Majid Bishkar and Jamshid Nassiri : Indian Football’s Iconic Iranian Duo

Written by Somnath Sengupta on

Club football in India was at the height of its popularity in the early 1980s. It was at this juncture in history that two young Iranian students arrived to change Indian football forever. Majid Bishkar and Jamshid Nassiri formed one of the most feared attacks of that decade and paved the way for the foreign invasion of Indian football. This is their story about “Hunting in Pairs”, presented to you by Goalden Times’ Somnath Sengupta.

There is something magnetic about footballers with a bohemian streak. Fans are enamoured by their rock star aura or the image of a flawed genius. These footballers live and die by the sword, often ending up in troubled, tragic lives once they leave the game. Yet, decades later, fans still cherish their careers, reminiscing fondly about a deft touch or a moment of brilliance.

Often considered the greatest Italian footballer of all time, Giuseppe Meazza was infamous for playing matches after long nights with sex workers — turning up to play in his pyjamas. Few Manchester United footballers can match the enduring popularity reserved for “the fifth Beatle” George Best. Despite never having played in the top division, Robin Friday retains a cult following to this day. Botafogo legend Heleno de Freitas and Jorge Leandro Andrade, a star of the great Uruguay team of 1920s, both died in sanatoriums but are still admired.

Indian fans had to wait till the 1980s to get their first taste of a truly bohemian footballer, who came to them from the distant shores of Iran. This Iranian, Majid “Baskar” brought in a brand of entertaining football not seen before. A genius footballer, he was a deeply flawed individual that made him that much more intriguing. Along with compatriot Jamshid Nassiri, he formed a feared frontline in 1980s. This was the first and one of the most successful foreigner duos in the history of Indian football.

Majid Bishkar

Majid Bishkar (his surname was mispronounced in India as Baskar) was born on August 6, 1956 in Khorramshahr, Iran. He began his career in the local club Rastakhiz Khorramshahr. Owned by businessman Mohammad Younes Zadeh, Rastakhiz was an ambitious club that reached the semi-final of Iran Cup in 1976. Young Majid’s performances soon caught the eyes of national selectors, and he was selected for the Iran B squad to participate in the 1975 Iran International Tournament. He didn’t manage to make any appearance during the tournament, though he was on the bench during Iran B’s 3-1 victory over Zaire.

He left Rastakhiz in the mid-70s and joined Tehran-based Shahbaz FC. His big break for Team Melli came in 1978, when he was picked for Iran’s first-ever World Cup squad. In Argentina, Iran would famously hold Ally McLeod’s highly rated Scotland team to a draw, before making an exit in the group stage. It was a great learning experience for Majid, although he didn’t play for a single minute. The following season, Majid’s team was leading the league table with half the fixtures done. However, the season never got completed because that’s when the course of Iran’s history changed with the advent of Islamic Revolution. Still in his early 20s, his match in April 1978 against a Safet Susic-powered Yugoslavia would prove to be his last international outing. Majid would soon be on his way to India, along with a young protégé named Jamshid Nassiri.

Born on March 15, 1959, Jamshid Nassiri plied his trade in the same club as his senior partner-in-crime. He represented teams of various age groups in school, before gradually moving up the rungs and playing state-level football. His performance in state-level tournaments earned him a place in the U-17 national team. This was before he broke through to the Iran U-20 team, participating in the inaugural FIFA U20 World Cup in 1977.

Jamshid Nassiri

His career in in Rastakhiz didn’t last too long, as the club was disbanded following the Islamic Revolution. Jamshid had just started his journey for the senior national team and, like Majid, his nascent international career also met a premature end.

Hailing from the same province of Khuzestan, Jamshid was already acquainted with Majid, and the duo found themselves at similar crossroads after the Revolution. At this juncture, they travelled to India – not to continue their football careers, but for higher education. Destiny, however, had a different plan for them, eventually leading them to a club on the banks of the river Ganges in Kolkata.

