EXCLUSIVE: Mehwish Hayat, the superstar Pakistani actress who appeared as a recurring character in Disney+ series Ms. Marvel, and Indian hip-hop sensation Yo Yo Honey Singh are the subject of a complaint to the UK government over a Birmingham-set music video featuring children brandishing guns.
Deadline hears that Manuela Perteghella, the MP for the West Midlands constituency of Stratford-upon-Avon, complained about Singh’s viral music video ‘Jatt Mehkma’ to the UK government’s Home Office. Sources said Home Officials are actively considering so-called exclusion orders for Hayat and Singh, meaning they would be banned from entering the UK.
Since its release last November, ‘Jatt Mehkma’ has amassed nearly 40M views on YouTube alone, while the song has also appeared on BBC Asian Network playlists. Filmed at Eastnor Castle, Herefordshire, and on location in Birmingham city center, the gangster-inspired story culminates in four young boys rallying to Hayat’s side and opening fire on a group of men using replica automatic weapons and shotguns.
Perteghella told Deadline that she was “waiting for the Home Office response to our queries” over the four-minute video. She declined to comment further. A Home Office spokesperson declined to comment. West Midlands Police, which is also said to have been informed of the video, did not respond to requests for comment.
A person familiar with the matter said Home Office officials may decide to stop Hayat and Singh from entering the UK because they are “not conducive to the public good” under immigration rules. The Home Office would not announce such a ban, but the individuals concerned would be informed in writing.
The thinking is that an exclusion order might be easier to impose than pursuing legal proceedings against non-UK nationals. There are concerns that the video may have flouted a number of laws, including the use of imitation firearms and exposing minors to harmful content.
Representatives for Hayat declined to comment. Singh, who has family in the UK, did not respond to requests for comment. He is credited as being the creator of the video, while Mihir Gulati was a director. Gulati did not respond to a request for comment.
Hayat appeared in three episodes of Ms. Marvel and is known for starring in Pakistani films including Load Wedding and Actor in Law. Yo Yo Honey Singh is a huge star in India, boasting nearly 19M followers on Instagram. He was the subject of the Netflix documentary Yo Yo Honey Singh: Famous.
Blue Bling Production House, a UK-registered company, was involved in producing ‘Jatt Mehkma,’ but founder Vipulkumar Sharma told Deadline that he only handled logistics, including accommodation, transport, and catering services.
Mehwish Hayat at the ‘Ms. Marvel’ premiere in 2022
Shaykh Paul Salahuddin Armstrong, managing director of the Association of British Muslims and a chaplain at the University of Birmingham, was shocked at the contents of the video. He called on child protection authorities to investigate, as well as Ofcom, though the music video falls outside of the media regulator’s jurisdiction.
“As someone who has worked with vulnerable youth for nearly two decades, I find this incident profoundly disturbing. To see British children brandishing imitation firearms in a stylised gang scene, filmed on our soil and facilitated by UK production companies, is not only a moral failure, but potentially a legal one,” he told Deadline.
“This is not art. It is the reckless glorification of violence, dressed up as cultural entertainment. It undermines all our collective efforts to steer young people away from gang culture and towards lives of dignity, purpose, and contribution to society.”
‘Jatt Mehkma’ is not expected to be carried on a BBC Asian Network playlist in the near future. A BBC spokesperson said: “Each track is considered for the playlist based on its musical merit and whether it is right for our target audience, with decisions made on a case-by-case [basis].”
