable leadership skills. The biopic looks like it will trace his journey. Who doesn’t want to witness it on the silver screen Dhoni has already inspired so many, and I am sure his films will inspire generations to come.”