East Bengal had enjoyed its golden era for much of the 1970s. In the first half of the decade, the Red and Golds were virtually unstoppable thanks to the shrewd recruiting team of Paltu Das and Jiban Chakraborty. In 1976, there was a change in the governing body after club elections and the juggernaut came to a halt. Mohun Bagan, largely overshadowed between 1970 and 1976, turned their fortunes around thanks to the recruiting skills of Chandramadhab Roy and the managerial acumen of P.K. Banerjee. East Bengal didn’t have the same degree of success in the second half of 1970s, and things became even more dire as the new decade started. Bagan already had a better team, and to make matters worse, East Bengal was struck a body blow by a resurgent Mohammedan Sporting Club.

Mohammedan SC had seen unprecedented prosperity back in the 1930s, but since their fortunes had declined since then. As the 1980s started, Mohammedan sought to change this trend as they assembled a star-studded squad, thanks to heavy investments from Irfan Taher Randerian and Ibrahim Ali Molla. The Black and Whites fleeced East Bengal, offering their best players double the money. A mass exodus began.

In one of the greatest transfer swoops in the history of Indian football, Mohammedan recruited Bhaskar Ganguly, Chinmoy Chatterjee, Ramen Bhattacharya, Aloke Mukherjee, Prasanta Banerjee, Surajit Sengupta, Debashish Roy, and Sabbir Ali. With Mohun Bagan and Mohammedan getting the cream of Indian players, East Bengal officials realized that their only path of salvation lay in recruiting quality foreigners. Unlike Mohun Bagan, whose club rule prevented foreign recruits, East Bengal already had a history of employing foreigners. Pagsley, a striker from Myanmar, was a prolific scorer for the Red and Golds in the 1940s. The next decade saw them get the services of Pakistani footballer Masud Fakhri, while in 1979, David Williams became the first African to play at a top Indian club. In their hunt for new foreigners, East Bengal officials would get help from an unexpected quarter — Indian football’s grand old man Novy Kapadia.

In the meantime, Majid Bishkar and Jamshid Nassiri had reached Jabalpur in June 1979. Given their credentials as footballers, they got recommendations to join Aligarh University. The duo was further encouraged by the fact that fellow Iranian footballer Mahmud Khabbasi was already studying in Aligarh. The same year Aligarh University hosted the North Zone Inter University championship, and with three Iranians in their line-up, they were unstoppable. Kapadia was a coach for the Delhi University team, and the Iranians caught his eyes. This is what he had to say in his book Barefoot to Boots, “On reaching Delhi, I rushed to the Daryagunj house of East Bengal’s local manager and ardent fan, HS Mamik. He immediately contacted the club in Kolkata and soon he and the club officials went to Aligarh to sign the three players”.

The novelty of seeing three foreigners, one of them with World Cup experience, drew a large crowd to the first practice session when Majid, Jamshid and Khabbasi took to the field. The newcomers did enough to calm the jittery nerves of the East Bengal faithfuls. They already had veterans Sudhir Karmakar and Mohammed Habib, along with the talismanic Manoranjan Bhattacharya in defence. The wily P.K. Banerjee was their coach. East Bengal now had a fighting chance, despite not having a squad as good as Mohammedan or Mohun Bagan.

The trio didn’t get much time to get acclimatized with the Kolkata maidan. The 1980 edition of Federation Cup was just around the corner. Expectation from East Bengal was muted, with the other Kolkata giants considered favourites to lift the title. In the end, the 1980 Federation Cup would go down in history as the tournament where Majid Bishkar and Jamshid Nasiri exploded into the Indian football scene.

Sixteen teams participated in the Federation Cup, divided in four groups, with group winners qualifying for semi-finals. East Bengal had HAL SC, Mafatlal Mills Club, and Dempo SC in their group. Majid and Jamshid scored goals on their debuts in a 2-0 win over HAL, and proved to be an instant hit. The pattern continued in the second match against Mafatlal. It was another 2-0 win, with both finding their names on scoresheet. In the last match, East Bengal destroyed Dempo SC 3-0, thus clinching the top spot. Tapan Das drew first blood in this match, before Jamshid added a second thanks to a defence-splitting ball from Majid. Majid was not finished, as he capped off his man of the match performance with a goal.

