How Do You See Pakistani Telcos Relying on Indian Models for TV Ads?

Nargis-Fakhri

We have been told that a mobile phone company has shot a TVC for its upcoming promotion in which Nargis Fakhri, a super bold Bollywood movie star, was used as a model along with company’s local brand ambassador.

We are yet to get more details on this, but we are reliably told that Nargis Fakhri, the Rockstar heroine, will soon be featuring in Pakistani TVCs.

Its wasn’t long ago when we discussed the use of Indian production houses in Pakistani campaigns, in fact, there are large number of non-telco entities following this for quite some time – but the question remains there: Should we use Indian models and overlook Pakistani talent for our media campaigns?

As we argued before that Indian production houses are relied upon to meet tight schedules and to save some money too. But, if one may consider, how badly our local industry is getting hurt?

Using foreign studios and production houses with local models is one thing, but using a Bollywood Face is altogether a different story. One may also argue that local talent could not match with a the boldness of Nargis Fakhri, then probably you are neglecting Veena.

To know our readers’ viewpoint on this, we are arranging a poll below in which you can share your feedback (and thoughts in the comment section):

Tech and telecom reporter for over 15 years


  • Nargis fakhri
    Is half pakistani
    Y dont u research a little on the subject before posting stuff
    I guess i really need to stop following you because the last thing i want is misleading information

          • Yes, her father is Pakistani, that makes her half-Pakistani. Whether or not she has an overseas CNIC or not is a different matter.

            On a similar note, isn’t it strange that Muslims who have family from South Asia, even Muslims who have family from Pakistan, prefer to work with India? What could be the reason for that???

            • Good money , good promotion , global recognition and “respect” (of some sort) … which neither pakistani industry nor pakistani public will ever give to them.. yehi dekh lo k pakistani produced film “seedlings” is not being screened here in pak …why ? cuz “we” wont go see it and “appreciate” hence no buisness … on the other hand they screened it in international festivals and got rave reviews and even won awards … so to sum up … who to blame ? ourselves …for not appreciating our ppl

              • You forget one aspect: many of our “indie” movies that win awards outside Pakistan are not screened here because some idiot on the film board is upset at them. Like Slackistan, probably a lame movie, but because they make fun of Taliban, no, it cnanot be shown here.

                • Slackistan had some explicit language that if they had cut out the film wud lose its essence … although the film sucked Big time … the censor board shd hv allowed tht movie … so yes i agree with you .. our ppl at censor board are stupid … they ll probably ban their next upcoming film Gol Chakkar cuz the kid in the trailer was giving middle finger …

                • Slackistan was a nightmare just like this website which now relies on sensationalism for its hits. Nargis Fakhri has a Pakistani father and she was not born in India. Furthermore, she only did one movie.

                  • Sound like this in point of USA Osama bin ladan is muslim & he is terrorist so all muslims are terrorist? defiantly no
                    SO what ever her father is pakistani or not she is not pakistani :)

                    • So you’re using warped reasoning by the US to justify calling someone born of a Pakistani parent not a Pakistani?

                      So tell us, my good man, what makes a Pakistani a Pakistani? I understand you think Zardari is a Pakistani but she isn’t, despite ALL WE KNOW Zardari has done.

      • Neither does she have an indian passport
        SO your perspective is now even harder to understand Are you against Indians or Foreigners altogether ?
        FYI: She was an established international model before coming to India and when you advocate Veena Malik as a substitute.. I cant help but laugh

        and I am sorry but your article is nothing more than a cheap brainless stereotypical writeup trying hard to create a heads up without even an inch of sanity

        Stupidly Stupid Post

        • You seem high tonight. The guy has asked for readers opinion. you can vote and get rolling. he didnt imply a trend or advocate anything.

          and btw if you look at poll, it tells a different story unlike the haters who here just to troll

      • Does she needs a pakistani passport to be a called a pakistani? Constitution of pakistan gives her the right to ask for a pakistani passport at anytime she likes because of her father

  • How Do You See Pakistani Telcos Relying on Indian Software for Operations?

    We have been told that a mobile phone company has used Indian-sourced software for its upcoming feature in which some outsourced developer company in India, was used to write the code along with the company’s project manager.

    We are yet to get more details on this, but we are reliably told that the Indian company, doing outsourced development, will soon be used for more Pakistani projects.

    Its wasn’t long ago when we discussed the use of Indian software houses, in fact, there are large number of non-telco entities following this for quite some time – but the question remains there: Should we use Indian developed software and overlook Pakistani talent for our telco services?

