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A friend of mine just sent me a link to a video, which is called “World – A Pakistani Underworld”.
I was expecting to find out more about the Pakistani Goons & Dons and how they operate in Pakistan. Instead, the video is of two Pakistani brothers who manufacture fetish and bondage wear, earning more than $1 million a year from their Western customers.
I don’t really know what else to say after watching this video as I am in a state of shock right now so I’ll just paste the link in the “comments” section of this post for you to see it yourself.
Make sure to share your shocking reactions & feedback! Ha ha!
CHASING THOUGHTS ... 
http://video.nytimes.com/video/playlist/world/1194811622205/index.html?WT.mc_id=fb_nyt115&WT.mc_ev=click
Hahahahaha-cant believe you put up the birani picture
I was the most traumatized by the muzzle sex toy!
Who would’ve thought this was happening in Pakistan’s “underworld”
Dude, I dont even know what to say!! Is this for real?
Sana, I just changed the Biryani picture to spices! ha ha.
Yasir – I’m as shocked as you are buddy.
I am completely appalled that the New York Times would put such a spin on what should be an obscure side story. The fact that they would paint Pakistan as a country run by terrorist actions and qualify it by creating an “upside” out of a miniscule business that doesn’t even cater to Karachi’s residents is the most blatantly biased piece of journalism to ever be presented as a “human interest” story. Even if they meant to promote a sense of irony within the piece, they completely disrespected not only the religion embraced by Pakistan’s majority but also Pakistan’s culture. yes, it’s hilarious- bondage in a Karachi side-street. But honestly? Our country is disintegrating, we’re being overrun by terrorists and bullied by the U.S and may even cease to exist in the next few years and this is how the New York Times wants to play it?
This video has left me SPEECHLESS. I could not believe Asifa’s confessions that she wanted to try on several of the pieces. Loved the ending when the guys said these things are worn by psychiatric people…
I did not need to know that Aasia (the designer) wants to wear the items. Do you need to share such information? I think not.
haha i loved the ‘democrat’ statistics! Trust Pakistanis to compare everthing to food 🙂
Anyway just goes to prove how complex our country is, you cant classify it in any one category.
OMG Omar! That had me cracking up (no pun intended). But seriously Im not sure what shocked me more..the fact that there were woman with head coverings stitching these items or the fact that others are reading namaz around it all. LOL…Hilarious! And that one lady who said that the items appealed to her and that she would want to wear some of them. OK??!! And that one employee who thought he was making some sort of beach chair! But hey if it brings in money all the more power to them. Insane story though….
http://xebiliciouss.blogspot.com/2009/04/adam-b.html
I don’t really know what to say to this one, as a capitalist I am happy they found their “in”. As an outside observer I am sad that the religious nutjobs might go coco on these people because of all this fame. Especially that girl at the end, what was she thinking coming in front of the camera like that?
LOL!!!!! Kudos to them for running such a successful business! Talk about tapping into a niche market. Omar, now this is JTM!
I was cringing while watching this (the same reaction I had when I watched the kissing scene in Salaam Namaste for the the first time), but I think it is a great rags to riches story. Who would have thought?
I would hand it the dudes who have started and are running a succesful business be it bondage apparel. It’s not like they are selling cocaine. They are actually increasing our exports by a small percentage and Pakistani leather is known to be very good. For the people that actually buy this stuff i reserve my comments. The most interesting part of the story was the girl deisgner and her fantasies. Seemed like something out of a desi version of Nancy Friday , I would never want to go out with her the whole muzzle thing haunts me already come to think of it.
Slapper, whipper, ouch!
You know it’s really irritating me that some people think that the NY Times put this video clip and article on teh sex toy trade as some kind of a negative thing for Pakistan. Someone has commented above that the NY Times is incredibly biased and that she is appalled they would even put this in teh paper. Uhh, I don’t get what’s wrong in showing a slightly light hearted side to Pakistan – also, the clip shows that even in our conservative environment people can come up with such ideas and make money with it – that you can make money if you really want to from the most ridiculous things by finding a niche market.
I dont understand why people are getting appaled at the “spin” to this article – what spin-the sex toy trade might be shocking for us but here in America where this video is going to be seen mostly the I really dont think anyone will end up being like oh ho oh my god why are two boys in Pakistan doing this??!!?!?!
This article seems to be all over fb and such networking sites today- interesting piece..have just started reading your blog and i like how its updated on a daily basis with whatever seems to be going on around you…have just started writing my own blog, would love for you to check it out, feedback would be much appreciated!
30in2015.wordpress.com
Hey Omar, Since you posted this, apparently the company now has a great surge in demand. So now they are charging me six times as much for my dog masks. Thanks a lot. That’s all money which I was gonna otherwise give to Unicef, Shaukat Khanum, and Edhi. Nice job. I hope you’re happy.
I’d put that dog mask on in exchange for some of that biryani.
i think it is interesting and fascinating. i think that after info technology and creativity becomes commodity priced.. what will be left is for artisans to re-emerge. Blacksmiths, local glass workers, .. as usual, the sex industry is signalling where business will go, as it did with DVDs, as it did with Video On Demand via internet (e.g., clips4sale).. the reason sex points to where the markets in new tech are going, is because the same art that contains fetish sex is at a premium and it has as many niche markets, if you think about it, as there are individuals on this planet.
That takes me to sex, islam, and domination.. Do you really think that control from government decreases fetish interest? It is quite the contrary.. Look when Freud and his psych philosophy came out, during fascist europe, not during a time of freedom.
Interesting observation but it points at Fetish sex being a biproduct of an unhealthy society.
My friend was a top dominatrix in a major US city. We can say she was one of the best in the country. She’s physically extremely beautiful but after years at this occupation she began to resemble Cruella de Vil. It’s an ugly thing but some people seem to be drawn to ugliness thinking it’s a venue for relieving stress. (Finally my friend quit to pursue her artisitic interest. she’s an artistic genius).
It did occur to me that the women designing the stuff in their company studied the Kamasutra. That seems all together much healthier, holistic and not any less boring than fetish sex.
The story would have been just another story if it weren’t for the designer lady. That bit makes the story interesting and controversial. That’s the bit that sparks of the debate between culture, morality and religious values. The people working in the factory had no clue what they were doing. The point I am making is that without Asifa’s interview this story would have never taken off. That is why that bit was put in so that the whole debate on self righteousness, hypocrisy etc could start. It would have just been a story about two guys making weird stuff for weird people in the west.
AHEM “UMMM NO ITS NOT” ke bache…made me look like a total liar!!!!
crazy entrepenurial spirit. all the luck and success to them.