In the semi-final, East Bengal faced Punjab Police, a team filled with rugged, combative players and spearheaded by burly striker Manjit Singh. Expected to be a close match, it was effectively over in the first 30 minutes as Majid’s brilliant performance saw East Bengal take a 3-0 lead. Manjit Singh was left frustrated and would eventually receive a red card. Novy Kapadia recalled Singh’s words about Majid in that match, “I have never seen a footballer like that”. The match finished 4-1, handing East Bengal a place in the summit clash against Mohun Bagan.

The final was a derby and an eagerly awaited match, as this was the first time a Fed Cup title decider was taking place in Kolkata. Coached by Arun Ghosh, Mohun Bagan had a virtual dream team with arguably the best defensive pairing in the country with Subrata Bhattacharya and Pradip Chowdhury. It also had a midfield boasting of Prasun Banerjee and Goutam Sarkar. The star-studded forward line featured Shyam Thapa, Manas Bhattacharya, Bidesh Bose, and Xavier Pius.

East Bengal were overwhelming underdogs but they held on. P.K. pulled off a tactical masterstroke by using Majid in a deeper role with Jamshid as the lone striker – effectively crowding Mohun Bagan’s midfield. East Bengal took the lead through Habib, assisted by Jamshid while Bagan equalized via a Mihir Bose long ranger. There was no system of tie-breaker at that time. So, a 1-1 draw meant the trophy was shared by the Kolkata giants.

Winning the Federation Cup was something very few Red and Gold faithfuls had anticipated when their newly knit team had started practicing a few days before. Kapadia considers that team to be the weakest ever East Bengal side to have won the Federation Cup. He writes, “The victory was an ultimate tribute to P.K.’s motivational skills and coaching prowess as well as the genius of Majid”. [3] East Bengal fans had found new heroes.

The final also saw clashes between supporters as well as acts of vandalism in the stands. Referee J.P. Coutinho was injured by a flying brick, over 150 people were hurt, and Eden Gardens suffered damages worth INR 40,000. Sadly, this was a prelude to a black day in the history of Indian football.

On August 16, 1980, 16 football fans lost their lives due to a stampede in the stands during a particularly ill-tempered derby between Mohun Bagan and East Bengal. As a result, football in the city was cancelled for the rest of the year, resulting in the abandonment of the Calcutta Football League and the IFA Shield. The Iranian duo’s next big assignment came in December when they travelled to Mumbai to participate in the Rovers Cup.

After defeating Aryan Club in the quarter-final, Majid-Jamshid were looking to restart their burgeoning rivalry with the Mohun Bagan defence. In their first encounter during this tournament, Mohun Bagan raced to a 2-0 lead before half time. During the lemon break, Majid energized his crestfallen team mates and they came out firing on all cylinders in the second half. Expertly marshalled by Bagan’s defensive duo in the first half, Majid brought out his bag of tricks after the break, outwitting his markers and unleashing a precise pass towards Harjinder Singh. The score was now 2-1. A few minutes later, he collaborated with Jamshid, who used his strength and lethal finishing to level the scores.

In the return leg, Mohun Bagan yet again took the lead, but a keenly contested match ended in a 3-2 win for East Bengal. The final was bit of a grudge match, as they were facing Mohammedan SC, the same club that had almost ruined their season by hijacking their star players.

Mohammedan drew first blood in the final. However, in the second half, Majid scored arguably his most famous goal in India to make it 1-1. With the clock running down, he saw Bhaskar Ganguly off his line, chested down a pass, and unleashed a 30-yard-long volley. Ganguly was probably the best goalkeeper in Asia at that time, and sensing danger, he tried to backpedal in vain. Just like the Federation Cup final, the Rovers final also ended in a stalemate as both teams shared the trophy. Thanks to Majid Bishkar’s quiet leadership, moments of genius, and Jamshid Nasiri’s clinical finishing, a rank mediocre East Bengal side had won two major trophies.