    As we argued before that Indian software houses houses are relied upon to meet tight schedules and to save some money too. But, if one may consider, how badly our local industry is getting hurt?

    Using foreign software companies with local project managers is one thing, but using an Indian Face is altogether a different story. One may also argue that local talent could not match with a the boldness of Indian software ninjas, then probably you are neglecting Netsol.

    • Irrelevent. Does it mean that you should import eggs even when you have eggs in your country just because dont have enough expertise in software programming?

      shahid sb thora control karya karo kadi tay

      • You are wrong, it is PRICISELY THE POINT I was trying to make (fun off): we DO have expertise here, yet we import software from outside. Same way, we DO have models and tv actresses here but we import them from outside.

        Try to understand analogies and satire.

      • saqib mansoor zyda dramey bazi nahi kar ,tu shahid saleem ka koi janney wala ho ga ya khud sahid saleem hi ho ga aur proxy use kar raha ho ga,you both are non sense

      • Welcome to the club of elites
        now u r amongst the two most hated people on this site hopefully ull have a better faith then us

        • In a country of ignorant people, someone who can read and write and do math without a calculator is “elite”.

  • I dont know what the big deal is, are we that paranoid? On one side, everybody is supporting peace and on the other, we come up with such useless arguements. First off, its a choice a company has whether to make ads/get software from Pakistan or get it from another country. How come no one complains on MoutainDew ads which have not been made in Paskistan (just one exmaple). We watch indian movies, and if the government bans them, we shameless watch bootleg copies. We do the same with indian tv serials. I mean how hypocritical can we get?

    • i totally agree with you dear we should be clear in our thinking … also its not bad to have indian model in our ads … our singers and actors are also doing indian ads and they never complained abt that … so whey we are so narrow minded?

      • It is the product of lots of effort and money put into preparing the minds of a number of generations, especially those that grew up during the Zia era, myself being one of those. So, it will take some time coming out of this Indian paranoia. Same is the situation on the other side of the border BTW, but somehow they are doing a better job coming back to normalcy.

    • Very rightly said. If we team up with a non-Indian foreigner, there is nothing wrong in it, rather we name it an “opportunity to learn new technology and technique which helps us build capacity of our industry”, but when there is any Indian company or person involved, our view point changes completely and our “Patriotism” comes into play.

      When will our nation get out of this paranoia and start taking things objectively. It is an open world and we should be ready to be competitive in price and quality, to win the projects. Pakistan has been doing well on many fronts and I believe we can lead the other avenues too.

  • How Do You See Bollywood musicians/directors Relying on Pakistan actors and singers for their Music or movie?

    They should stop because paki people don’t want indian models in their tv ads… #Joke

  • I’d not mind an indian actress in Pakistani ads but a model like Nargis Fakhri is not understandable. a model who has done topless shoots can do more damage to your brand than benefiting it.

    • Veena malik also did those nude shoots that were not so partial as described by herself and some media personalities . Still we saw her on a channel doing a religious program in ramdan (not promoting a brand but promoting your religion to the world) . SO whats wrong in getting Nargis to Model in a telecom Ad ?

  • Sharam nahi aati pakis ko, married woman hai bache bhi hain us k baare mai discuss krahe ho.

    [Comment Edited]

  • companies save money by making single ad for both countries and our actors are not paid our production houses not paid only channel gets cheese …..

    so to my poor thinking its harming our media industry ( the production and actors )

    and same i believe is true for indian hd tv receivers …

    country loses money in an illegal way …
    i think at least our agencies should check this sort of trade its there work …..

