Everyone’s favorite viral Chinese influencer is back, and this time he brought along friends. The viral video of Chinese dressed as Daler Mehndi has Indians fuming for poking fun at their recent military setback.
The video, featuring a young Chinese woman and her friends dressed in flamboyant “Indian” costumes, lampoons the loss of India’s high-profile Rafale fighter jets to Pakistan’s Chinese-made JF-17s. The catchy, tongue-in-cheek song has become a sensation across social media, especially in Pakistan and China, and has left Indian netizens somewhere between fuming and facepalming.
The Viral Video: A Song, a Dance, and a Whole Lot of Trolling
In the now-famous clip, the Chinese performers don colorful turbans and toy airplanes, belting out a song in Mandarin that gleefully mocks the destruction of India’s expensive Rafale jets. The lead influencer, dressed in a traditional Indian outfit, joins the chorus, dancing and singing about the jets’ “operational failure” and the billions of rupees “down the drain.” The lyrics, loosely translated, go:
I bought a fighter jet, it got badly thrashed,What a shame, all the jets were destroyed. Not a single one came back, 9 billion rupees down the drain. Everyone is mocking us, it’s so embarrassing!
The video’s comedic tone and over-the-top costumes have struck a chord with viewers, racking up millions of views and sparking a flood of comments. One Pakistani user quipped, “Even the Chinese are mocking India more than we are,” while another called it “a major win for the J-10C jets of Pakistan and China.”
The Backstory: Why Did This Go Viral?
The influencer behind the video, known as HaoGege, is no stranger to satire. While most of his content pokes fun at Chinese pop culture, he’s discovered that anything involving India guarantees viral success—his India-themed videos routinely get 3-10 times more views than his usual uploads.
The latest song was actually inspired by a fan who, after the recent India-Pakistan clash, wrote the lyrics and challenged HaoGege to make a video. The result? Instant internet gold.
Chinese netizens have mostly found the video hilarious, with some adding their own sarcastic jabs. Others, however, have criticized the trend, arguing that it damages China’s image and stirs up unnecessary animosity. Reports even surfaced that the Indian government tried to get the video scrubbed from social media, allegedly pressuring platforms like X (formerly Twitter) to block thousands of accounts sharing the clip.
The War That Sparked the Meme
The meme didn’t come out of thin air. Earlier this month, tensions between India and Pakistan escalated dramatically. India launched missile strikes across several Pakistani regions, prompting a swift response from the Pakistan Air Force. In a move that stunned military analysts, Pakistan claimed to have shot down five Indian fighter jets—including three of the much-vaunted French-made Rafales, each costing a cool $250 million. The Pakistani side, meanwhile, relied on their Chinese JF-17s and J-10Cs, which cost a fraction of the price.
The aftermath was brutal for India’s image—and for the Rafale’s reputation. The incident sent shockwaves through defense circles worldwide, with the Rafale’s “invincible” status suddenly in question and the JF-17’s stock soaring. French defense manufacturers were left red-faced, while memes and jokes flooded the internet, further embarrassing India on the global stage.
