TV reporter Chand Nawab's viral video clip presented for auction

JournalismPakistan.com | Published: 30 August 2021

ISLAMABAD—Pakistani TV reporter Chand Nawab had no idea that his simple coverage of the Eid celebrations in Karachi will transform him into a celebrity.

"Karachi se log apnon mein Eid manane ke liye androoni mulk jaa rahe hain. Cameraman Kamil Yusuf ke saath, Chand Nawab, Indus News, Karachi." The viral clip showing him messing up what he had to say along with people walking through to the camera, adding to his annoyance.

The clip became so popular that it was enacted in the Bollywood movie Bajrangi Bhaijaan. Actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui played the role of Chand Nawab in the film and played this scene out.

However, the original viral clip has now been put up for online auction as an NFT (Non-Fungible Token) on a Foundation App website. Its minimum bid is at 20 Ethereum Tokens that amounts to around 90 lac in Pakistani currency.

The reporter, in the description, wrote, "I'm Chand Nawab, a journalist, and reporter by profession. In 2008, a video of me surfaced on YouTube in which I fumbled while reporting Eid Festival frenzy at a railway station. While reporting, I was contently interrupted by people; my fumbling and constant irritation made this video viral getting millions of views on YouTube and Facebook."

"My popularity again surged in 2016 when my viral video inspired Indian filmmaker Kabir Khan to create Nawazuddin Siddiqui's character in his 2015 blockbuster Bajrangi Bhaijaan. I got fame overnight, getting a lot of love and appreciation from India and Pakistan, especially from Bollywood star Salman Khan and other casts of Bajrangi Bhaijaan," he further wrote.