Films are based on Mohun Bagan’s famous victory over British team.
By Tathagata Mitra
BANGALORE: Director Shoojit Sircar returns once again collaborating with his favorite actor-producer John Abraham, in a film titled ‘1911’.
John had already produced and appeared in an item number  in Sircar’s Vicky Donor and had starred and produced in the controversial historical-cum-political thriller, Madras Café.
Their next collaboration, 1911, is centered on a football match way back on July 19, 1911, when a native team, Mohun Bagan, won the IFA shield against a British team, East Yorkshire Regiment for the first time.
John, who is a football enthusiast and played football profusely in his college days, is very excited about this venture.
“Football is in my DNA not by design but by passion. I am very happy to make a film on football based on such a legendary footballer. It is a very special film. It is a true story about victory, resilience and freedom,” stated John, according to a BusinessofCinema report.
John’s character in this film is named Sibdas Bhaduri, the captain of the then Mohun Bagan club. This is the second time John is playing a footballer on screen. The last film, like 1911, was also an underdog story called Dan Dana Dan Goal. The film also starred John’s the then girlfriend Bipasha Basu, Arshad Warsi and Boman Irani.
However, a revolutionary Bengali film on the same subject, Egaro, The Immortal Eleven, was released little more than three years ago to commemorate the 100 years anniversary of the historical win of Mohun Bagan club.
The film was directed by debutant director Arun Roy with a young and unknown face playing the role of Bhaduri. The film was criticized for its historical inaccuracies in speech and production. Sidelined as a parallel cinema, the film did not see much commercial success. When 1911 releases there is sure to be some comparison between the two versions.
John Abraham is currently spending his time between Rocky Handsome, co-produced by his company JA Entertainment, and the Sony PIX show Café Rio which will be focusing on the world cup in Brazil to start in a few days.
1911 is scheduled to release in 2015.