A dating show modelled on TV reality phenomenon Love Island, featuring Pakistani contestants, has sparked anger in the Muslim-majority country, despite no episodes having aired and the series being exclusively on YouTube.
Lazawal Ish (Eternal Love), hosted by Pakistani actress Ayesha Omar and filmed in Istanbul, is adapted from the Turkish format Ask Adasi. It brings together four Pakistani men and women in a luxury villa, with their every interaction filmed. This format clashes with Pakistan’s strict social norms, where extra-marital relationships are illegal and dating carries significant stigma.
The country’s broadcasting regulator stated on Saturday it was not in a position to act on public complaints, as it holds no authority over the streaming platform.
Last week, Omar shared a teaser of her cruising along the Bosporus before welcoming contestants into the villa. But the promo quickly drew criticism online, with detractors labelling the format “un-Islamic” and accusing it of copying Western culture.
The flood of public complaints about the Urdu-language show prompted Pakistani regulators to issue a clarification, saying they were unable to do anything.
Muhammad Tahir, a spokesperson for the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority, said that the programme was neither being broadcast on mainstream media nor on any television channel licensed by the authority.
“It does not fall within our domain,” Tahir told the Associated Press. “We do not regulate YouTube, and this content is not from any television channel. The general public is not aware that YouTube lies outside our regulatory scope.”
The host, Omar, told the Pakistan-based Fashion Times magazine last week that the project was “a first of its kind for Pakistani and Urdu-speaking viewers.”
She said the show would feature “love, bonding, and competition,” with audiences witnessing “every spark, every fight, and every heartfelt connection”. Over the course of 100 episodes, the eight contestants compete in challenges and form alliances until one couple emerges as the winner.
Nobody from the show was immediately available for comment.
Lazawal Ishq is scheduled to debut on YouTube on 29 September.
