Ichhapur, a small city in West Bengal’s North 24 Parganas district, has lengthy been synonymous with a British-era rifle manufacturing facility.

The city, on the banks of Hooghly River, nonetheless, is now being related to a brand new, extra vibrant landmark — an ‘Argentina tea stall’ — which has develop into the ”designated fan membership” of soccer icon Lionel Messi and his nation Argentina within the football-crazy state of West Bengal. The three-storied home of Shib Shankar Patra in Nawabganj locality, painted in Argentine colors, and the stall that he arrange nearly 30 years in the past, has become the go-to vacation spot for soccer ‘adda’ within the area abutting Kolkata.

Numerous posters and portraits of Messi are scattered throughout Patra’s home and the tea stall, apart from Argentine flags and different merchandise.

The locality has been additional decked up for the FIFA World Cup, which obtained underway on Sunday. A big 120 toes by 20 toes flag and large posters of all of the 11 members of the Argentina crew participating within the World Cup now welcome guests to the stall.

A life-size statue of Messi was additionally put in in entrance of the store on Sunday, in a tribute to the Argentine wunderkind, who will play his final World Cup on this version.

”As you may see, this isn’t simply some other tea stall,” S Basu, a personal sector worker who usually stops by on his manner again house from workplace, stated.

”Everyone identifies this store because the Argentina fan membership of West Bengal. You can name it Argentina’s second house,” he stated.

A club-level footballer, Patra has been a die-hard Argentina fan since Diego Maradona’s 1986 World Cup glory.

But, Messi’s wizardry took his fandom to new heights, and in 2011, after watching the soccer star in entrance of his personal eyes throughout an exhibition match at a packed Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata, Patra determined to present his home and the stall an Argentina makeover.

”It was a dream-come-true to see Messi stay in motion. I couldn’t sleep for a lot of days,” Patra (54) advised PTI.

The interiors of his home, together with the wardrobe and door-panes are painted in shades of sky blue and white, colors related to the Argentine soccer crew.

Patra and his daughter Neha, who’s equally passionate in regards to the Argentina soccer crew, additionally undertake charitable actions, organising blood donation camps and distributing blankets to the needy. ”People flock to the stall and interact in passionate dialogue about soccer. It’s not simply restricted to Argentina; followers of Brazil, France, Portugal and different international locations additionally assemble right here,” Patra stated.

”This can be his Messi’s final World Cup and all of us need to make it particular,” he added.

Earlier this yr, the theme of Neha’s marriage ceremony, too, was Argentina.

”The conventional costumes have been all in white and sky blue colors in the course of the ‘Mehendi’ ceremony. The pandal and the sweets additionally had a definite Argentine look,” Patra’s nephew Soumen stated, displaying movies of the ceremony. ”I’ve grown up seeing my father’s ardour for Argentina and soccer, and we are going to move this on to our subsequent era,” Neha stated.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse employees and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)