A song mocking Russian president Vladimir Putin continues to gain momentum a fortnight after its release. The catchy rhyme by Slovenian actor and comedian, Klemen Slakonja, has now racked up over three million views – more than the entire population of the central European nation.

Slakonja portrays the Russian leader in the viral video, entitled Putin, Putout, which has been widely praised on social media. It has also received its fair share of criticism from Putin's supporters.

The clip, which first aired on a Slovenian Eurovision auditions show, plays on the macho image often associated with Putin. In one of the more memorable moments of the video, Slakonja sings: "I run this freakin' show."

The video features the Slovenian riding a horse topless – a playful twist on the well-known image of Putin doing the same in 2009. The unapologetic parody also shows Putin tranquilising a tiger, a reference to the famous incident in 2008 when the former KGB spy reportedly saved a nearby camera crew from the jaws of the giant predator. It also takes a potshot at the president, saying: "You can have Winter Olympic games in 40 degrees".

Discussing the viral video, 30-year-old Slakonja said: "I want to connect people so that the people who love it, who love the person I portray, love the video. And the people who hate the person I portray also love the video."

In one of the more audacious takes in the video, the comedian can be seen baring his – ahem – bodily assets whilst performing in ballet-style tights.

Having parodied Pope Francis in 2013, Slakonja is quickly gaining recognition for his antics following the latest video and next up on his list are US presidential hopeful Donald Trump and German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Slakonja is hoping that the views continue to skyrocket to lure potential sponsors into supporting #TheMockingBirdMan project to mete out similar mockery to other famous figures.

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