Written by: Fiza Husnain
Posted on: May 08, 2025 | 
| 中文
War hysteria is on all-time high, especially on the Indian side
A tale as old as time: geopolitical tension, the blame game, nationalism, air thickening with threats, jingoism and mad spectacles of military might. Pretty old, no? Pakistan looked and said, cute, but have you seen this meme? Pakistan strikes back with jokes, puns and unfiltered wit. Welcome to meme warfare, where the only thing flying is the jokes, and they landed with a bang. Let's unwind how Pakistani memes turn the madness of war into a roasting session with a cup of Karaak Chaye alongside.
People making memes on war without realizing its devastating impacts.
It’s 2025. Everything is digital, from your online food order to the war. First, it’s the flood of statements on television, followed by the internet and boom, the public is hooked. Look at how recent wars happened online before on the site. The internet becomes a strong tool of narrative control and propaganda. Recruitment, disinformation and psychological warfare. P.W. Singer & Emerson T. Brooking in “Like War: The Weaponization of Social Media” argued, “The same social media platforms that connect people and spread memes are now being used as tools of war.” They analysed the roles of social media and viral videos. The book cites the cases of ISIS propaganda and Russian cyber intervention in Crimea. Now, here is the catch. Social media is not under state control. So, as much as the state can use it for propaganda or digital warfare, the common citizen has an equal reach to it. The digital space between India and Pakistan is historicising this phenomenon. Every hateful, warmongering, spiteful narrative that is crafted to dominate, inflict fear and cause chaos is met here on the other side of the border with razor-sharp wit and dark humour. On the surface, it’s nothing but humour, but in reality, this humour is a form of resistance. It has the power to disarm false jingoistic rhetoric. It provides an immaculate counter-narrative in times of war.
First war experience for youngsters
The internet is a new front for political battles, far from nationalistic rhetoric. While India is posturing itself as an aggressive warmonger, Pakistan is replying in humour and challenging India in the most nonconforming way possible. Memes are going viral in no time. Amidst the shouting voices of war on national television on the eastern side, there are sounds of giggles on both sides of the border. Laughter is louder than drums of war.
In the nationalist circles, the only narrative that’s echoed is of war. The online pages from India are also demanding war. On the contrary, Pakistanis, instead of dealing with it with equal hatred and aggression, burst out laughing. Thereby disturbing the ecosystem of power politics. Pakistani memes are giving the world a glimpse of who’s trying to curate a hateful narrative through propaganda. The internet is flooded with water memes highlighting the absurdity of India’s reckless action towards the Indus Water Treaty. While the Indian media are shouting their lungs out about how India will destroy Pakistan, Pakistani influences are talking about which outfit they would prefer during the war. This is enough to show cracks in the mad jingoistic mania of India, showing how India is the one who’s “asking for it”, yes, pun intended.
France to Modi after Pakistan destroyed their Rafale jets.
Humour is not just for the heck of it. There is a method in this madness. The contrast is enough to make the world look into the absurdity of India's obsession with not only Pakistan but also its unhealthy hunger for war. On the one end, the world is witnessing India adding fuel to the fire with images of tanks and protests of mobs, while the other side replies with memes stating how our Olympic gold medallist Arshad Nadeem can just throw missiles at the target. Or how farshi shalwars would be used as parachutes during war. This humour is not usual. It’s politically charged. It just dethrones the aggressive narrative from its pedestal. Laughing in the face of the aggressor is a political act of resistance. The calm has strength in it.
Now, if you think that it’s meme culture that brings out the Pakistani penchant for satire, think again. The satire is deeply rooted in the history of Pakistani culture. Art during authoritarian regimes in Pakistan remained fundamentally satirical. Satire became the language of resistance, especially under Zia’s regime, when political dissent was criminalised and censorship was at its peak. Shows like Fifty-Fifty and Loose Talk used sketch comedy to condemn the government without naming it directly. Even during the Musharraf era, which is regarded as a modernisation period in Pakistan, there used to be underground publications that used humour to show flaws in the state’s narratives. In desperate times, when there was barbed wire around the necks of Pakistanis, they managed to raise their voices. They changed the tone, though. They spoke what had to be spoken. This humour online is the continuation of that tradition. But now that there are no barbed wires around the necks. Pakistan is unstoppable. It's funnier, faster and viral.
Meme linking war with everyday issues
One may say that memes are nothing more than a way to pass time. A way to escape the mundane. But that’s a reductionist view; memes are evolving into a powerful tool of digital resistance. Instagram, Facebook and Twitter have huge followings. Content creators are creating biting political commentary cloaked in jokes, unveiling political absurdities. Memes have become a democratic weapon of the common people. Memes are a democratic weapon in times of digital warfare. Anyone can create a meme and share it. Unlike the state propaganda that needs coordination and finding, meme warfare is spontaneous. Once it goes viral, it's too difficult to stop.
To a modern fascist state that solely relies on excessive nationalist rhetoric and stands on the monopoly of seriousness, like military parades, shouting news anchors and 9pm shows, is an outright threat. It undermines their authority not by getting into an argument but by laughing at it. That destabilises the false sense of authority. That's disturbing, almost. Imagine you are furious at your opponent, and you're making a posture of attack; instead of being fearful of you, the opponent starts laughing. How would you feel? Mocked and powerless! So, on the face of it, laughter becomes a threat. And the state watches all that unfolds with the hopeless realisation that it's losing its grip on the tightly controlled narrative.
Meme on Indian idol after war.
Perhaps the utmost aspect of humour is to undo the psychological effect of war. While India is projecting its strength through chest-thumping nationalism, the Pakistani response is nothing but sarcasm. Thus, a psychological asymmetry is created. War is responded to with a joke. It creates doubt about the whole war narrative. Entice people to take a break and go into a mode of critical thinking. That's what makes humour revolutionary. It subverts the power. You talk about war tanks, and we'd bring out our empty water tanks in the washrooms. You talk about shedding blood; we will talk about serving you fantastic chai. We are not buying what you are trying to sell us.
Meme on 'Secret Mission Completed' is very common
So, the times when power is exerted through spectacle-image, language, military, heated television debates and aggressive slogans, humour offers an antidote. Pakistani humour is not just entertainment; it's a cultural event happening right now. A show of cultural resilience, of how Pakistani identity is in the making, that can creatively deal with the fascist mania of war. The nation is crafting a counter-narrative where laughter is louder than the drums of war. Thus, while they are loading weapons, Pakistan is loading memes, and to be honest, Pakistan has better range and zero collateral damage (except maybe some egos). Turns out humor is Pakistan’s real weapon of mass distraction, and unlike the U.S. in Iraq, we don’t need fake intel to start a roast, just a WiFi connection and some chai.
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