Diary of a Bad Man

Diary of a Bad Man
A screenshot from the opening title sequence
Also known as	DOABM
Genre	Comedy-drama
Created by	Humza Arshad
Written by	Humza Arshad
Directed by	Humza Arshad
Starring	Humza Arshad Mohammed Umar Baig Asif Hussain Jaspal Kerrah Yogesh Kalia Jazzie Zonzolo
Narrated by	Humza Arshad
Opening theme	"Three Pointer"
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Original language(s)	English, Punjabi, Urdu
No. of seasons	2
No. of episodes	16 (list of episodes)
Production
Producer(s)	Humza Arshad
Production location(s)	South London, United Kingdom
Editor(s)	Humza Arshad
Camera setup	Single-camera setup
Running time	10–30 minutes
Production company(s)	Humza Productions
Release
Original network	YouTube
Picture format	16:9 720p (HDTV)
Audio format	Stereo
Original release	6 September 2010 (2010-09-06) – 10 October 2013 (2013-10-10)
Chronology
Related shows	Smokey Barbers Badman's Britain Britain Bubblegum Black and Brown Badman Blogs Badman's World "Badman"
External links
Website
Production website

Diary of a Bad Man (often abbreviated as DOABM) is a British comedy drama web series that premiered on 6 September 2010 and ended on 10 October 2013. The series was created by Humza Arshad and consists of continuous episodes uploaded on his YouTube channel HumzaProductions, revolving around the life of a young man and his relationships with his friends and family.

In 2011, the fifth episode was the seventh most viewed video on YouTube in the UK. As of 2012, HumzaProductions had exceeded over 40 million views.

Premise

The name draws itself from Nikolai Gogol's short story Diary of a Madman. The series follows a fictionalised portrayal of Arshad consisting of video diaries chronicling the life of a self-styled "Badman with seriously good looks" as an exaggerated stereotype of an Asian youth in today's society, who is also a "troubled young man with the mentality of a seven-year-old... whose adventures don't shy away from controversy".

Arshad's webcam monologues and sketches touches on impressing girls, arranged marriage, racism and attitudes to women. relationship with his parents, his extended family and his friends.

Badman is a dim-witted, stereotypical young guy in today's society who does wrong, makes mistakes, has no respect for anyone and gets into trouble. However, as each episode unfolds he slowly starts to learn from his experiences and improve on his flaws and character.

The episodes are predominantly in English, but Arshad also uses Punjabi and Urdu phrases.

Production

The series is written, directed, edited and produced by Arshad. The supporting cast features his friends and occasional celebrity guests. The episodes are shot in and around South London, filmed using a Sony Handycam HDR-SR12 and edited using iMac Movie. The series theme tune is "Three Pointer" from iMac Music Music Directory.

The advert for season two featured guest appearances from Richard Blackwood and Muhammad Shahid Nazir (One Pound Fish Man). The scenes in Arshad's father's shop Bubblegum Children's Wear are filmed in Thornton Heath, Croydon.

Cast and characters

Main

• Humza Arshad as Humza / Mr bubble gum/

Badman: Main character of the series and narrates the story in each episode.

• Mohammed Umar Baig as Umar: Humza's best friend who has betrayed Humza a few times during the first season and he is often ridiculed for being overweight.
• Asif Hussain as Asif: Humza's enemy turned friend.
• Jaspal Kerrah as Dexter: Humza's friend who is constantly insulted for being dopey.
• Yogesh Kalia as Agent Kalia: A secret agent who works for the P.I.A (Pakistani Intelligence Agency) who he claims is a less intelligent version of the C.I.A. He initially met Humza during his search for Jazzie who had been kidnapped.
• Jazzie Zonzolo as Jazzie: Humza's friend who is shown to be vain and claims to be half-Asian.

Recurring

• Kasim Khan as Imam Ali Khan
• Fayaaz Kassam as The Dentist
• Junaid Malik as Kalum
• Malik as Tony The Kala
• Hasan Raja Azmat as Azmat
• Stefan Mensah as D-Dark
• Arnold Jorge as A Squeezy
• Kiell Smith-Bynoe as Klayze

Guest

• Maya as Umar's sister
• Prince Abdi as Somali Pirate
• Dominic Othol as Smokey
• Muhammad Mumith Ahmed as Mumzy Stranger
• Tolulope Ogunmefun as Don't Jealous Me
• Adam Deacon as Charles The Boss
• David Vujanic as Mr Bricka

Episodes

Main article: List of Diary of a Bad Man episodes

Series overview

Season		Episodes	Originally released
			Season premiere	Season finale
	1	10	6 September 2010 (2010-09-06)	27 January 2012 (2012-01-27)
	2	6	30 June 2012 (2012-06-30)	10 October 2013 (2013-10-10)

Reception

The Guardian called the series "a satirical take on British Asian culture, with a twist: the videos all end with a moral message." The Huffington Post reported that the series "defy simple labels" and that episodes "begin with a superficial obsession end with a moral lesson."

Arshad has also received criticism for jokes, which have offended Muslims. In the second season, he made an effort to moderate some of the jokes. To avoid offending people he has also neglected much of the Islamic elements, which formed a major part of the first season. Islamic activist Muhammad Abdul Jabbar called the series disrespectful to Islam.

Music videos

Title	Episode
Jam That Hype	Part 5
Rap Battle	Part 6
Arranged Marriage	Part 7
Lotta Riddim	Part 8
Anti-Social Rap	Part 9
Roti or Rice	Part 10
Mirror Mirror	2.1
You Are Freshy	2.3
DTR (Down To Rishta)	2.4
Get Funky	2.5

See also

• Corner Shop Show
• British Pakistanis
• List of single-camera situation comedies

External links

• Official website
• Diary of a Bad Man at IMDb
• Humza Productions's channel on YouTube