Pakistani actor Shehroz Sabzwari went viral for his tone-deaf remarks on inflation as he believes if people are grateful enough, they won’t feel the brunt of it.

The Babylicous actor made the comments during an Eid transmission, with Rabia Anum as the host. “Agar hum harr cheez main shukar ada kerenge tou mehengai kabhi mehengai lagegi nahi,” he said. Moreover, Shehroz added that now people will presume his family isn’t affected by inflation since they are celebrities. This statement was followed by Anum’s reply, as she said the current situation is affecting everyone. “My family and I believe that whatever we have is only because of Allah and tend to be content with it.” 

Shehroz’s uninformed take drew flak on social media as the Internet community pointed out that low-income households are starving because of the dire circumstances, not because they aren’t thankful enough to God.

Others pointed out Shahroz’s privilege and how he has never went through a financial crisis himself.

Certain users also cited news of people in Thatta committing suicide because of inflation. A local health official reported that 41 people from the district took their lives. Dr Farooq Samoon from Bughan Rural Health Centre stated: “People are just ending their lives to escape the miseries of hunger, poverty, debt and exploitation.”

The current stats on inflation:

The Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) has reported that short-term inflation, measured by the Sensitive Price Index (SPI), reached an unprecedented 47.23%. However, the SPI has been steadily rising since August of the previous year, mostly remaining above 40%. Inflation also increased by 0.51% on a week-on-week basis, with food items such as potatoes, tea, bread, chicken, LPG, and petrol becoming more expensive.

Follow More: SPI Inflation Hits Unprecedented 47.23% YoY