This 18 Year Old Former Chaiwalla From Pakistan Is Now a Model And Is Coming To Dubai To Shoot A Movie

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Only a few months ago 18-year-old Arshad Khan was just another face in the crowded Itwar Bazaar, or Sunday market, in the Pakistani capital of Islamabad, where he manned a tea stall. Since then, he has turned into a social media sensation. And that was just the start of major changes in his life that now comprises of modelling and acting. 

After an Instagram post of a blue-eyed ‘chai walla’ (tea vendor) from Pakistan went viral on social media, girls began swooning over the smoldering looks of the 18-year-old Arshad, while boys are busy making memes on Pakistan’s chai walla.

This is the original image that went viral.

A photographer in Islamabad, Jiah Ali, was wandering the streets of Sunday Bazaar when she came across this ‘hot-tea’ and shared his picture on her Instagram handle on October 14. Much to her surprise, the picture went viral and soon her discovery became the subject of interest of many, becoming the top trending topic in Pakistan.

Since the photo was taken Khan got a makeover

Makeover

From the moment of his discovery, Arshad Khan became big news after appearing on TV shows, starring in a music video or signing his debut movie.

In November, Khan appeared in a rap video titled Chaiwala.

Arshad will be in Dubai in January to film his first movie, Kabeer.

The plot is about a man from humble beginnings who takes on a life of crime but redeems himself to become good again. Khan plays a prominent role as the hero’s younger brother.

Kabeer

Not everyone in Pakistan is happy with many believing this excitement to be a form of class privilege.

“The elite getting excited over a hot #ChaiWala reeks of class privilege and the objectification of working class men,” tweeted @nidkirm, who described herself as a sociologist based in Lahore.

According to the Express Tribune in Pakistan, viewers laughed at Khan’s awkward speech and the Western suit in which he appeared uncomfortable during his first TV appearance.

“No girl would agree to marry him,” wrote Twitter user @ItsMahah.

And in a column in the Express Tribune Farahnaz Zahidi mocked the “surprise” that someone poor could be good-looking.

“(T)he upper tier bourgeois of Pakistan have come to believe that even looks and God-gifted attributes are co-dependent on money and affluence?” she wrote.

Whether you support or not, Arshad seems to be making the most of the opportunity. 

Arshad2
Arshad1

Follow Arshad’s activity on his Instagram account.

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