Fan Male

Gautam’s story is symbolic of every Indian cricket fan’s passion. You could also call him a crazy cricket fan right out of a storybook. Except that he is not. Jain’s documentary is all set to tell Gautam’s life story. “We have always seen him on television. What we do not know is how he is as a person,and more about his life,” says Jain,adding that Gautam travels by bicycle to watch all the matches,“even those being held in Bangladesh.”

Born and raised in Muzaffarnagar,Bihar,Gautam has few ambitions other than watch India play. “He is a genuine cricket fan,not in it for the fame or notoriety that he has got. He has no money and is not treated well by the BCCI but he tolerates a lot simply for his love of the game,” says Jain.

Jain contacted Gautam after two months of research. “We spent months looking for him,even travelling to Bengaluru with a crew of seven people to try and find him before the India-England match. We were lucky that we did get in touch with him and he was willing to speak to us. Over time,we got to know each other better. In Bengaluru,we put him up in a room because he had nowhere to go for seven days,” says Jain.

Gautam used to do odd jobs before he quit everything to only watch Indian matches,informs the film-maker. The ‘cheerleader’ now lives on financial help from well-wishers. “During the India-Ireland match,we sat next to him and watched him in action. Pretty much the entire stand around us was fascinated by him,and knew him from TV coverage over the past nine years of India’s home games,” writes Jain on his blog. Jain,an economist turned filmmaker,is mostly known in India for his first film Andheri,about a young girl who runs away from home to face her worst fears on Mumbai’s crowded streets. The film travelled the festival circuit in 2010 and won many awards. “I was deeply inspired by India’s parallel cinema and films that had actors like Om Puri and Naseeruddin Shah starringin them,” he adds.