Qutaiba Mehmood

video creator who studied in Australia

Compiled from 1 recorded interview. Every statement below is drawn from the passage cited beside it.

Qutaiba Mehmood is the CEO & founder of Acha Parhlo. Mehmood's first job in Australia was as a waiter in a restaurant. He says he worked while studying in Australia, and that one employer did not pay him a week's salary.

Early life and education

Mehmood completed high school in Karachi and studied at DJ Sindh Government Science College. He studied electrical engineering and passed the first semester. He says he took up engineering under social pressure, since a boy is expected to go into engineering. [1]

He told his family he wanted to study something in media, though he was not sure about it. His parents supported him. He says studying arts in Pakistan would have meant answering people who asked why. [1]

Studies in Australia

Mehmood applied to study in Australia and was flying there about two months later. He studied media in Australia, and his media course taught him editing in Premiere and After Effects. He says media did not qualify for Australian permanent residency when he went. [1]

He says applying through a consultant became a rule in Australia after he had applied. He also says universities give document checks to consultants to shift their own burden. [1]

Early years in Australia

Mehmood says his early life in Australia was harder than he had imagined. At first he lived in suburbs about 50 kilometres from the city centre. He lived in a room shared by three young men, which he called the worst part of his early time there. [1]

On his first day in Australia he bought a meal out that cost him $30. He phoned his mother on Skype and asked her to teach him to cook. [1]

Career

Mehmood's first job in Australia was as a waiter in a restaurant. He says he worked while studying in Australia, and that one employer did not pay him a week's salary. He then worked at a fruit company packing fruit and milk. He says he also did security work and pizza delivery while in Australia, and he took up Uber Eats delivery as a part-time job. [1]

After graduating he worked as a video production manager. He went to New Zealand, where money got tighter and his costs rose. He says he was teaching at a college and lost that job. He says things went much better because he started a restaurant. [1]

Mehmood says he was running a few businesses. He first started a small restaurant, selling burgers, ice cream, gola ganda, haleem and other food. He later started a cafe. [1]

Return to Pakistan

Mehmood says that after getting three years of experience he decided it was a good time to come back. He decided in December to wrap up his business in Australia and go back to Pakistan for now. He says his plan from the start was to return to Pakistan, and that he had no plan to stay in Australia. [1]

Facebook and YouTube

Mehmood made a video that mocked political parties. He uploaded a video to his own Facebook profile. He says the local body elections were held in December 2015. A video reached 30,000 views, which was a big number at the time. After the first video, many people encouraged him to keep speaking on topics. [1]

He edited one of his own videos for the first time a year after making it. His content later moved into documentaries and travel vlogs. In the Acha Sorry series, he told viewers who were unhappy with what was said, 'Acha Sorry'. [1]

Friends asked him to put his Facebook videos on YouTube too. He first uploaded to YouTube with no title or proper thumbnail. He says Facebook monetisation had started before he took YouTube seriously, and he began to use YouTube seriously from September 2019. [1]

Views

Mehmood believes audiences notice when a creator keeps producing the right form of content and analysis. He believes clickbait is not essentially the fault of the industry. He says social and conventional media would both improve if they worked on ethics and morals. [1]

He says urban and rural Pakistan differ greatly, and that understanding of systems is badly flawed in Pakistan. He says freelancing growth is not linear. He also says freelancing suits a particular crowd and grows only incrementally. [1]

Political views

Mehmood describes his own political position as centre. He says he joined almost every political party in Karachi. By joining parties he means he sat with them and did not raise flags or shout slogans. He says he sat with the Islami Jamiat-e-Talaba (IJT) student group. He worked with PML-F (Pakistan Muslim League Functional), spent time with APMSO, the All Pakistan Muttahida Student Organization, and also spent time with the Insaaf Student Federation (ISF). [1]

He says he would join politics, and that he has no plan to form a new party and would join an existing one. He thinks existing parties should be changed from within rather than starting a new one. He says his views have changed gradually as he matured. [1]

Mehmood believes real change takes about 50 years and cannot come instantly. He says the same few people and families keep moving between parties in Pakistan. He expects new faces and better outcomes in a future election. [1]

Personal life

Mehmood had planned to bring his wife and children to Australia. He and his wife decided he would study in Australia alone, because he could not pay for both of them there. He says he has two children. [1]

He describes himself as straightforward and says he speaks out when he dislikes a government action. His phone's selfie camera faded after he took it into water. He then bought a Samsung S6 with a working selfie camera. [1]

Timeline

2018
Finished his studies in Australia.[1]
2019
Began to use YouTube seriously, from September.[1]

Appearances

DateTitleWhere
2021-06-14 Why Qutaiba Mehmood came back to Pakistan from Australia Thought Behind Things

Frequently asked questions

What does Qutaiba Mehmood do?

