It was announced a day prior, in the area around the Maulana Bhashani National Hockey Stadium, that Pori Moni and her husband, Sariful Razz, would be coming to stadium. The aim was to give the new hockey franchise league a bit of a star-studded feel. It can be said, that this idea was a success. The arrival of both the stars at the hockey stadium generated a great amount of buzz and hype in the area.
The duo arrived at the stadium around 8:30 pm, yesterday. Many people were already sitting at the main gate of the stadium in Gulistan. The crowd began to increase, with the gate being at risk of being broken down at one point. Photojournalists were also at ready, to capture photos of the glamourous couples arrival. As soon as the two stars entered the stadium, the crowd immediately surrounded them. In the ensuing chaos and the crowd, Pori Moni and Razz could not even speak properly, as many were rushing to take 'selfies' with the two.
At 8:30 pm, when Sariful Razz and Pori Moni were on one side of the field, the players of Saif Power Group Khulna and Walton Dhaka stood in the middle of the field for the national anthem before the match.
The two stars were brought in as part of the hockey leagues promotional campaign, as goodwill ambassadors for the league. Earlier on Monday, the heroine of the film "Hawa", Nazifa Tushi, had also come to the hockey stadium for similar reasons. The organisers want to, for the first time ever, make the six-team hockey league attractive and interesting for fans. However, the number of fans in the galleries are quite low. On the first day of the league, October 28, there were still 3,000–4,000 spectators, including the VIP box seats. However, since then, the number of spectators has taken a decline—even though those in the gallery seemed to have had a good time.
Yesterday, during the break of the match, Pori Moni and Razz stepped onto the field with the hockey sticks. At that time, all the floodlights in the stadium were suddenly extinguished. The second half of the game began ten minutes later. Once the game recommenced, the two celebrities threw t-shirts into the crowd as gifts.
Finally, they went and spoke with the media in the VIP box, on the third floor of the stadium. However, initially, their baby began to cry, so Pori Moni took some time before speaking with the media. The actress noted that she had a great feeling after coming to the hockey stadium, saying, "Ever since we decided that we would be coming to the hockey field, there was a thrill at the back of my mind. After coming here, I was overwhelmed by the response from those in attendance. I feel very good."
Razz also echoed the same sentiment. He discussed hockey in Bengali cinema and shared how he hopes that hockey will continue to grow as a sport in Bangladesh. "Where hockey was in the 80's and 90's, in Bangladesh, I hope this new franchise league takes it even further. I was to see hockey thriving in Bangladesh, and I hope that we reach the international stage in this sport."
