Earlier today, social media websites were rife with screenshots of a tweet allegedly posted by Indian cricketer Virat Kohli in which he was seen lavishing praises on Lovely Professional University(LPU) for sending a big number of Olympians.
The screenshot of what appeared like a tweet posted by Kohli read: “What a record, 10 per cent of Indian Olympians are from Lovely Professional University. I hope LPU will send students to the Indian Cricket Team also. Jai Hind @LPUUniversity”.
Initially, it was a bit difficult to discern whether the screenshot was genuine or an internet meme created to take a dig at the prolific cricketer and the Lovely Professional University. The fact that there was no timestamp in the tweet featured in the screenshot and nor did the tweet appear on the cricketer’s official Twitter account only added to suspicions that the post might be photoshopped.
But to everyone’s surprise, the post was authentic and was shared by Virat Kohli himself on his Instagram account. In his post on Instagram, Kohli said, “India needs 10 more LPUs. Best of luck to the 11 LPU students who are representing India at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. Truly a great achievement!” Along with the message, Kohli shared three pictures, one of them being the screenshot that went viral and the other two being about the Lovely Professional University and the 11 athletes from the LPU that were part of India’s Olympics contingent.
Since Indian cricket team captain Virat Kohli commands a huge following on various social media platforms and is amongst the most followed athletes on Instagram, the screenshot of his Instagram post instantly went viral, with his ardent followers flooding the internet with the screenshots of his laudatory post on the Lovely Professional University.
Netizens mock Kohli after he praised Lovely Professional University in an Instagram post
The reaction to Kohli’s post encompassed a range of emotions, with many mocking the cricketer for paid promotion of the university while others wondering the amount he may have possibly charged for promoting them. Still, others said they thought the post to be a meme, uploaded by a meme page and not by the captain of the Indian cricket team.
One of the users on Twitter said Kohli fans are so inspired by the University’s record that they have given up their IIT aspirations and are now lining up to get admissions at the LPU.
Kohli fans so inspired they dropped IIT and NEET preparations, all of them joining LPU
— Abhishek (@ImAbhishek7_) July 27, 2021
Another Twitter user mocked Kohli, saying if he had been an LPU graduate then India would have won in the finals.
I wish virat kohli had passed out from LPU, then he could have easily won the finals i guess. Just saying 😜 @imVkohli pic.twitter.com/v1r8mt89HS
— Siddharth Swain (@SiddharthMsdian) July 27, 2021
Commenting on Kohli’s LPU post on Instagram, a Twitter user said the cricketer’s 99 per cent tweets and Instagram posts are paid. The user said Kohli earns so much from Cricket and it is still not enough for him that he is choosing to indulge in paid promotions.
Virat Kohli’s 99% tweets and Instagram posts are paid! Aaj to bhai ne LPU ko bhi promote kar diya! He earns so much money from Cricket, still its not enough!
— Kaushik (@_ShadowThrone) July 27, 2021
A similar gamut of emotions was also elicited on Virat Kohli’s Instagram post where he praised the LPU for sending 11 athletes to India’s Olympics contingent.
An Instagram user replied to Kohli’s post saying he thought it was uploaded by a meme page. Another user asked how much did Kohli charge for advertising Lovely Professional University. Many users posted in disbelief if it was really Kohli who uploaded the promotional post on LPU.
On Kohli’s post praising LPU for sending Olympians, one of the Instagram users sarcastically commented: “That’s why we are not winning any medals.”. Another Instagram user said the Olympians chose Lovely Professional University so that they won’t have to study. Another social media user replied: “5 cr in the pocket”, apparently the amount that Virat Kohli supposedly charges per post for promotions on Instagram.
While 11 of the total Olympians representing India are indeed from Lovely Professional University, but Kohli’s overly unctuous post left people wondering if was part of a paid promotion that celebrities usually undertake to augment their incomes.