Qutaiba Mehmood makes video content. His content later moved into documentaries and travel vlogs. After graduating in Australia he also worked as a video production manager.[1]

Where did Qutaiba Mehmood study?

Qutaiba Mehmood completed high school in Karachi and studied at DJ Sindh Government Science College. He later studied media in Australia and finished his studies there in 2018.[1]

What did Qutaiba Mehmood study in Australia?

Qutaiba Mehmood studied media in Australia. His media course taught him editing in Premiere and After Effects.[1]

When did Qutaiba Mehmood start on YouTube?

Qutaiba Mehmood began to use YouTube seriously from September 2019. He says Facebook monetisation had started before he took YouTube seriously, and that friends had asked him to put his Facebook videos on YouTube too.[1]

What jobs has Qutaiba Mehmood had?

Qutaiba Mehmood's first job in Australia was as a waiter in a restaurant. He also worked at a fruit company, took up Uber Eats delivery, and worked as a video production manager after graduating. He says he was teaching at a college and later started a restaurant.[1]

What is Qutaiba Mehmood's political position?

Qutaiba Mehmood describes his own political position as centre. He says he would join politics and has no plan to form a new party. He thinks existing parties should be changed from within.[1]

References

  1. Why Qutaiba Mehmood came back to Pakistan from Australia . Thought Behind Things , 2021-06-14.
Show the source passages (74 statements)
  1. He completed high school in Karachi and studied at DJ Sindh Government Science College. main Karachi se maine high school kiya, DJ Sindh Government Science College se main padha hoon.
  2. He studied electrical engineering and passed the first semester. electrical engineering kar raha tha. I did first semester, pass kar liya tha maine.
  3. He says he took up engineering under social pressure, since a boy is expected to go into engineering. society ka pressure, toh ladka hoga toh engineering mein jayega.
  4. He told his family he wanted to study something in media, though he was not sure about it. Toh maine kaha ke mujhe kuch media ki taraf padhna cha raha hoon. Not sure about it.
  5. His parents supported him. Toh parents ne support kiya.
  6. He says studying arts in Pakistan would have meant answering people who asked why. Kyunki warna yahan pe humein bhi logon ko jawab dena padega ke arts mein kyun padh raha hai
  7. He applied to study in Australia and was flying there about two months later. Toh bas maine apply kiya aur straight away do mahine baad I was flying.
  8. He says applying through a consultant became a rule in Australia after he had applied. Asal mein Australia ka ab toh khair rule ban gaya hai ke aapko consultant ke through hi apply karna hai. Us waqt tha nahi yeh rule
  9. He says universities give document checks to consultants to shift their own burden. Taake woh verify kare documents ko. Toh isliye universities apna burden hatane ke liye consultants ke upar rakh deti hain.
  10. He says his early life in Australia was harder than he had imagined. It was pretty hard, kyunki hum imagine karke gaye thay ke jayenge
  11. At first he lived in suburbs about 50 kilometres from the city centre. woh CBD se 50 kilometer door hum suburbs mein reh rahe thay
  12. He lived in a room shared by three young men, which he called the worst part of his early time there. ek kamre mein teen ladke reh rahe thay. That was the worst part.
  13. On his first day in Australia he bought a meal out that cost him $30. bahar se khana khaya pehle din. It cost me $30. Ek time ka khana.
  14. He phoned his mother on Skype and asked her to teach him to cook. Skype pe call ki, maine kaha mama khana banana sikhayein.
  15. His first job in Australia was as a waiter in a restaurant. my first job was, I was working as a waiter.
  16. He says he worked while studying in Australia. Nahi, nahi, main main kaam kar raha tha. I was working.
  17. He says one employer did not pay him a week's salary. Toh ek hafte ki salary nahi di unhone mujhe.
  18. He then worked at a fruit company packing fruit and milk. Then I started working in a fruit company, toh wahan pe hum fruit pack karte thay, fruit and milk pack karte thay.
