'Kiss on the foot' act angers Kerala's football fans

It might have been done out of excitement but a "kiss on the foot" act of a noted Malayalam football commentator, done to an Ukranian playing for Kerala Blasters in the Indian Super League during an interview, has evoked sharp reactions on social media platforms including from hardcore soccer fans.

Enraged netizens slammed commentator Shaiju Damodaran for doing the act in the name of "whole of Kerala" and dragging the entire Malayali community, while kissing on the foot of the foreign soccer player, a video of which had gone viral.

The controversial incident happened during his recent interview with Ukraine's Ivan Kaliuzhnyi for a YouTube channel.

Excited over the goal scored by the Ukrainian player against FC Goa in the ISL match in Thiruvananthapuram on November 13, Damodaran, in the video, could be seen suddenly keeping the left leg of the player on his lap and kissing the foot, saying that "this is not my kiss but the whole of Kerala."

"This is not my kiss. This is Kerala's kiss...the entire state wants to thank you to your leg," the commentator said while kissing the foot of Kaliuzhnyi.

Known for his peculiar style of articulation and commentary, Damodaran could be seen repeating "this is Kerala's kiss" statement several times when the foreign footballer felt uncomfortable and tried to pull his leg back.

Sharp reactions are pouring in the comment box of the new video in the YouTube channel.

An angry netizen criticised the commentator and asked him who gave him the right to drag the entire Malayali community for his "shameless act."

Another person urged Damodaran to tender an apology to Keralites for acting in a way that destroys their self-esteem.

"I am a fan of you (Damodaran) and the Kerala Blasters...but I don't belong to the Kerala which you mentioned about in the interview," he said.

Touching anyone's feet or kissing it is a purely personal thing but there was no need to drag the name of the state and its people in it, another netizen added.

Though the issue kicked up a debate, Damodaran was unavailable for comments.