In hindsight, their first season in India was also the best season enjoyed by Majid-Jamshid. East Bengal’s 1981 squad was somewhat strengthened by Samaresh Chowdhury and Victor Amalraj, but still remained largely dependent on their Iranian attackers. However, the dark shadow that would eventually engulf Majid’s career had already started to form by late 1980.

Majid had an affinity for beer even before he started his career in India. As he became an overnight superstar in Kolkata, his fame endeared him to some social circles that opened up doors to other addictions – marijuana, hashish, and opium. Sadly, his vices didn’t end there. Once, during the peak of his career with East Bengal, the local police flushed Majid out of Sonagachi, Kolkata’s infamous red light area. This incident later also found space in newspapers. There were also allegations that the Iranian was engaged in an illicit love affair with a female sportsperson.

The Iraq-Iran War that had started after Majid and Jamshid came to India was another factor. Oil-rich Khuzestan was one of the focal points of Iraqi invasion. Khorramshahr, Majid’s birthplace, saw one of the bloodiest battles of the war, resulting in thousands of casualties. The damage was so horrific that the city came to be known as Khuninshahr — City of Blood. It was reduced to ruins and would stay under Iraqi occupation till 1982. Majid was deeply depressed by these events which pushed him further into a hedonistic lifestyle.

Majid had injured his ankle during the 1980 Rovers Cup. His substance abuse, combined with a lackadaisical attitude towards training, meant that he struggled to regain his fitness and put on weight. His form gradually dipped.

During the 1981 season, there were rumours that the duo’s nepotism was causing problems in the East Bengal dressing room. Fellow Iranian Khabbasi was a destructive midfielder and never quite a player of the same calibre. However, it was alleged that the Iranian duo pressurized coaches to field Khabbasi in the starting lineup. There were even reports that the new East Bengal coach, Prabir Majumdar, was harassed by the Iranian trio. Shanto Mitra, a legendary former player and part of the coaching team, played the role of a father figure with Majid — trying to control his substance abuse. However, he was unsuccessful and the relationship with his team’s most crucial player gradually self-destructed.

Needless to say, East Bengal’s performance on the field suffered. Mohammedan’s investments finally paid dividends, as they won their first Calcutta League title since 1967. During Federation Cup, Majid and Jamshid never managed to hit the same heights that they had reached the previous year. The duo was largely ineffective during East Bengal’s 3-0 win over JCT in the first group match, though both scored in the next match against Salgaocar. The Red and Golds were thoroughly outplayed in the third match and lost 2-0 to Mohammedan, but still managed to set up a last-four clash with Mohun Bagan.

In a sharp contrast to the previous season, Bagan’s defence led by Subrata Bhattacharya and youngster Samar Bhattacharya would completely neutralize Majid and Jamshid in the first leg of the semi-final. The two Bhattacharyas were so effective that a match report quipped “the magic named Majid is not working anymore”[1]. Bagan won 2-0 with a brace from Xavier Pius, and both Iranians had a torrid time. Jamshid missed an open goal while Majid had one of his rare shots cleared off the line. They fared no better in the second leg, when Majid’s penalty was saved by Shibaji Banerjee. The Green and Maroons would not only go on to win Federation Cup, but also Rovers Cup. East Bengal’s only major trophy that season would be the IFA Shield, which they lifted jointly with their arch rivals.

It was in the Darjeeling Gold Cup that Majid-Jamshid would deliver their best performance in their second season with East Bengal. The final was yet another derby, and staying true to their form in 1981, Mohun Bagan had taken a 2-0 lead. Deep into the second half, Majid showed glimpses of his best form and sparked a great comeback. He assisted Somnath Banerjee and C.D. Francis to level the scores. With a few minutes left on the clock, the lethal combination of Majid and Jamshid stole the show — the former assisting and the latter scoring the match winner to seal the title.

