‘The Kerala Story’: Mohanlal, Mammootty, CS Amudhan, Mollywood stars laud Sanju Samson leading India to T20 semi-finals

Director CS Amudhan lauded Sanju Samson for leading India to the T20 World Cup semi-finals on Sunday, as did many Mollywood celebrities like Mohanlal.

Following his historic knock against the West Indies in the T20 World Cup, congratulatory messages poured in for cricketer Sanju Samson from Mollywood celebrities. Director CS Amudhan highlighted Sanju’s win as ‘The Kerala Story’ and several Malayalam celebrities like Mohanlal, Mammootty, Tovino Thomas, Prithviraj Sukumaran and Dulquer Salmaan couldn’t help but laud the Kerala native.

Mohanlal and Mammootty lauded cricketer Sanju Samson for his play on Sunday. (X/Reuters)

Mollywood celebrities laud Sanju Samson

The Malayalam film industry gave the loudest cheers for Sanju, who took India to the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup 2026. Mohanlal shared the moment the cricketer looked to the skies after winning, writing, “Exhilarating to watch @IamSanjuSamson in such sublime form! A truly masterful innings that speaks volumes of his character and talent. Hearty congratulations to the entire Indian team for storming into the #T20WorldCup2026 Semi-Finals. Keep the flag flying high.”

Mammootty echoed something similar, writing, “What a knock, @IamSanjuSamson. Pure class. Pure dominance. A fearless statement on the biggest stage. Congratulations to the Indian cricket team for marching into the #T20WorldCup2026 Semi Final.” Dulquer Salmaan also took to Instagram to post a picture of the Indian cricketer, with clapping and heart-eye emojis.

Actor-filmmaker Prithviraj Sukumaran wrote, “One of the greatest T20 innings ever! That too in a virtual quarter final on the World Cup stage! @imsanjusamson.” Tovino Thomas seemed to agree, writing, “What an innings!! @IamSanjuSamson.” Kalidas Jayaram also expressed his pride, writing, “Proud of you Macha. (buddy).”

Prithviraj Sukumaran's lauded Sanju Samson.

Actor-filmmaker Basil Joseph, Nivin Pauly and several other celebrities also lauded Sanju’s never-give-up attitude. Tamil director CS Amudhan, who is known for the Tamizh Padam films, also lauded Sanju, writing, “THE KERALA STORY: Sanju Samson takes India to the semis,” taking a dig at The Kerala Story movies. And Prakash Raj simply wrote, “Thank you @IamSanjuSamson.”

Sanju Samson leads India’s win to semi-finals

Sanju Samson played one of his best innings and remained unbeaten at 97 off 50 balls in the match against West Indies in Kolkata. India won the match by five wickets and cruised to the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup. The team will now face England on March 5 at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.

"Shot selection was something I kept working on. I did not want to change too much because I knew I had performed with the same setup, so I kept believing in myself, switched off my phone, switched off social media and listened to my own self," Sanju said on Star Sports after India's five-wicket win on Sunday.