Former goalkeeper P R Sreejesh.
Credit: Facebook/Sreejesh P R
Days after the Indian hockey team clinched a second medal in the sport for the country at Paris Olympics since 1972— famed goalkeeper P R Sreejesh's picture donning a traditional Kerala outfit standing under the international monument Eiffel Tower has gone viral on the internet.
In the picture, the 36-year-old Sreejesh is seen holding the bronze medal. He shared the image on his social media account and captioned it "Hey son...". Adding to the glory of Hockey India's victory over Spain, Sreejesh's picture donning a 'mundu' (traditional outfit in Kerala) grabbed much attention from netizens, including the sport lovers.
The caption used by Sreejesh reads "Eda Mone" in Malayalam meaning "Hey Son" and is a line from Fahadh Faasil's movie Aavesham.
Innate to traditions in the South Indian state, mundu is a sort of dhoti. It is a rectangular piece of cloth made out of cotton or silk and is donned by men. Sreejesh too made a style statement with the medal as he folded the mundu, wearing shades under the Eiffel Tower.
After the consecutive second bronze that India bagged in the sport, Sreejesh was one of India's flag bearers at the Olympics 2024 closing ceremony alongside Manu Bhaker who also bagged two bronze medals for India in the 10m air rifle event.
Sreejesh's post with his picture in the traditional attire from Kerala received a series of heartwarming comments wherein netizens also wished the Indian hockey team and the goalkeeper. "Proud of you. Watched all india maches and what a performance. Your contribution to this medal victory is enormous. Respect your decision to retire after this excellent performance.🌹 Congratulations," read one of the comments.
"Great sir Down to Earth", said another user while several others commented "Proud of you".
Sreejesh is now set to head the junior men's hockey team as coach. He announced his retirement after the historical win at Paris Games this year.