RAWALPINDI: Pakistani YouTuber Mustafa Hanif has taken social media in Pakistan, where the Turkish TV series Ertugul has a huge following, by storm for his uncanny resemblance to the show’s lead actor Engin Altan Duzyatan.
The series, which ran in Turkey until 2019, is loosely based on the story of a 13th century nomadic Turkic tribal leader called Ertugrul who confronted Mongols, Crusaders and Byzantine rulers in what are now Syria and Turkey.
Mustafa Hanif poses as Ertugrul Ghazi from the historical Turkish TV series on the rooftop of his home in Karachi, Pakistan, on July 17, 2020. (Mustafa Hanif)
Pakistani broadcaster PTV began airing Urdu-dubbed episodes of the show during Ramadan this year, and it has since become the most watched program ever aired by the outlet.
In 2018, a friend of Hanif’s showed him a picture of Duzyatan, pointing out the YouTuber’s resemblance to the celebrity.
“I was really shocked when I saw him,” Hanif told Arab News over the phone, laughing, saying he immediately started devouring episode after episode of the show. “I have watched every episode of every season of ‘Ertugrul. I have even completed the follow-up series ‘Kurulus Osman.’”
Mustafa Hanif, who resembles the lead character of the Turkish Tv show Ertugrul, rides on a horse in Karachi, Pakistan, on May 21, 2020. (Mustafa Hanif)
In May this year, Hanif arranged a video shoot at his home in Karachi where he dressed up as Ertugrul and rode on a horse to recreate a scene from the series.
“I put in a lot of effort to make the shoot happen the way I had envisioned it,” Hanif said. “I rented the horse and costume and hired a professional cameraman.”
The video, titled “Ertugrul Ghazi in Karachi,” has been viewed 140,000 times on Hanif’s YouTube channel.
Mustafa Hanif, who resembles the lead character of the Turkish TV show Ertugrul, rides on a horse in Karachi, Pakistan, on May 21, 2020. (Mustafa Hanif)
“There’s been a big boost in my followers since the video and my photos,” Hanif said.
He said though he had never considered acting as a career in the past, now he would be interested in a role in an Islamic history series similar to Ertugrul, if he were offered one.
In the next few months, preferably September, Hanif says he plans to head to Turkey to visit to visit the historical sites featured in the show. He also hopes to meet the actors from the show someday, he said.
