Osman Khalid Butt claps back at Pakistanis feeling threatened by Ertugrul

By now, anyone with an access to a TV and/or an internet connection knows about Diriliş: Ertuğrul, a Turkish historical fiction drama series that has taken Pakistan by storm. Ever since Prime Minister Imran Khan urged Pakistanis to watch Ertugrul for its Islamic and historical value, the whole nation has been religiously watching Ertugrul.

Amongst all of this, many Pakistanis, such as Yasir Ali, claim that Ertugrul is destroying the local television industry, and that it is promoting Turkish culture. Actor Osman Khalid Butt says otherwise.

Osman says that popular Turkish shows have never negatively affected the local television industry before, so there is little chance that they will now. Also, rather than Pakistani actors losing their jobs, Pakistani dubbing/voiceover artists will get more work. He hopes that the money made from Ertugrul will lead to more historical Pakistani shows being made.

“Whoa, Ertugrul has really stirred the proverbial pot, hasn’t it? It’s almost as though there’s no precedent of a Turkish show gaining immense popularity in Pakistan before,” tweets Osman.

“Sharing my response to a post that insinuated our jobs are under threat: I don’t recall us actors finding ourselves jobless when Ishq-e-Mamnoon or Mera Sultan were all the rage in Pakistan. Nor did Turkish actors ‘infiltrate’ the local industry & replace us”.

“Plus, isn’t this creating more job opportunities for local dubbing/VO artists? Also: praising a show like Ertugrul that promotes the importance of religion, culture & customs with nuance doesn’t automatically mean one doesn’t support the local industry”.

“Of course, I’d love it if our national television uses the revenue generated from this series to create our own original content – shows that can rival Ertugrul in narrative if not in scale, and showcase our own historical events”.