Owners of a high-end restaurant in Pakistan's Islamabad city have come under intense backlash on social media after a video of them mocking the manager over his English-speaking skills went viral. The restaurant in question runs under the name Cannoli by Cafe Soul.
In the minute-long video, the women, Uzma Chaudary and Dia Haider, introduce the manager who says he has been working with the restaurant for the last nine years. The next question they ask the manager, named Awais, in how many courses did he learn English. To this, Awais replies that he took three courses spanning over six months each to get hold over the language.
The duo then ask him to speak a sentence in English. Nervously, Awais speaks a sentence. “My name is Awais Aftab and I job here manager, and that's it," he says, while the two women giggle.
"This is the beautiful English that he speaks and he is at a very good salary," one of the two women says mockingly.
The social media has been up in arms against the two women for looking down upon the manager for his English skills and showcasing an elitist behaviour. #BoycottCannoli has also been trending on Twitter after the outrageous video went viral.
Humiliating your countrymen so you’ll be accepted by foreigners always ends in being rejected by both. #BoycottCannoli https://t.co/hORo2XL1Ta— Jeremy McLellan (@JeremyMcLellan) January 21, 2021
Saw this comment under Cannoli's Instagram post. ! #BoycottCannoli pic.twitter.com/VIqcd6C5V8— Zahra Khan Durrani (@ZahraK_Durrani) January 21, 2021
To the female owners of Cannoli who filmed this man Awais and made FUN of his English, this is called WORKPLACE HARASSMENT and what you two privileged BURGERS did is the most DISGUSTING thing. ENGLISH IS NOT THE MEASURE OF INTELLIGENCE!!!!#BoycottCannoli pic.twitter.com/LLuqUUONiI— Amber Khurshid Raja (@AmberKhurshid_) January 21, 2021
Anyone who is living in Pakistan must have to know these lines. #BoycottCannoli pic.twitter.com/NV5Oql2bhA— Ehtisham Siddique (@iMShami_) January 21, 2021
meme of the day #BoycottCannoli pic.twitter.com/qhMRfbyWr4— Top Flames (@TikTokersLand) January 21, 2021
Disgusting and shameful! what a sick mentality, I think language is just a way of communication. However, in different country, speaking Eng makes you feel elite or a kind of superior than others. English is just a language not to define how capable someone is. #BoycottCannoli pic.twitter.com/bA7XmyQB1D— Robert Winston (@ImRobertWin) January 21, 2021
Owais looks more educated then these ladies. He is in mask and following SOP.He has been running the restaurant for 9 years with the same language and making money for your inferiority complexed souls. Shame on you low lifes.#BoycottCannoli #Shameful pic.twitter.com/rtG9xG4XOw— Ali (@Survivor994) January 21, 2021
Joke is on you now girls ..#BoycottCannoli https://t.co/96jRIjrjKY— Waseem Abbasi (@Wabbasi007) January 21, 2021
The two women have now issued an apology saying that the whole video was misconstrued. "This video depicts the gup shup between us as a team, and is never meant or taken in a hurtful or negative way. If anyone was hurt or offended we apologise, however that was never our intention," they said in a post on Instagram.