  • And Let me tell you one more thing is may sound very bitter and hard to digest BUT it is my personal experience based on which i am saying this that “Pakistani people are far less professional than indians /Bangladeshi /Srilankans .
    I am a full time freelancer and i am into this from many years now , I have interacted with all kinds of people around the globe and i found People of my own country far less supportive & unprofessional.
    I have to outsource many projects and i am always looking to hire Awesome talant , Every time I prefer a local contractor and contact them because 1- they are very talented
    2- naturally that person will be very supportive to me coz of same nationality
    BUT Each and every time I got disappointed because as soon as ppl from Pakistan see that a local guy is hiring their attitude takes a 180 degree turn , the communication turns very rude and professionalism vanishes away , I don’t know what is this thing … I always end up hiring someone from india , srilanka or someone from west ..
    I know how hard it is to produce a good result and what is a good price of the work i am looking for so i always maintain a high end budget that even people from U.S feel happy to work on the projects.
    I even hire people from Pakistan 6 times 2 of them were outstanding and i use their services regularly , however 4 of them were nightmares , even they do not listen to the feedback and just want to handover the money… One time a contractor was suppose to work on a presentation for me , I send him all the details and mentioned specific things to do , when he sent me the draft it was galaxies away from what i asked him to do, and when i pointed out Politely ,he just flipped out, lost him mind and Started shouting “I KNOW ALL THE PAKISTANIES ARE THE SAME , IT IS MY MISTAKE THAT I TOOK PROJECT FROM A PAKISTANI ..bla bla ” and rest of it can not even classifies to be mentioned here… I was shocked, i told him to calm down as this is how it works you have to be professional here this is not your Facebook chat , serious stuff is going on here but he preferred to be get banned from the freelance site ,sadly.

    Since that day i decided not to even invite Pakistani contractors to my projects . because i want my work done and i can not care less about people who do not care of themselves.

    I am not saying that Every one out there is same, Pakistani people are best at their game in every field , but they change faces as soon as they see there fellow country men along side them..
    Is this something to do with jealously or something ?? I don’t know…
    I also didn’t want to share all this but this Article just begging me to share this whole story of “WHY A PAKISTANI COMPANY GOES ON HIRING PEOPLE OUTSIDE PAKISTAN ” !!!

  • With the previous history of such activities like Jazz apa hai ….. and model indian lolzzz
    Is it again Mobilink i am wondering…

  • i agree with aamir, we should promote our own actors and actresses … and if we are lacking in technology then take help in this area from indian or any other country … in the past companies have made a mistake but they should not repeat it .

  • @Aamir atta, your nationalism needs to come out in a better way than to discuss models or actresses of X country being used for ads of X business in Pakistan. This is not about ignoring local talent, rather it is about going for something that is better in the sense of ad making. I don’t think anyone in their right mind would disagree to the fact that India is far superior to us when it comes to media, especially ad making.

    Our nationalism has infected us to the level that we just cannot admit that we lack in more than a few things and we just need to get them for other countries who are better at it. You by no means can judge the intent here.

    As for boldness, I doubt she would be seen being “BOLD” in the ad but have you actually seen current telco ads about dosti packages and numbers?? Are they not just as bold?

    • When i advocated for a Pakistani CEO in Telenor or Zong, wasn’t that nationalism too? But it appears you weren’t much bothered then.

      When I praised Nokia for exporting talent to lead regional headquarters, wasn’t that nationalism too? But you weren’t concerned enough then to label me a nationalist.

      Boss, its nothing about nationalism – rather an opinion, on which I asked for users’ comment.

      Thanks for recording yours, I always appreciate your contribution.

  • I just hate any TVC that casts models from anywhere else…. Why afterall why we need people or ideas from outside. Can’t our own people do better then them????

    This shows the inferiority complex or may be lust somewhere deep inside the genes of marketing teams who prefer imported TVC like Surf Excel, Harpic etc etc…. They are just idiots. No such TVC is ever appreciated by public but such morons still can’t overcome their inferiority complex & produce something good from their own intellects.

    • 9/10 of the ads you see on tv are either for products produced outside Pakistan or designed/developed outside Pakistan, or sold by companies with foreign investment stake.

      That does not bother you.

      Yet the fact that hte actors are not from Pakistan upsets you.

      WOW.

      Here you sit, on your non-Pakistan built chair, using your non-Pakistan-built computer, browsing the internet on a non-Pakistan built wifi router or wimax or whatever, and you complain that the FACE shown to you on your non-Pakistan built tv is not from Pakistan.

      • Shahid, you are imposing your thoughts on others. If someone is not comfortable with seeing a foreign face, let be it.

        As someone mentioned above, if you have eggs in your home – you won’t be going outside to get the same eggs. But for vegetable, that you don’t grow yourself, can be bought from someone else. Now for anyone it is perfectly alright to not to like those eggs that were available at home, or otherwise the vegetables that were bought from the market.

        You can dictate someone to like something.

        • — You can dictate someone to like something.

          But talent is not equally distributed, unlike eggs. You cannot say any local actor is the same as Arnold for example. Similar in many ways, but they do not have the same appeal.

          Similarly, you cannot say a laptop manufactured by Foxconn that is an Apple product is the same as a laptop that is not an Apple product, even if they come from the same factory.

