Reza Paratesh is a 25 year-old Iranian Model known for having a striking resemblance to the Soccer megastar, Lionel Messi. ^[1]

Reza is a student and is a resident of the western Iranian city of Hamedan. He is very close with his family and the people in the neighborhood. The person whom he has the closest bond is his father.

Along with his father, Reza is a Soccer fanatic. In fact, it is the father of Reza who came to refer to Reza as the double of Lionel Messi due to the striking resemblance he has of the godlike player.

In early May 2017, photos of Reza dressed and groomed as Messi began to emerge on the internet which has made Reza a meme-like phenomenon that has since gone viral.

And, as it was aforementioned, Reza's father began referring to Reza as the Messi double until one day he asked his son to put on a jersey and pose for a photo.

The photo was shown around to friends and it confirmed the striking resemblance around the neighborhood.

He began to groom his hair and impersonate the global soccer star.

As Reza says:

People in his hometown began courting Reza at every step he took in the streets.

His popularity has risen so much around the town that it became a distraction to local authorities.

In one instance where Reza was posing for photos with the dozens of people, the police took to him to the station and impounded his car.

He has since been released.