  19. He says he also did security work and pizza delivery while in Australia. Security ki aur kya kehte hain, pizza delivery ki aur what, you name it yaar.
  20. After graduating he worked as a video production manager. meri graduation ho gayi thi and I was doing a achi job jisko kehte hain na. Haan. Achi job. Kya? Main as a video production manager ki job kar raha tha main.
  21. He went to New Zealand, where money got tighter and his costs rose. Lekin jab main New Zealand gaya, paise thode kam ho gaye thay, kharcha zyada ho gaya tha.
  22. He took up Uber Eats delivery as a part-time job. us waqt nayi nayi cheez aayi thi, Uber Eats. Maine kaha yaar yeh karte hain, part-time ghar mein farigh hota hoon.
  23. He says he was running a few businesses. I was doing few businesses.
  24. He first started a small restaurant, selling burgers, ice cream, gola ganda, haleem and other food. Pehle maine ek chota sa restaurant start kiya tha. Usmein hum we used to sell burger, ice cream, gola ganda, haleem, kaam, yeh saari cheezein bechta tha main.
  25. He later started a cafe. Toh phir maine ek cafe start kiya.
  26. He decided in December to wrap up his business in Australia and go back to Pakistan for now. maine yeh decide kiya hai December mein finally ke I was like ke nahi yaar ab isko wrap up karte hain aur filhal Pakistan jaate hain.
  27. He says his plan from the start was to return to Pakistan. plan shuru se yahi tha ke mujhe wapis aana hai.
  28. He says he had no plan to stay in Australia. Lekin meri planning nahi thi. I had no plans ke main wahan rukoon.
  29. He says media did not qualify for Australian permanent residency when he went. Media ke upar us waqt permanent residency nahi thi.
  30. He studied media in Australia. Kyunke I studied media.
  31. His media course taught him editing in Premiere and After Effects. Phir jab woh editing ki taraf leke gaye, premiere waghera, after effects waghera sikhaya unhone
  32. He finished his studies in Australia in 2018. Even uh after finishing my studies in 2018, I was like ke chalo Pakistan jaate hain.
  33. He says that after getting three years of experience he decided it was a good time to come back. after getting three years of experience, I'm like okay, finally it's good time to come back.
  34. He says he was teaching at a college and lost that job. I lost my job as well. Kyunki main padha raha tha, I was teaching in a in a college.
  35. He says things went much better because he started a restaurant. things went much better kyunke um I started a restaurant.
  36. He had planned to bring his wife and children to Australia. Uh I was planning ke main apni wife ko aur bacchon ko bulaoon.
  37. He and his wife decided he would study in Australia alone, because he could not pay for both of them there. Dono ke kharche main nahi kar sakta. Toh isliye humne kaha behtar yeh hai ke aap yahan se padh lein aur main wahan se padh leta hoon.
  38. He says he has two children. aur uske baad like I have two kids.
  39. He uploaded the video to his own Facebook profile. Apni profile pe upload ki.
  40. He made a video that mocked political parties. main basically ek political party, political parties ko main mock kar raha tha.
  41. He says the local body elections were held in December 2015. Local body election thay. It was December 2015, 6th or 5th of December.
  42. The video reached 30,000 views, which was a big number at the time. I got 30,000 views. Us waqt 30,000 was a big thing.
  43. His phone's selfie camera faded after he took it into water. Uska main jaise hi pani mein leke gaya hoon, bahar nikala, woh jo selfie camera tha, woh fade ho gaya.
  44. He then bought a Samsung S6 with a working selfie camera. Phir maine ek Samsung ka S6 kharida. Ab usmein selfie camera mujhe mil gaya.
  45. He edited one of his own videos for the first time a year after making it. Apni video ko maine pehli baar ek saal baad edit kiya.
  46. His content later moved into documentaries and travel vlogs. Phir main documentaries ki taraf gaya aur yeh vlog jisko kehte hain, travel videos waghera, is taraf aana shuru hua.
  47. After the first video, many people encouraged him to keep speaking on topics. Lekin uske baad phir kaafi log hain jinhonein encourage karna shuru kiya
