'Maradona was a blessed singer too'

KOCHI: "Adios Diego Maradona, Goodbye Diego Maradona, Your hands were blessed to conquer the world, Your hands became the hand of God, Your hands and hugs touched me a lot, Your love with a smile will never die."

Charles Antony says these words were the very least he could come up with to pay tributes to the man, who in a way, changed his life. Charles' proficiency to sing in as many as 16 foreign languages, including German, French, Arabic, Italian, African, Korean, Japanese, Spanish and Mexican, had very few takers till October 24, 2012. But all that changed when Maradona visited Kerala and enthusiastically sang the popular Spanish song 'Besame Mucho' along with him, in an enthralling spectacle in Kannur.



"Maradona gave me a new identity. I had been a solo singer for many years, mainly singing in hotels. But not many people knew I could sing in so many languages. From that day in 2012, people started recognizing me as the person who sang with Maradona and that opened up a lot of new avenues for me and now I travel around the world with my music," said the 47-year-old Kochi-based singer who took inspiration from Elton John's 'Candle in the Wind' for

Princess Diana

to compose the goodbye song for Maradona.



Maradona's singing capability was revealing for Charles. "We all know him as the best footballer. But he was a blessed singer too. He sang beautifully. He hit the right pitch and was always in sync," said Charles who was the only person let in by Maradona to his room in Kannur as they bonded over music.

In 2017, when Maradona visited Kolkata, Charles again got the opportunity to share the stage with him thrice. Maradona had not forgotten the man who sang 'happy birthday' for him in the previous India visit. "In Kolkata, I was already on the stage singing while he was entering. There were so many dignitaries on the dais. But he came straight to me and shook my hands. What else could I ask for?" said Charles.

"He wanted me to sing whenever he saw me, whether it's in the hotel lobby or the restaurant. He liked old classics in Italian, Spanish and Cuban," said Charles who recently composed a song for Maradona's 60th birthday.

"There is no one else to replace Maradona. Even his name is special. A very down-to-earth person,he did not know how big he was. Sadly, he is gone too soon," added Charles.