Monday, 15 December 2025
Monday, 15 December 2025
Lionel Messi’s three-day whirlwind tour of India saw packed stadiums, impromptu selfies, and encounters the Argentine superstar could never have imagined.
From meeting a paratha seller in Kolkata to suffering Delhi’s smog, here are the top five things that Messi experienced for the first time in his life during his G.O.A.T India tour.
Met Raju Da, Kolkata’s Salt Bae
Raju Da runs a humble paratha stall at Koley Market, just across Sealdah railway station in Kolkata.
He has more than 308k Facebook followers, courtesy Kolkata’s burgeoning food vloggers and, on 13 December, he added a new title to his growing résumé: “The guy who shook hands with Messi.”
No one knows why, Satadru Dutta, the main organiser of Messi’s India tour, promised he would make Raju Da meet Messi. Hearing the news, Raju Da had hoped he might actually feed Messi a paratha.
A day before the meeting, in a video that later went viral, Raju Da said, “Tomorrow is 13th. Tomorrow is my life’s mormantik day. Tomorrow I’m meeting Messi. Face to face.”
In a moment that felt like a tragicomedy, he called the meeting as "mormantik", his earnest attempt at saying "momentous," but landing instead on the Bengali word for agonising.
“It’s not possible to feed porotha. You can’t feed it to such a big person,” Raju Da said after the meeting, recalling the handshake that replaced the planned culinary moment. “I met him, shook his hand, talked to him, told him that I am a food seller, and he nodded. I am very happy. It was like a dream come true experience for me.”
No parathas were eaten, but for Raju Da, a handshake from Messi counts as a Salt Bae moment.
Virtually inaugurated a 70-foot-tall statue of himself
Kolkata unveiled a giant 70-foot statue of Messi on VIP Road, complete with a World Cup replica that stands eight feet tall, taller than Messi himself.
The footballer inaugurated it virtually, avoiding any potential imbalance between human and statue.
Even before the inauguration, the statue drew attention online, not necessarily for its likeness, but for its sheer… uniqueness. Social media erupted with memes, jokes, and comparisons.
Some said it looked like Cristiano Ronaldo, while others said it looked like Bollywood star Hrithik Roshan.
Messi saw a statue which looked nothing like him.
Tackled by a sports minister
Throughout his time at Barcelona, Messi used to dribble past the tackles of Sergio Ramos, Pepe and Marcelo with ease. There were moments when opponents stood in awe of the GOAT’s ability to glide past them. But something did not feel right on December 13 at the Salt Lake Stadium.
He was on a tour, probably the last place one would expect to be tackled. But Bengal’s sports minister, Aroop Biswas, had other plans.
Leo was unprepared, and Biswas pounced on the opportunity, holding him by the waist as if vying for the ball in a FIFA World Cup final. Only to Messi’s surprise, it was not a French or German defender around him. It was Biswas. Messi looked uncomfortable, yet smiled for a few photographs and left as soon as possible, eager to stay away from tackles and ministers alike.
Tikitaka with CM Reddy
In Hyderabad, Messi, along with Luis Suarez and Rodrigo De Paul, exchanged passes with CM Revanth Reddy. The chief minister seemed very excited when he stepped on the field with the GOAT. He tried setting up a few passes with the Argentine World Cup winner but failed.
While Messi’s passes were pin-point accurate, CM Reddy in his Arsenal jersey played it wide for Messi to get the ball. But the Argentine skipper was happy to run around and play with the ball as long as no one was holding him (like in Kolkata).
Experienced Delhi’s smog in person
Messi’s flight to Delhi, scheduled for the final leg of his India tour, ran into an obstacle far bigger than any defender: Delhi’s air quality.
Thick layers of smog and fog reduced visibility at Delhi airport, grounding flights and disrupting schedules.
Over 60 flights were cancelled and five were diverted. Messi, who has faced hostile away crowds and high-pressure qualifiers, had to adjust to a new challenge: breathing in a city where air quality was in the “severe” category.
