Playing Manya Surve was tough: John

New Delhi: Bollywood actor John Abraham says it was tough to portray gangster Manya Surve in 'Shootout at Wadala' as he did not have enough reference points for the real-life inspired character.

The 40-year-old actor-producer said their team had to take help from a veteran crime reporter, who has covered the Mumbai mafia for nearly two decades to get the details of that era right.

"Manya Surve is no more. It was the first case of an encounter in Mumbai. It's a very interesting character. He was a normal Maharashtrian boy, who wanted to be an engineer but somehow got into the thick blanket of underworld. We had few photographs of Manya Surve for our reference and took help from a veteran journalist. Sanjay Gupta (director) researched a lot," John told PTI.

The actor is playing an army officer in Shoojit Sircar's upcoming political thriller 'Madras Cafe' opposite Nargis Fakhri.

"As an actor, I have seen growth. I am not stuck in a particular genre. Be it 'Race 2', 'I, Me aur Main' or 'Shootout at Wadala', I am playing three different characters at the same time.

"'Madras Cafe' is a massive film and is being shot in eight different locations right from London, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, Colombo to Kochi and Delhi. I am playing an Army officer in the film."