Malappuram celebrating Santosh Trophy festival

For matches beginning at 8 p.m., people are reaching the stadium from 6 p.m., many carrying Iftar kits

The football fervor is at its pinnacle in Malappuram, thanks to the ongoing Santosh Trophy tournament. For the people of Malappuram, football is a religion that unites them over and above their faith, profession, age and caste. They are celebrating the Santosh Trophy festival in every sense.

The celebration culminates when the host Kerala plays its game. The stadium at Payyanad, near Manjeri, was bursting at the seams when Kerala took on Rajasthan, West Bengal, and Meghalaya.

“All Kerala matches were a treat for us. Our team did not disappoint us, though they drew the match against Meghalaya,” says Manoj Kumar, an ardent football fan from Malappuram.

Malappuram is hosting Santosh Trophy for the first time. It is the biggest football tournament the district is hosting since it witnessed the group matches of the Federation Cup eight years ago.

“What makes Santosh Trophy so special in Malappuram is the ‘difficult’ time that it is being held. People are celebrating football in spite of being in Ramzan,” says Super Ashraf, aka Bava, a hardcore football lover and State general secretary of the Sevens Football Association.

For matches beginning at 8 p.m., people are reaching the stadium at Payyanad from 6 p.m. Many of them carry Iftar kits with them, and are seen sharing food with friends at Iftar time and doing prayers (namaz) on the gallery.

“We come to the stadium after doing ablutions, and we do break our fast when the sun sets and perform Magrib namaz immediately after that,” says Abdul Shukoor, a schoolteacher from Manjeri.