Hollywood actor Morgan Freeman was mistaken for the anti-apartheid hero Nelson Mandela who died on December 5, 2013 at the age of 95 in Johannesburg, South Africa.
The billboard stands beside the road in Coimbatore in India as to pay tribute to the late South African President.
A large image of Morgan Freeman was featured on the billboard alongside the smaller photos of Mahatma Gandhi, Mother Theresa and Martin Luther King Jr.
The text caption written in Tamil language was translated by Huffington Post as it read:
“Among today’s politicians who cannot think beyond the next election cycle, Nelson Mandela was a leader who thought of the well-being of future generations. He went to join Mother Theresa, Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King on 5.12.13. We bow down to him, proud to have lived during his time on earth and praise his message of love, non-violence and sacrifice. ‘The farmer may sleep, but seeds he planted never will.’”
The photo which was recently uploaded went viral in a micro-blogging site, “Twitter,” because instead of Nelson Mandela’s photo which can be seen on the billboard, somehow, Morgan Freeman’s face appear.
According to The Times of India, cloth merchant Chandrashekhar sponsored for the billboard as his way of showing respect to the late African leader. The merchant added that the printed image of Morgan Freeman instead of Mandela was the mistake of the designer
In 2009, Morgan Freeman portrayed as Nelson Mandela in the film entitled “Invictus,” in which the film later create confusion between them.
Nelson Mandela was dubbed as “true Gandhian” and a “great friend” by the leaders of India and a five-day mourning was given for his tribute in commemorating his legacy.