Twitterati take a dig at Zayn Malik for looking ‘too Pakistani’ in new teaser

Pakistani-British singer Zayn Malik released a teaser for his much-awaited album. The former One Direction member announced new music last week with a small snippet of the song. While the musical offering hints at a rap-rock genre, and the beat is quite groovy, it is the music video that has fans having a field day on Twitter.

Zayn took to the micro-blogging site, and, without a caption, released a small snippet of his upcoming song. The clip featured him wearing a leather jacket, riding a bike, lighting a cigarette and standing on a bridge overseeing the city. The video had low-quality visibility in terms of both its visuals and editing, and perhaps that was the aesthetic for which he was aiming.

For his fans in Pakistan, the clip hit too close to home, and some were proud to see Zayn showing his “Pakistani roots.”

“He's giving Muhammad Danish Bin Abu Bakar,” wrote a user, implying that he looks like a typical Pakistani boy.

One user took a dig at a real estate tycoon in Pakistan and wrote, “Malik Riaz probably gifted him a plot in DHA,” while another user thought the snippet was shot in Karachi’s Creek Vista.

“Thought he recorded it in front of Creek Vista for a second,” wrote a user with a laughing emoji. And boy, does the building look similar.

However, it wasn’t one user who felt the area looked similar to K-town. There was an Indian fan as well who thought the rather run-down place seems like Bandra East. “I love him but this looks like it was filmed on an Oppo in Bandra East,” read a tweet.

A tweep thought Zayn’s beat sounded familiar to a local song he had heard before. “Bro copied Cold World by Shamoon Ismail's aesthetics and thought we wouldn't notice,” they wrote. Another fan even called him Hasan Raheem. 

A user said the short looks like its shot by YouTuber Irfan Junejo. 

However, the winning tweet was by a fan who compared the Dusk Till Dawn singer to their “childhood crush” turning into a Pakistani thug. “Watching your childhood crush turning into a gutka thukne wala maila (tobacco-spitting loafer) cruising around Mazar e Quaid is so painful,” read the tweet.

Zayn hinted at new music being launched in 2023 in his Spotify bio. According to Billboard, he has inked a new record deal with Mercury Records. This news comes alongside a social media wipe by the singer, followed by the launch of a pre-save link and teaser. His debut single is slated for release "very soon this summer," as stated by the label.

Having previously been signed to RCA Records, Zayn's upcoming music is said to be a “departure from the sound that characterised his previous chart-topping hits” such as Pillowtalk and I Don't Wanna Live Forever, according to sources close to the singer, as reported by the publication. His solo career has already seen the release of three records: Mind of Mine in 2016, Icarus Falls in 2018, and Nobody Is Listening in 2021.