          • Lol at Arnold, The thing is that there is a big majority in Pakistan who still have pride in their minds, and one more thing I would like to say Pakistani people look much better than indians, and you can trust me on this. So why not use Pakistani talent instead of foreign?

            and shahid GET OFF YOUR KNEES For God sake.

            • Last I checked, there were more pictures and posters of Bollywood actors/actresses sold in shops here than Pakistani actors/actresses. So by that yardstick, the public doesn’t believe we look “much better”. Who do we have that is better? Meera? Veena? Humsafar actors and actresses? Get real.

              — and shahid GET OFF YOUR KNEES For God sake.

              See, here’s the difference between you and me. I don’t believe Pakistanis are better. Imagine if you can a world in which you were born just 500 miles east of your birthplace, but were still Muslim, etc. Would you want Pakistanis to dislike (not hate but not like) you simply because (despite being a Muslim) you are not a Muslim?

              That is your attitude, not mine.

        • My brother its not about the eggs
          Yes we have eggs and yet we still import them, there are only two logical reasons one they are cheap or they are better in quality
          Well the later would be true in miss fakhris case, shes a better then product then whats available in our markets currently.
          Regarding imposing his thoughts well mr atta now u r the one getting personal and throwing off weight, he simply countered the arguement with a logical arguement,

      • Well Shahid, I agree to your words & in no way I am saying that I hate the model because she is Indian. I just want my people to have pride in their own selves. Read my post again, I am talking about the inferiority complex within our own people & because of this complex, they prefer others’ things over our own. Yes 9/10 things are imported & I’m against that also but unlike Mullah’s I don’t say importing things is haram our say B.S like Coke contains alcohol or it is polluted by HIV infected blood. I just want my people to love their own identity like Chinese, like Japanese, like Americans, like Britishers, like Australians & even like Indians.

        • FYI, alcohol in coke is not BS. It’s a fact. But the amount of alcohol in coke or pepsi is maybe 100x less than the amount of alcohol in fruit juices.

          http://quezi.com/14067

          You can find similar results in many places.

          If you tried to get drunk from alcohol you would die of probably kidney failure or something else long before you got drunk.

        • — I just want my people to love their own identity like Chinese, like Japanese, like Americans, like Britishers, like Australians & even like Indians.

          I want people to love only one Identity: “Muslim.”

          That is the difference between me and most people I argue with. There is for example no difference between a Muslim in Lahore and a Muslim in Amritsar: both can choose to drink alcohol or pray five times a day (or both).

          • I don’t agree with you in that all Muslims have one identity…. NO, it isn’t like that & it is even against the teachings of Islam as well… Majority of muslims of these days make the same mistake when they claim that their only identity is “A Muslim”. This is not a religious forum & I am not interested in religious debate but as per Quran, Allah divided people into different ethnic groups so that we may have our identity & may recognise & differentiate each other. This is the summary meaning of a Quranic verse. Also this isn’t racism, this is self pride & respect which I Islam supports. Racism is when one thinks he is superior while pride which Iqbal termed as “Khudi” is not feeling lesser or being ashamed of one self. But Iqbal again made the mistake of saying that Muslims have only one identity. NOOOOO, if that was the intention of Allah then there was no need for different languages on earth which again Allah says that He blessed human beings with language. There are other verses & 10s & 10s of Ahadith as well on the subject of National Pride & identity. But as I said earlier, this isn’t a religious forum & everyone has his own view point which is perfectly OK for me. But whenever I say something, I have strongest belief on that as well & also I am thoroughly convinced with everything that I believe.

            • That’s okay, I think you can be Muslim and hate curry dishes :):):)

              What I mean (and what you don’t cover) is the concept in Islam of Ummah.

              — Also this isn’t racism, this is self pride & respect which I Islam supports.

              Have you read none of the hadeeths about “asabiyah?”

              http://www.al-islam.org/fortyhadith/8.htm

              Note: alislam.org (without the -) is the ahmadiyya site. This is not that site.

              • There are other ahadith as well like “Watan se muhabbat iman ka hissa hai”.