Majid and Jamshid’s second season in East Bengal would be their last in the club as a duo. East Bengal had made Majid the first player in India to earn INR 100,000 and his off-field antics had incensed a section of East Bengal officials. Mohammedan and Irfan Taher Randerian yet again zeroed in for an ingenious transfer coup.

In an article[2] on Majid, journalist Jayanta Chowdhury described how Mohammedan pulled off the deal. At that time, East Bengal had housed Bishkar and Nassiri in Nataraj Building, an apartment in a posh location in Kolkata. Seven months before the transfer window opened, the duo started receiving packets of mughlai cuisine from Kolkata’s choicest restaurants. At first, they thought these were tokens of love from Red and Gold fanatics. Food packets eventually became expensive gifts, like shirts, trousers and shoes. Eventually, one of the packets contained a short note with an offer to play for Mohammedan. Chowdhury recalled the day they officially signed for Mohammedan. They were taken to the IFA office in a convoy of fans, guarded by armed security. Once the pen was put to paper, there were great celebrations in the Mohammedan club premises.

A change in clubs didn’t put an end to Majid’s personal problems. Instead, the downward spiral accelerated. During their stay at Nataraj Building, East Bengal had hired security guards to protect their prized assets. Therefore, despite his indiscretions, there was some discipline in Bishkar’s life. When they shifted clubs, the duo moved to Sangam Building where the security was lax and Majid had complete freedom. In contrast, Jamshid was much more disciplined and a thorough professional.

Eventually, the friends parted ways. Jamshid moved to another apartment, while Majid moved to the Mohammedan Club’s Elliot Road mess that housed footballers. Jamshid would later say, “Going to the Mohammedan mess was the death knell of Majid’s career, his addiction problems worsened and he became even more bohemian. He didn’t practice properly. After light fitness trainings, he would go off to have a beer. I tried to stop him but he didn’t listen to me”.[3]

The Iranian duo’s first season in Mohammedan wasn’t the most memorable, as they failed to defend their Calcutta League crown. Majid had injured himself during the Sanjay Gandhi Gold Cup in Patna. By the time he got fit, Mohammedan had lost steam in the league. Jamshid also struggled with his form. To make matters worse, he was suspended by the club after manhandling the linesman during a match with Railways FC.

Mohammedan lost both the IFA Shield and Rovers Cup finals. The Rovers Cup final had an interesting subtext as the Iraq-Iran War was in full swing at that time. Mohammedan and their Iranians squared off against Salahaddin Club from Tikrit, losing narrowly by a 2-1 margin. The same pattern was repeated in the Rovers Cup final of 1983. This time, Mohammedan lost by an identical scoreline to Al Jaish from Baghdad.

By 1983, Mohammedan had an extremely strong team, boasting of Pratap Ghosh in goal with the likes of Moidul Islam, Sabbir Ali, Ulaganathan, Victor Amalraj, Pem Dorji, Francis D’Souza, and the Iranian trio of Majid, Jamshid, and Khabbasi. Syed Nayeemuddin was in his second consecutive season as coach and was determined to erase the disappointment of the previous season. Their toil was rewarded in that year’s Federation Cup.

Nayeem’s side started the quarter-final group leg with a 3-1 victory over ITI, and followed it up with a narrow 1-0 victory over Salgaocar. A goalless draw with Mohun Bagan in the final match meant that Mohammedan finished runner up in their group and would play East Bengal in the semi-final. Contrary to expectations, neither leg of semi-final produced fireworks, turning into battles of attrition instead. 180 minutes of football produced only one goal by Francis D’Souza, enough to take Mohammedan to their second Federation Cup final.

