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How PUMA India brought thousands of Virat Kohli fans together to pay a unique Birthday Tribute
Leading sports brand, PUMA India created a massive 20ft face mural of the iconic Indian cricketer by using 5000 red cricket balls at Mumbai’s Carter Road Amphitheater.
Indian Cricket legend Virat Kohli turned 34 this November 5, 2022. To make this one special and celebrate the Champion and the fandom, the country’s number one sports brand, PUMA India and thousands of fans came together with mural artist Gurseet Singh to create a 20ft-by-20ft mural of Kohli’s face using 5000 cricket balls in a marathon nine-hour activity that began at 8:00 am.
To make it even more engaging PUMA organised a contest for fans named “Calling out #KohliCrew’ that included special artwork, Rangoli, poems, haircuts with VK initials, and Kohli-inspired tattoos. And even more, the best one was rewarded with a chance to meet Virat Kohli and a gift voucher. Some of the winners of the contest were Chirag for the best haircut, PS Rathor for hand painting, and Syam Sajeev for Toothpick Art.
The celebration became even more special with the presence of Virat Kohli’s childhood coach Rajkumar Sharma and several other sports personalities. The grand event included Indian cricketer Anuj Rawat, footballers Glan Martins and Anwar Ali, Indian swimmer Srihari Nataraj and Bhagwani Devi, a 94-year-old Haryana-based sprinter. Bollywood actor and Kohli fan Ishaan Khatter also joined in for the day-long celebration.
“It looks amazing and very creative from team PUMA and I will definitely send it to Virat as well. It fills my heart with great pride to see him getting so much love," Rajkumar Sharma said.
On the occasion, PUMA also activated its key stores across the country with Virat Kohli-themed- engagements to let fans express their love and admiration for the cricketer. The event was a one of a kind experience for all Kohli’s fans that attracted much traction on social media.
“Virat Kohli is a modern-day cricket legend and has a special place in the fans’ hearts. He is an inspiration to not only a legion of fans but even the professionals associated with the game. It was our endeavour to bring them all together and make it a special birthday celebration for one of the most complete batsmen of this era,” said Abhishek Ganguly, managing director, PUMA India and Southeast Asia.