Lionel Messi’s 39th birthday celebrations in Bengal’s Ichhapur
A tea seller in Ichhapur, West Bengal, continues his 12-year tradition of celebrating Lionel Messi's birthday with elaborate decorations and community festivities. The devotee expressed that he may end the tradition once Messi retires from professional football.
Why it matters
Illustrates the global cultural impact of sports icons and the deep personal connections fans form across borders.
The strangest journeys are not made by people but by affections. They cross oceans without passports, survive languages they do not speak and arrive in places they were never expected to reach. Somewhere along that improbable route, Lionel Messi travelled from Rosario to a narrow lane in Ichhapur, where a tea seller painted his house in Argentina’s colours and waited years for the chance to tell the world’s greatest footballer a simple Bengali blessing, “ bhalo theko ” (stay well).
A human-interest feature story with no political or controversial agenda.
Get smarter about the news
Sign up free for a feed built around what you actually care about, Dive Deeper research on any story, and the full text of every article.
Create free accountAlready have an account? Sign in