Food guru Sanjay Narang is a name to conjure with among gourmet circles - but it was his association with Sachin Tendulkar that made his name familiar to the average Joe.

Tendulkar's partner in the eponymous restaurant cannot stop talking when the subject of the master batsman comes up; gentle, simple, down to earth, no airs, these are the words that pepper his conversation.

Follows Tendulkar, as Narang knows him:

"Our relationship goes back to when we met through Mark Mascarenhas, the late head of WorldTel," says Narang. "He approached us, told us about plans to open a restaurant. Naturally, we were ecstatic.

"Unfortunately, Mark passed away around that time. A couple of months after that, we met up and actually discussed this project in some detail.

"Interacting with Sachin the individual, getting to know him as a person increases your awe of his abilities and talent. But I think Sachin the person is even greater -- there is a simplicity, a down-to-earth nature, a straightforwardness about him.

"There is absolutely no 'Star Value' to him, he is just a common guy. At home, he is just a member of the family, and is not treated differently by his family members -- nor does he expect to be. He is an extremely humble and simple person without the slightest 'attitude', there is no 'I am Sachin' about him.

"Because he is so reserved and keeps to himself, a lot of people interpret that to be arrogance and a sign of being hard to get along with, but it is not like that at all.

"When it comes to business, too, he is straight, clear about what he wants -- you don't have to try to figure out what he means or what he wants, it is all an open book. There is no doubt in my mind when I am dealing with him.

"There is Sachin the cricketer and Sachin the businessman -- but beyond these, I would rate Sachin the individual higher. For those who have been fortunate enough to know him, like his childhood buddies, he as a human being is unbelievable.

It takes time to get to know Sachin, and for him to get comfortable with you. But once the ice is broken, he is the kind who will speak his mind -- there is no mincing of words, he says what he means and he says it straight out. It may not always be what you want to hear, but at least you know he is telling you the truth.

"He speaks a lot about cricket, and some of the things he says about his experiences makes your hair stand on end.

"The concept of 'Tendulkar's', the restaurant, was one way for Sachin to bridge the gap and allow him to reach out to his fans. Thus, everything in the restaurant is chosen by him -- the colour, the décor, the food, even the designs on the aprons of the stewards is of his choosing, he approved everything.

"Wherever he went, if he liked a dish he would get the recipe, we would try them out in the kitchen here before approving it and putting it on the menu. Now we plan to open another one here in Mumbai -- a different type of restaurant, one more for the masses.

"An incident I will always remember happened after the World Cup match against Pakistan. We were going some place but it got late getting back to Jo'burg from the stadium. The whole team was trying to find a place to eat. Finally, we ate on the footpath, at well past midnight, from a Chinese stall. The guy manning it didn't recognize the players; he said, you guys eat chicken and veg, nine dishes of each, that is all you get and all 18 of you eat, and get out.

"That was it, and the whole team stood there and ate that food.

"I can't over-praise Sachin, especially Sachin the individual. He is an impeccable gentleman, a self made guy with no formal exposure to the world. In his life, he has proved that you can rise from the lowest of the low, without a godfather, without pulling strings, you can climb to the heights through sheer determination and hard work."

Sanjay Narang spoke to Harini Rana

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