Cuttack/Bhubaneswar: The Silver City was eladed when their beloved ‘Bhaijaan’ Salman Khan greeted his innumerable fans in Odia at the historic World Cup Celebrations venue Barabati Stadium here Wednesday.
Meanwhile, India commenced their campaign at the ongoing HWC with a comprehensive 5-0 victory over South Africa at the Kalinga Stadium, Bhubaneswar.
“Odisha basinku mora namaskar. Bali Yatra kemiti chalichi? Jay Jagannath. Mu tumaku bhala paye (My greetings to the people of Odisha. How did the Baliyatra festival go? I love you all),” greeted Salman to the thousands of fans who had been eagerly waiting to have a glimpse of the superstar.
The entire stadium responded by cheering the actor as ‘Bhaijaan… Bhaijaan…’
Music composer and singer AR Rahman also graced the occasion and entertained his fans with some of his lively numbers before Salman overshadowed the venue with his presence.
Earlier, Odia film stars and singers Swaraj Barik, Elina Samantray, Bhumika, Dipti and Ashutosh entertained the spectators eagerly waiting for Salman. MP and film star Anubhav Mohanty and Arindam wished the Indian team best for their World Cup campaign.
Nevertheless, the entire evening belonged to Salman who was overwhelmed when a young fan breached the security and ran to the stage before touching his feet.
Earlier, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik felicitated members of 1975 title-winning Indian hockey team as part of the ongoing men’s HWC celebrations at the venue.
Patnaik felicitated team members with mementoes and shawls – Ajit Pal Singh, Brig Harcharan Singh, Ashok Kumar, Ashok Diwan, Brig HJS Chimni, VJ Philips, Varinder Singh, Aslam Sher Khan, P E Kalia, Leslie Fernandez and Onkar Singh. The family members of some deceased players were also present at the event.
Patnaik greeted the audience with his traditional Namashkar. “Today, we are organising a special programme for the ongoing hockey world cup. Are you happy with the show,” Patnaik asked the audience. Among others, Sports and Youth Affairs Minister Chandra Sarathi Behera and MLA Debashish Samantaray were present at the event.
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