The first final played between Mohun Bagan and Mohammedan ended in 0-0 stalemate, which meant a replay had to played. The replayed final was perhaps the finest hour of Majid Bishkar and Jamshid Nassiri in their Black and White Mohammedan jersey. Majid rolled back the years and wreaked havoc on Mohun Bagan’s midfield, negating the experienced pair of Goutam Sarkar and Prasun Banerjee. Bagan’s defence also had a torrid time dealing with Majid’s attacking forays and Jamshid’s aerial strength. Mohammedan played like a well-oiled machine and deservedly won 2-0. Majid scored once and assisted another for Jamshid. Their transfers had finally bore fruit as Mohammedan won their first ever Federation Cup title.

Mohammedan and Nayeem found even greater success in 1984, winning three trophies. They successfully defended their Federation Cup title, defeating East Bengal in the final thanks to a solitary goal from Jamshid. Later that year, they added Rover Cup to their cabinet, as Pradeep Talukdar scored in the final during a 1-0 win over JCT. By this time, Majid Bishkar had become a peripheral figure and had completely lost his fitness. Jamshid, however, was still going strong and had now found a competent partner in Talukdar.

Jamshid’s form in 1984 would earn him a transfer back to East Bengal. At that time, he requested club officials to give a final chance to Majid, but they ignored his request after landing the newest exciting partnership of Indian football – Krishanu Dey and Bikash Panji. Jamshid would continue his goal scoring form, notching 17 goals to finish as top scorer as East Bengal won the Calcutta League. He also helped the Red and Golds win the Federation Cup by scoring a goal deep into extra time in the final. He set a unique record of scoring in three consecutive Federation Cup finals – a record that still remains unbroken.

In 1986, Jamshid would earn his last big transfer move, as he rejoined Mohammedan for a princely sum of Rs. 250,000, making him the most expensive footballer in India at that time. The same season, he formed a lethal combination with a Nigerian student who, like him and Majid, had come to Vishakhapatnam to study. That young Nigerian, Chima Okerie, would eventually become the most feared striker in India, starting the trend of clubs recruiting big-boned African footballers. Jamshid continued to play till the late 1980s, but by that time there was no trace of Majid Bishkar.

So what made their partnership so successful? Both Iranians had superb ball skills, and, having learnt the game in the same system, they had a telepathic understanding. Majid was obviously the more skilled player. He played in a free role that made him difficult to mark. Among Indians, only Mohammed Habib had a similar playing style. Jamshid, on the other hand, was the quintessential center forward – strong, aerially dominant, but with a great first touch for a big man. They combined extremely well, be it Jamshid knocking down long balls to utilize Majid’s deceptive pace, or the latter spraying through balls to find the former’s forward runs.

If Majid was scorer of great goals, then Jamshid was a great scorer of goals. Jamshid top-scored in Calcutta League twice in 1981 and 1985, and was also the first foreigner in Indian football to score more than 100 goals. Majid wasn’t as prolific, but during his peak years he scored 62 goals in 71 matches for East Bengal. A unique feature of the pair was how they often scored together in the same match, sometimes assisting each other. Best examples of these matches were in the Federation Cup games of 1980 or 1983, or a 4-0 drubbing of George Telegraph in 1981 when each player grabbed a brace for East Bengal. Majid was adept at setting up goals – in one league match against Customs FC in 1982, he assisted all four goals in a 4-0 victory.

Majid Bishkar’s contemporaries consider him the best foreigner to have ever played in India. Take the words of three greatest defenders of that era – Sudhir Karmakar, Subrata Bhattacharya, and Manoranjan Bhattacharya. Karmakar famously marked Asian stars Japanese Kunishige Kamamoto and Iranian Asghar Sharafi and puts Bishkar above both. In an article in Khela magazine he wrote, “He was an attacker of superb standard. Extraordinary in his skill, trapping and sprints. His long-range passes were usually accurate and his shooting was amazing”[3].

Subrata Bhattacharya had a few famous duels with him and he says in an interview to Anandabazar Patrika, “I have never seen a footballer with such an unpredictable style. I often struggled to contain his off the ball movements”[2]. For Manoranjan, Majid was the first footballer in India that made him aware of international standards. He praised Majid’s dribbling skills but also mentioned that he was not a showman and used his skills to help out his team.

