Meet the Voice-over Artist Behind That Famous ‘Phone Operator’ Voice

Saying ‘Aap ka matlooba number band hai’ is a real job!

Did you know that the person that annoys you with that “Aap ka matlooba number band hai [the number you’re calling is off]” does this for a living?

Yes, this is a real job and its done by a voice-over artist. In fact, voice-over artists also provide their talents for video games, animated movies and so on.

For the people that found phone operator voices annoying and robotic, Pakistan doesn’t do that. Most telecom companies’ in Pakistan including Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL) do not use a computer-generated voice (like Stephen Hawking used to).


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Now you must be wondering who is the nice lady who talks to you when:

  • the person you called isn’t picking up the phone.
  • you need to recharge your phone credit.

Meet Farheen Malik, Voice-Over Artist

That famous voice belongs to voice-over artist Farheen Malik. She was recently seen on television and we got to know all about her.

On Samaa News’ morning show Naya Din, the artist opened up on the struggles of getting people to believe that she’s the one behind that famous voice.

“It’s really hard to convince people that it’s my voice behind those famous phrases,………… Most people think that it’s a computer-generated voice.”

What’s a Voice-Over Artist?

Farheen didn’t know what a voice-over artist was till she became one. She too trained in the art to become a voice-over artist. Now she’s been doing this for over eight years.

“Before starting my career back in 2006, I never knew how to do voice overs or what the word even meant.”

Voice-over artists are the off-screen or unseen narrators in any commercial project. These projects range from radio ads and telecom responses, to narrations in a motion picture or television commercial.


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In Pakistan, most voice-over artists are radio jockeys. These people pick up voice-over gigs here and there. Some famous voice-over artists include Rj Wes Malik, Ishq Zah-e-Naseeb actor Khalid Malik, etc.

Meanwhile, we already know of Hollywood actor Morgan Freeman who is a famed voice-over artist as well. Then there’s Seth MacFarlane, Hank Azaria and the rest.

The Story Behind ‘Apka Matlooba Number

Farheen was rough around the edges when she first started off. In fact, it took her four months just to get it right.

With time, she has improved so much that she can now deliver 12-24 lines in one go.

“When I was hired for a telecom company, it took me four months to deliver the ‘apka matlooba number band hai bara’ay mehrbani kuch dair bad call keyjiyay’ [the number you have called is powered off, please try again later],”

Farheen studied to be an interior designer. But as fate has it, she found her calling as a voice-over artist.

Now she wants to work for animal welfare. She’s working to create a Medicare service for animals and plans to feed them as well.

“My aim is to start an ambulance service for stray animals that could treat animals on the spot,……….. Secondly, I am in talks with restaurants around Karachi to provide us with surplus food to feed to stray animals.”


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Given her struggles as in the field, Farheen stressed on the need to appreciate the works of such artists.

 “All over the world, voice-over artists are praised but in Pakistan, they are not even recognized for the work they do,”

via Samaa Digital