Ajay Devgn mourns demise of football legend Chuni Goswami

Mumbai: Ajay Devgn has taken to Twitter to mourn the demise of legendary former Indian football captain Chuni Goswami, and express condolences to his family.

Chuni Goswami passed away following a cardiac arrest in a Kolkata hospital on Thursday, after battling a prolonged illness.

Devgn has had the opportunity to spend time with legendary footballers from Bengal including Goswami and the late PK Banerjee during the Kolkata shoot schedule of his forthcoming movie, "Maidaan".

Talking about the same, Ajay Devgn tweeted on Friday: "While shooting Maidaan, I became acquainted with football legend Chuni Goswami's contribution to the sport. Heartfelt condolences to his family. #RIPChuniGoswami."

While shooting Maidaan, I became acquainted with football legend Chuni Goswami’s contribution to the sport. Heartfelt condolences to his family.#RIPChuniGoswami #Maidaan #IndianFootballLeague@iAmitRSharma @BoneyKapoor @IndianFootball

— Ajay Devgn (@ajaydevgn) May 1, 2020

The period drama "Maidaan" showcases the golden period of Indian football, and Devgn essays late legendary coach Syed Abdul Rahim. Last November, he shot a portion of the film in Kolkata.

Earlier, actor-filmmaker Devgn had also tweeted about his experience of meeting PK Banerjee when the legendary footballer passed away in March this year.

"Had the good fortune of meeting football legend PK Banerjee in Kolkata during the Maidaan schedule in November. Sad to hear about his demise. RIP, the man with the golden kick #PKBanerjee," the actor had shared.

For the last few months, Chuni Goswami was suffering from underlying ailments with sugar, prostrate and nerve problems.

Goswami was captain of the 1962 Asian Games gold-medal winning team.

The legendary footballer was also an ace cricketer, who also represented Bengal in the first-class cricket tournaments. He played 50 matches for India as a footballer from 1956 to 1964 while as a cricketer, he represented Bengal in 46 first-class games between 1962 and 1973.