Unleashing Gullu – the villain within!

• Android app on Gullu Butt, man who gained notoriety over Minhajul Quran incident in Lahore, gains popularity owing to its ‘addictive nature’ while psychiatrists believe watching violence for longer periods is a negative sign

BY UMAIR AZIZ

“Unleash the Gullu within you! Now everyone can become the lovable Gullu Butt! Take a club and smash the living headlights out of that car! Collect the pieces and score points!” is the description of a new application called Gullu.

The app, developed by Weird Science, is available on Google for android phones. The game is inspired from the infamous character, Gullu Butt, who was caught on TV cameras smashing cars around Minhajul Quran University in Model Town with impunity under police protection and encouragement.

Weird Science introduces themselves as developers of “casual and addictive” games. They are also looking for partners who are ready to “financially back a game, split the revenue” and let them “take over”.

A lot of memes started circulating on the social media making fun of the PML-N leaders patronising Gullu— a PML-N worker who was also dubbed ‘Sher-e-Lahore” (the lion of Lahore).

Thousands of people have downloaded the application so far. It has also gotten some 1,300 reviews on Google and an overall ranking of 4.5, while around 1,000 users giving it full points i.e. 5.

The very simple app has a character Gullu Butt with big moustaches, just like the real life character. The player has to do is to smash car windows and collect broken pieces to score points.

The application has also played on a lot of nuances, like there is a small lion sitting next to the car, always visible on the screen, while during the smashing exercise, police officials are shown to be in the background as well.

There has been a lot of resentment and skepticism of the Punjab government since the incident which has so far taken 13 lives.

Condemnations have come from all corners with the people demanding justice for such unprecedented brutality at the hands of the state machinery.

It has been all the rage on the social media since the time the app was launched.

“It is a very simple game, not very complicated. You just have to swipe your thumb downwards on the mobile screen to break the window and have to collect the broken pieces in order to score. One also feels guilty for playing the character who is a criminal. We enjoy it nonetheless because the name Gullu Butt has become a laughing stock, besides the car is also very cute. There is a lion on the screen also representing the PML-N. It is not a lesson for someone but just a satirical way of mentioning something,” Nida, a college student told Pakistan Today.

In the West, such games develop from a comic character which is also, at times, presented in a movie later on. Interestingly, however, Gullu is a trend setter in this respect as the game has been developed from a real life character.

There have been many interesting reviews on the game as well.

“Love this game …. Makes me happy, when I am angry…I play this and transform into Gullu Butt….Lol….my anger is released by this game….Lol…..Loveable developer,” wrote JA Tanoli who gave it 4 points.

Another one termed it “pathetic but awesome” and said it has revolutionised the game industry, also making fun of the lion.

“The developer may not earn money from it but have earned support from many PTI and PAT fellows. Hats off… clothes off… Socks off… Developer you are love,” wrote another one on the webpage.

Dr Zaidaan Idrees Chaudhry, a psychiatrist from Government Benazir Bhutto Hospital Rawalpindi said that it seems from the look of it that the developer made this game for fun. However, from a medical point of view, apathy increases with the passage of time and our reaction to violence has also changed due to information overload since the last decade or so, he said.

On a positive side, however, the doctor said that people develop psychological mechanisms to survive in such conditions and satire and humour are very good tools to make such harsh reality digestible. But, definitely, watching violence for longer periods is a negative sign, he added.