Dev On Kolkata’s Messi Chaos: ‘We couldn’t do it while other states could’

The much-hyped Messi visit to Kolkata has ended up becoming a major embarrassment for the City of Joy. What was meant to be a historic footballing moment at Salt Lake Stadium instead spiralled into chaos, severely denting the city’s image. Amid the growing outrage, Messi event organiser Shatudra Dutta has been arrested and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has constituted a committee to probe what went wrong. From ordinary fans and common citizens to Tollywood celebrities, the fallout has been widespread. Thousands of supporters, many of whom had paid hefty sums for tickets, protested outside the stadium after failing to even catch a glimpse of the Argentine football icon, whose appearance remained tightly controlled.

Megastar-turned-politician Dev echoed the public disappointment. “We couldn’t pull it off, while other states have organised the same event. Of course, this makes me very sad. For the people of Bengal, it’s a dent and a black mark. But we also need to recover. Messi is an international figure and the authorities are looking into the matter. We must overcome this,” said the ‘Projapoti 2’ actor.

Meanwhile, actress Subhashree Ganguly faced severe trolling on social media for posting photographs with Messi, with many accusing her of enjoying VIP privileges while fans were kept away. Actor Ankush pointed out that the trolling stemmed from the extreme anguish of disappointed supporters who were denied what they had paid for with their hard-earned money.

Actor Tota Roy Chowdhury mentioned how heartbroken he felt after seeing young fans in Argentina jerseys crying outside Salt Lake Stadium after missing out on seeing their hero. Director Kaushik Ganguly, who also clicked a photograph with Messi along with his son Ujaan Ganguly, said the episode should prompt serious reflection on where one draws the line and how far is too far.