Malayalam superstar Mammootty visited Sri Lankan cricket legend Sanath Jayasuriya on Tuesday. The ace actor called on the cricketer as he reached the island nation for a film shoot.
Jayasuriya was recently appointed Lanka's tourism ambassador amid the unprecedented turmoil the island nation has been witnessing following an economic crisis.
The former swashbuckling batsman, who won a world cup with Sri Lanka was delighted to host Mammootty.
"It was an honour to meet Senior Malayalam actor
@mammukka . Sir you are a true super star. Thank you for coming to Sri Lanka. I would like to invite all Indian stars & friends to #VisitSriLanka to enjoy our country," Jayasuriya tweeted on Tuesday.
The tweet is a clear indication of Lanka's aggressive campaign to reopen its once flourishing tourism industry in a bid to stabilise the fallen economy.
Mammootty is in Sri Lanka for the shoot of a film which will be part of a Netflix anthology of 10 films written by legendary Malayalam writer M T Vasudevan Nair. Ranjith is directing the film.
Promoting Ramayana trail
Earlier this month, Jayasuriya had said his country would concentrate on promoting the Ramayana trail to Indian tourists. He had made the statement after a meeting with India’s High Commissioner in Colombo, Gopal Baglay.
“Sri Lanka’s newly-appointed tourism brand Ambassador, cricket legend @Sanath07 met High Commissioner today. The meeting focused on strengthening ties between the people of India and Sri Lanka and promoting tourism as an instrument for economic recovery,” the Indian High Commission tweeted after the meeting.
Sri Lanka has been witnessing one of the worst economic crises since its Independence in 1948. The government declared bankruptcy in mid-April by refusing to honour its international debt.
India has been at the forefront of extending economic assistance of nearly USD 4 billion to Sri Lanka during the year.
On Monday, Jayasuriya had thanked India for supporting his country amid the crisis in his Independence-Day message to the neighbouring country. "A happy 75th Independence Day to all my friends in India and all over the world. Special thanks for being such a good friend to Sri Lanka during our time of need," he tweeted.
