by Fraaz Mahmud Kasuri

Actor turned restaurateur Nauman Masood has recorded and circulated a video message to explain the miseries of the restaurant industry in Pakistan due to the unplanned imposition of lockdowns in the country.

In his viral video on social media, he said that restaurant he had been serving the television industry for last 30 years and for last one year he was running a restaurant in Islamabad while giving his maximum to the field of hospitality.

Nauman Masood very openly addressed Prime Minister Imran, NCOC and other relevant departments that Covid-19 had caused irreparable losses to the restaurant industry in Pakistan. He added that the jobs of millions of people associated with this industry were at stake as every other day a restaurant owner was seen shutting down the business due to financial issues.

He further said that the government had closed the restaurants for weekends while on weekdays there is a time restriction of 10pm that is a killing element for the restaurants.

Dining out is a major recreational activity in Pakistan and majority of the people take their time out for gathering on weekends, he said adding that unplanned restrictions not only cause business losses but also pose serious threats of Covid-19 spread.

He further said that “at restaurants, it is ensured that everybody is vaccinated and we make sure that guests are sitting at a distance.”

He appealed to the government to allow the restaurants to remain open on weekends and let them serve the people till 1am on weekdays.

He also told the government, “Keep a check on us and punish us if we are not complying with the Covid-19 SOPs but please let us live.”

Every time when a restaurant is closed, it is not about one restaurant rather about all those families who are associated with that restaurant somehow, he said while representing all the restaurant associations in Pakistan and added that “give us a chance and we shall not disappoint you as we love our country from the core of our heart.”