Two of the most successful coaches of that era, P.K. Banerjee and Amal Dutta, also rate Majid highly. Dutta calls him a genius, adding, “Majid brought crowds to the ground. He had ability to use either flank or central zone to start an attack. Be it dropping deeper in midfield or moving forward to release a final pass – Majid took Kolkata football to a different level”[3]. P.K. specially mentions, “He had the unique ability to use a body feint to fool his markers. He would feint one way then somehow manage to dodge the defender by playing the ball the other way”. Sadly, both coaches also make a mention of his disciplinary problems. P.K. considered him a great trouble maker while Dutta narrated an incident when he was the coach of Mohammedan in the second half of 1980s. He used to stay in the Mohammedan mess with Majid, and one night the Iranian was untraceable. Dutta was coaxed by club officials to go on a manhunt for Majid on his two-wheeler in the lanes of Park Street in Kolkata. Late at night, he found Majid in a pub, drunk out of his senses.

Majid’s addiction problems reduced him to shell of a man by the late 80s. In a prince turned pauper story, he became a junkie, who would roam the streets in torn clothes and seek out reporters and ex-players, asking for money. He even migrated to Siliguri in North Bengal and started a transistor shop. When his friend had hit rock bottom, Jamshid performed one last act of kindness, summoning Majid’s parents from Iran to take him back. Majid remains out of limelight to this day, but he has reportedly cleaned up and coaches in Iranian lower divisions.

In contrast, Jamshid had a more productive career. He performed to a high level till the late 80s, before foraying into coaching. He settled down in India — his wife is an Indian and his son is an aspiring footballer. Jamshid has had a host of coaching assignments in the past two decades — from Mohammedan to Oil India or Calcutta FC in the lower divisions. By coaching Maharashtra in Santosh Trophy, he became the first foreigner to manage a state team in a national competition. Jamshid is also deeply involved with coaching at youth level – Indian U-17 World Cup squad’s star player Sanjeev Stalin was discovered by him.

Majid-Jamshid were the first successful foreigner combo in Indian football, and paved the way for later pairs who arguably achieved greater success. In the National Football League era, Brazilian Jose Ramirez Barreto formed a deadly combination with Uzbek star striker Igor Shkyvryn, while Vasco SC also had the potent pairing of Brazilians Rui Wanderley and Marcos Perreira. In the mid-2000s, Sporting Clube de Goa was powered by prolific Africans Dudu Omagbemi and Edeh Chidi. Bengaluru FC’s John Johnson – Curtis Osano and East Bengal’s Suleh Musah – Jackson Agyapong formed two of the greatest foreigner defensive partnerships till date. Statistically, the pair that overshadowed everyone else was Ranty Martins and Beto, who played a major part in Dempo SC’s all-conquering side of the nineties.

However, the impact of Majid-Jamshid cannot be measured by mere numbers. They came at a time when Indian football spectators did not have any exposure to European club football. The 1978 World Cup was sparsely telecast and there was no option to watch matches from England, Spain, or Italy. This made local football immensely popular, and footballers were treated as demigods. The early 1980s saw club football in India reach the peak of its popularity, and it was at this point that the Iranian duo burst into the scene, with their international quality. They not only had an impact in terms of cups won, but also changed the culture of club football. It was their success that triggered clubs into employing more foreigners. Even Mohun Bagan had to change their century-old constitution in the early 90s to accommodate foreigners.

There may have been statistically more successful pairs, but their pioneering effort, their cultural impact, the fact that they were actual friends, and the story of their meteoric rise and fall make Majid Bishkar and Jamshid Nassiri an incomparable duo in the history of Indian football.

References

[1] Appendix section of “Mohun Bagan East Bengal Reshareshi” Manash Chakraborty

[2] Ananda Bazar Patrika

[3] Khela Pujabarshiki 2000