Hum Network responds to #BoycottHumAwards

InstepUpdate

The channel is being criticized for keeping the award ceremony in Toronto around General Elections 2018, due to which several celebrities couldn’t cast their votes.

The upcoming sixth Hum Awards are scheduled to take place in Toronto tomorrow, that is, Saturday, July 28, for which a number of celebrities have flown out of Pakistan. They left the country a couple of days ago, for the rehearsals and other preps, and therefore were unavailable to cast their votes on Tuesday, July 25, when general elections 2018 took place in Pakistan.

This led to a lot of backlash from the public as well as from industry insiders including Farhan Saeed and Imran Abbas, amongst others. In fact, a petition started circulating online, demanding a boycott of the ceremony as well as the channel. More than 3000 people have signed the petition that, among other things, states, “We are tired of the hypocrisy of these celebrities who can come in ads portraying patriotism to sell their brands and make money, but who do not even bother to vote when each vote counts the most.”

The petition, initiated by Kiran Malik, also demands an apology from the channel and artists, and appeals to PEMRA to take note of their “careless” attitude.

Responding to these remarks, Yasir Hussain, Ahmed Ali Butt, Saheefa Jabbar Khattak and others took to social media to defend those who are being criticized. They shared that the ceremony was scheduled before the date of the elections was announced and they were under a contract to be in Toronto during this time.

Defending themselves and justifying their position, the network eventually posted a long statement on its official Facebook handle. It mentions that the channel is proud to be working towards promoting a soft image of Pakistan.

“The date for 6th Hum Awards was decided months in advance to the announcement of election date,” the statement reads. “An event of this magnitude requires a lot of planning and preparation. Also, since a lot of resources have to be committed for the event and contractual commitments with international sponsors are made in advance it is not possible to change the date. It is worth mentioning here that most of the artists participating in the awards have cast their votes today and then left for the awards. However some had to leave earlier as they were required for rehearsals. It was a matter of prior commitment for them also.”

Meanwhile, there are few celebrities who travelled back to Pakistan just to cast their votes and fulfill their responsibility. Singer Bilal Khan, who resides in Toronto, travelled to Lahore for the elections, saying, “It would have made more sense for me to stay (in Toronto) but I came back. The reason I tell you all this is that I want you ALL to vote.”

Also, actor-writer Vasay Chaudhry who will be seen in the upcoming JPNA2, took a 14-hour long flight so that he could vote during the elections. Hamza Ali Abbasi and Samina Peerzada, who will be attending the awards in Toronto, chose to cast their votes before leaving the country for the ceremony.