                The word “Ta’asub” in urdu originates from “Asabiyah” & it is self explanatory that Ta’asub is something totally different. Ta’sub means considering others to be inferior than yourself i.e you are a proud & arrogant person, this was very common in arabs. While loving your own identity is something different. I am Punjabi & I love punjabi pagri but this doesn’t mean I should first hate sindhi topi to prove loyalty with Punjab. However if I consider pagri to be less attractive & start wearing Sindhi topi or an English hat, don’t speak mother tongue with my children, abba g ko apne friends se milwate hue sharam mehsus krun k ye paindu lagtay hain gher mei arbi guest ajae to arabic dress pehen lon, indian ajae to dhoti pehen loon etc, then I am certainly fallen deep into inferiority complex. Example seams a bit odd but it fits well on our national character. We disown our own things, our own culture, our own language, our own products, our own people… everything. We love to buy chinese rice & chinese cloth but if the same cloth comes back with a foreign sticker, then it is OK for us because the shoe licker within ourselves is happy then. This inferiority complex has led us to produce Mullahs with artifical arabic voices & ascents, fake bhai chara, Talibanisation & 3rd class liberalisation, en-even & unstable friendship aka aman ki asha with neighbours becz we are unstable from deep inside so how can we maintain a balanced relationships with others?

  • i am not understanding one thing that if we are using their technology and technique with our own models and human resources what is the haram in this …

  • How come the topic shifted to Nargis (Indian models in Pakistani TVc) was the under discussion thingy. Please people focus on that

  • yaar samaj nahin aya rehe loog kyun fazool main behas kar rehe heen … kyun model indian hai tu masla hai … agar ise ke jaga angelina jolie ya koi hollywood model hote tu kaya taab saab jayeez hu jata …

  • Farooq Awan hosh mein aao! Why PTA is silent over these ads policies. Kia is ka notice bhi Chief justice lae ga.

  • Now the question will be who is going to be the male model Ali Zafar or Atif Aslam??? as i am pretty sure Mobilink is the telcom Company behind this and it will be a big step for the future career growth of the wanna bees like Ali Zafar and Atif Aslam.

  • totaly agree with shahid saleeem and stone here. These are our double standards… Dual faces…. Patriotism ka raag ilaapna… Pr hmesha imported cheezain Use Krna. Khud kuch krty Ni… Or dusron pe her cheez ka ilzaam… I dnt knw pakistan mai her cheez ka taluq India or America se Q jora jata hai….
    These are multinational companies… Not Orignated from pakistan… If they import their products… Then why they cant import models for their ads????
    I

  • no india. wo kitny pakistani actor apni ads may layty hain?or jb tk kashmir ka masla hal nai hota. Aaman ki asha or sub fazul bakwas hy.

  • what wrong with that… why you are always making issues out of nothing… our start also going there… our signers (like Atif, Rahat)are are working there.. same goes with our actors like Ali Zafar… stop being Hippocrates there is no harm is using each other talent…

    your this blog post makes “BAL THAKURAY’s” statements right when he always oppose Paki talent in India.

  • I am not an Indian neither a fan of Gandhi.I am a Muslim.But Gandhi ones said
    “We will win war of media over Pakistan”

    And they already did that.
    What A Shame…..

  • Oh I didn’t read all the comments lols.So you guys think that there is nothing wrong in this?
    Well in one sense it’s not new because nowadays stupid Indian actresses are already being used in the ads.
    They are not being hired, they are being used.
    And one thing more “WHERE THE HELL IS AAMIR LIAQAT BANGAlI? huh”
    Don’t know?? I know, he must be in a cocktail party and singing “HEY YO SHARE RAMAZAN YO YO”
    Buhaahahahahhahhahhahhahahhahahaa

  • Well, The Point is where they can get Quality, We lack Quality and thats it. Only the Ufone TVCs are the one which are liked and are talked about. Rest you see dances and nothing else.

  • Ufone uses a lot of Brazilian models. Many of which do swimsuit shots very often. However, they are kosher. Seriously, this website is getting useless by the day.

  • It does not matter whether it is good or bad. But in Pakistan everything happens. So get ready to see indian models in Pakistani Ads. Maybe it will aware our industry to enhance their talents

    • When a great percentage of our country wants women in purda, what “talents” will they enhance?

      • not a great percentage my dear. otherwise there will be no commercials, no movie cinemas, no fashion shows in our city.

        • Have you ever gone over the bridge to Cantt from Gulberg in Lahore? I have overheard ordinary people talking out loud about the ads on that bridge saying it’s unacceptable how the women are dressed in the ads.

  • The
    core concept is revenue save, its just not about indians, its about foreign
    stars/production houses/facilities, by paying them you’re directing your money
    out of the country. everybody needs to work on the fact to make things possible
    within our borders to strengthen our economy.


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