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Actor Zahid Ahmed has apologised for inflammatory comments he made on a podcast earlier this week, saying he was not talking about people who make content on social media, but rather the creators of social media platforms.

On a November 1 episode of Excuse Me, Ahmad Ali Butt’s podcast, he said of social media platforms: “I hate it, I think it’s human beings’ most evil, most destructive invention and I think they will burn in hell, the creators of all these platforms.” Soon after the podcast was uploaded, these incendiary comments went viral, with many believing what he said was about social media content creators.

On Monday, Ahmed shared a video clarifying that he was not talking about content creators.

“I was talking about social media platform creators, not content creators, meaning the ones who created the platforms, I said they would go to hell, and for this, I am very ashamed. In the heat of the moment, I said too much, because only God has the right to declare whether someone will go to hell or not. And it was very important for me to accept this, because there are a lot of people, especially young people, who listen to my content regarding deen and religion and a very incorrect message has been given to them, that I am somehow deciding myself or using these words. I will make sure this never happens again,” he said.

The backlash against Ahmed was swift and fierce as a number of social media content creators, including some big names such as Ken Doll and Alishbah Anjum, called him out for his “hypocrisy”. They believed he was referring to the content they created and reacted angrily to what they saw as a hypocritical stance coming from someone in the entertainment industry.

Ahmed’s comments came while on Butt’s YouTube show, in which he was asked his opinions on social media. His opinion was a very fiercely-worded statement condemning the creators of the platforms to hell. “I view [social media platforms] with hatred and disdain,” he reiterated.

“It is the complete antithesis of how human beings in general should and how Muslims should be living their lives. This is the complete opposite. And it feeds on those objectives. Islam tells us to pass through life like a stranger…humility, modesty, be less in yourself, think more about Allah and pass through life. This is the complete opposite [of social media] — more of me, self projection, oh, my likes, my followers, and my comparisons and doing your own bepardagi [unveiling]. ‘Here’s my picture, here’s my child, here’s my wife.’ It’s the devil at work.”

He said if social media existed solely for businesses, it would be great. “The social element of social media, it thrives on comparing yourself with others, judging others, being jealous of others, rejoicing at the misery of others — case in point all the TikTok influencers. Look at what’s happening to them,” he lamented, saying two had been “killed in front of us”.

Later in the episode, he was asked about something he would never do, and after some hemming and hawing, he said, “I will never endorse any idea or any show that promotes vulgarity, like Lazawal Ishq”. He was referring to the reality show hosted by Ayesha Omar in which contestants lived together in a house in Turkey, similar to shows such as Love Island.

Ahmed called out the producers of the show, musing that they were not Pakistani and wondering who was behind the show. He said there was an “evil thought process and agenda” behind the show.