Messi landed in Kolkata at 01:30 local time. Thousands lined the roads and congregated outside his hotel to catch a glimpse of him.
The day began with the meet-and-greet ticket holders first up from 09:00 to 10:30.
Then the day took a strange twist.
A 70ft statue of Messi lifting the World Cup was unveiled by the former Barcelona icon.
But he was not present - it was a virtual unveiling. He was on a video screen and pressed a button on a remote control. At this point a blue sheet dropped to reveal the huge iron structure.
Messi met with Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan before heading to Salt Lake Stadium for 11:30.
The plan was for him to be at the ground for an hour. He was gone after only 20 minutes and violence erupted because ticket holders did not get to see Messi among the throng of security, politicians and celebrities.
"Only leaders and actors were surrounding Messi. Why did they call us then? We have got a ticket for 12,000 rupees, but we were not even able to see his face," a fan at the stadium told Indian news agency ANI.
One angry supporter told the Press Trust of India news agency that people had paid the equivalent of a month's salary to see the eight-time Ballon d'Or winner.
"I paid 5,000 rupees for the ticket and came with my son to watch Messi, not politicians," they said.
"The police and military personnel were taking selfies, and the management is to blame."
There was supposed to be a friendly match, more of kickabout, with some local players but this did not happen.
Messi was whisked off to Hyderabad.