Crime Today News
Throughout history, relations between India and Persia were marked by diplomatic, commercial, and cultural exchanges. The ties stretch back to ancient times and the cultural synthesis that emerged influenced Indian literature, architecture, arts, and sport. Although in recent times there have been occasions when the government of India and that of Iran have not seen eye to eye on certain issues, earlier the relationship was very cordial.
In 1950 the independent Republic of India established diplomatic relations with the Islamic Republic of Iran. The move benefitted both countries in numerous ways. It saw the influx of thousands of Iranian students who came to the reputed universities in India to study different courses in cities such as Pune, Bengaluru, and Osmania University in Hyderabad.
The Iranian trio
Back in the 1980s, three such students were enrolled in the Aligarh Muslim University. They were Jamshid Nassiri, Majid Bishkar, and Mahmud Khabbazi. All three were also excellent footballers and went on to become India’s leading players in the 1980s.
Indian football was greatly enriched by the presence of these three outstanding Iranian footballers who reshaped the way the game was played. The trio also became the darling of football lovers especially in Kolkata which was then the main center of the game in India.
Jamshid Nassiri joined AMU in 1979. Before coming to India he had played football for Rastakhiz Club in Khorramshahr club in the highly competitive Takht Jamshid Cup, the national tournament in Iran. He had also taken part in the FIFA World Youth Championships in 1977.
Spotted by East Bengal
When he was studying at AMU, he took part in a few football tournaments when he was free. His natural talent was spotted by scouts of the East Bengal club of Kolkata and they snapped him up in their team. In 1980 he made his debut for the Red and Gold Brigade (as East Bengal is called) in the Federation Cup tournament in India and was an instant hit. East Bengal won the trophy that year helped by superb goals by Nassiri.
Two years later Mohammedan Sporting club, another Kolkata giant, managed to lure him away from East Bengal with a more lucrative contract. This time he helped Mohammedan Sporting to win the Federation Cup. In 1984 he became the highest goal scorer in the Kolkata league. Within a few years he became the first foreign player to score 100 goals on Indian soil.
After his playing days were over, he refused to go back to Iran and stayed back in India. He became a successful coach. He once said: “I love India. The culture here is similar to that of my native country and that is why I have decided to stay back in India.” One of his two sons named Kiyan Nassiri is now a rising star in Indian football.
Majid was awesome player
Majid Bishkar was Jamshid Nassiri’s teammate in Rastakhiz Khorramshahr. Like Nassiri, Majid was also snapped up by the East Bengal club and awed the Kolkata audiences. Majid played imaginative football throughout and was instrumental in guiding East Bengal to a victory in the IFA Shield and Darjeeling Gold Cup.
But unlike Jamshid, Majid decided to return to Iran after a few years and he now lives in Khorramshahr with his family. The third player of that time was Mahmud Khabbazi who was also an excellent ball player and had a large fan following in India.
These three Iranian players and their exquisite skills brought about a sea change in the way the game was viewed and played in India.
Shabbir, Amalraj played with them
Hyderabad’s football stars Shabbir Ali and Victor Amalraj have played alongside the three Iranians. In 1977 Amalraj went to Iran to play in the Asian Youth tournament. In his autobiography Midfield Maestro, he wrote: “The stadium where we played was the magnificent Aryamehr stadium in Tehran. It has a capacity to accommodate one lakh spectators. The standard of football was very good. We reached the quarter-finals but then lost to the host team which beat us 3-0.”
In an interview to The Sportstar, Shabbir Ali said that Majid Bishkar was the best of the lot. Majid had represented Iran in the 1978 FIFA World Cup. Even now the older generation of football lovers in Kolkata remember the feats of the three Iranian superstars with great fondness.
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