  48. He first uploaded to YouTube with no title or proper thumbnail. No title, no proper thumbnail, nothing
  49. Friends asked him to put his Facebook videos on YouTube too. mujhe logon ne kaha ke yaar isko YouTube pe bhi daalo.
  50. He says Facebook monetisation had started before he took YouTube seriously. Kyunki Facebook ki monetization start ho gayi thi.
  51. He began to use YouTube seriously from September 2019. Toh 2019 September se maine YouTube ko properly start kiya.
  52. He believes audiences notice when a creator keeps producing the right form of content and analysis. logon ko nazar aa jata hai aapka jab jo the right form of content the right form of analysis jab aap usko continuously karte rehte hain
  53. He believes clickbait is not essentially the fault of the industry. I think it's not essentially the the fault of the industry and that's my belief
  54. He says social and conventional media would both improve if they worked on ethics and morals. ethics aur moral pe agar kaam kar lein na to koi bhi industry ho chahe wo social media ho ya conventional media ho in dono ka thoda sa kirdar behtar ho jayega
  55. He describes himself as straightforward and says he speaks out when he dislikes a government action. main bahut hi matlab straight forward hoon ki agar mujhe government ki koi cheez achi nahi lagi maine straight away bol diya
  56. He describes his own political position as centre. Dekhein, main center apne aap ko khud kahunga.
  57. He says he joined almost every political party in Karachi. Maine Karachi mein almost jitni political party hain, sabko join kiya.
  58. By joining parties he means he sat with them and did not raise flags or shout slogans. Join se matlab aise jhande nahi lagaye jaake, narebazi nahi ki.
  59. He says he sat with the Islami Jamiat-e-Talaba (IJT) student group. Wahan pe thi Islami Jamiat-e-Talaba, IJT. Main unke saath baithta tha.
  60. He worked with PML-F (Pakistan Muslim League Functional). Maine uh PML-F, Pakistan Muslim League Functional, unke saath kaam kiya.
  61. He spent time with APMSO, the All Pakistan Muttahida Student Organization. Isi tarah APMSO thi. Toh All Pakistan Muttahida Student Organization.
  62. He also spent time with the Insaaf Student Federation (ISF). ISF walon ke saath uthna baithna hua, Insaaf Student Federation ke saath.
  63. In the Acha Sorry series, he told viewers who were unhappy with what was said, 'Acha Sorry'. jo log khush nahi ho paate the, unke liye hum kehte the ke bhai agar aapko wohi baat buri lagi ho toh Acha Sorry.
  64. He says he would join politics. would you ever join politics? I will. 100%.
  65. He says his views have changed gradually as he matured. Aahista aahista maturity aati hai. Maturity keh lein, meri soch change hui.
  66. He believes real change takes about 50 years and cannot come instantly. Aur woh foran change nahi aata. Usmein 50 saal lagte hain
  67. He says the same few people and families keep moving between parties in Pakistan. wohi chaar paanch log hain ya wohi khandan hain chaar paanch, jo ghoom phir ke har party mein aa rahe hain.
  68. He expects new faces and better outcomes in a future election. abhi current environment thoda sa faded hai, lekin I would say ke next next election mein kuch acha aayega.
  69. He thinks existing parties should be changed from within rather than starting a new one. ke jo existence part party hain, unko change kiya jaye.
  70. He says he has no plan to form a new party and would join an existing one. koi nayi party banane ka koi as such koi plan nahi hai. Main kisi ko join hi karunga.
  71. He says urban and rural Pakistan differ greatly. hamare mulk mein urban population aur rural ke beech mein bahut bada difference hai
  72. He says understanding of systems is badly flawed in Pakistan. hamare yahan understanding of systems bilkul hi flawed hai
  73. He says freelancing growth is not linear. ye generally linear nahi hota ki agar 10 log kar sakte hain to iska matlab hai 1000 bhi kar sakte hain
  74. He says freelancing suits a particular crowd and grows only incrementally. freelancing is for a particular uh crowd aur wo bhi incremental hoga