Rahane receives red-carpet welcome, Natarajan taken on a chariot

Ajinkya Rahane, who captained India to a memorable Test series win in Australia, received a red carpet welcome when he arrived at his Matunga residence here on Thursday while pace bowler T Natarajan was taken on a chariot on arrival in his village in Salem district of Tamil Nadu.

Rahane held his little daughter Aarya and walked slowly on the long carpet laid out by the members of the society where he lives while a life-size poster of the batsman was pasted on one of the pillars, along with words "Congrats to Our Persistent Pillar" written on top of it.

A large number of his society members gathered near Rahane's home as people showered rose petals on him while dhol and trumpets played constantly. Chants of 'aala re aala Ajinkya aala' (here comes our Ajinkya) could be heard.