MUMBAI: French-Afghan filmmaker Atiq Rahimi is in plans to cast Amitabh Bachchan in a film based on Rabindranath Tagore‘s story of an Afghan dry-fruit seller and his love for a little girl whom he takes as his daughter.

Though the story has been adapted a number of times for the big screen in the past, at least two versions of the tale have been made famous in films with Rahimi‘s being the third. It has been reported that Bachchan will reprise the role of the Kabuliwala made famous by Balraj Sahni in one of the earlier cinematic adaptations of the story. The film will be shot predominantly in Kolkata while parts of it will be shot in Afghanistan next year.

Though Bachchan is a veteran in the field of acting, people in the trade feel that it wouldn‘t be easy for him to fit into the shoes of actors who earlier played the iconic role of Rehmat Khan - Sahni and also that of Bengal‘s veteran actor Chhabi Biswas‘ interpretation of the same.

Bachchan has played an Afghan in Khuda Gawah. Meanwhile, he has been honoured by the Australian government for his remarkable contribution to the Indian cinema, which is celebrating its centenary year.

Said the veteran actor on his blog, "Another recognition by the Australian Government and its Commission here in Mumbai, in celebration for the 100 years of Indian Cinema, and my contribution towards fructifying the relations between the two countries... I am most humbled."

Last year, Bachchan was felicitated with an honorary doctorate by the Queensland University of Technology in Brisbane, Australia.