IPL opening gala fails to lift off

Kolkata, April 7 (IANS) A lacklustre emcee in Saif Ali Khan, Shahid Kapoor almost taking a tumble and Mumbai Indians skipper Rohit Sharma stepping on a light were part of the IPL opening ceremony on Tuesday that veered from the script and seemingly failed to live up to expectations.

Starting after a rain delay, the gala event with performances from the likes of Bollywood heartthrob Hrithik Roshan and beauty Anushka Sharma among others failed to create a flutter as the twitterati got busy panning the show and targeting Saif who hosted it.

From calling it a "damp squib" to "Even mehendi ceremony of Indian weddings are more entertaining", people chose social networking sites to pour out their frustration.

"This may sound harsh, but Saif Ali Khan seems quite lost hosting this ceremony," tweeted one.

"#ThankYouSaif for spoiling such a great event like #IPLOpeningCeremony," posted another.

Rooting for their favourite cine and cricket stars, the crowd had a lighter moment when a seemingly fidgety Rohit stepped on a light while climbing the stage.

Looking embarrassed, the batsman managed to find his place on the stage but not before the crowd had a hearty laugh.

Shahid Kapoor too had his oops moment when he almost had a tumble while coming on to stage for his performance. Taking a few seconds to regain his composure, the actor immediately broke into his dance steps amid loud cheers.

A tweet "and finally the worst opening ceremony in global sports is over! *sighofrelief* #IPLOpeningCeremony" perhaps sums up the popular mood.