Pakistan’s viral blue-eyed chaiwala Arshad Khan opens Cafe Chaiwala in London; Know his journey from local tea seller in Islamabad to owner of four posh cafés in Pakistan and UK

Produced by: Bhoomika
Designed by: Mohsin Shaikh

Pakistan’s tea seller who went viral due to his blue eyes and looks, Arshad Khan is no longer just a local chai-wallah but is the proud owner of four cafes, with three of them in Islamabad and one in London

Pakistan's blue-eyed
chaiwala 

In 2016, photographer Jiah Khan clicked a random photo of a tea seller and posted it on her social media platforms. The photo soon went viral and netizens were charmed by his looks, complete with his blue-coloured eyes

Who is Arshad Khan

At once, people mistook Arshad Khan to be a model but it was later revealed that he was no more than a local tea-seller. His popularity soared and he started getting modelling offers from Islamabad-based ad agencies

How a tea seller became viral

After a few modelling assignments, Arshad decided to go back to his roots and used his earnings from modelling work to establish his own tea café named ‘Café Chaiwala Roof Top’ in Islamabad

Arshad opened his first cafe

As per reports, the café became quite a success and Arshad opened another one in the city

Growth of cafes by
Arshad Khan

Arshad never pursued acting assignments. During an interview with Reuters, Arshad said, “I have not thought about (acting in) movies, because it’s not been done by anyone in our family”

Arshad Khan's modelling
assignments

Arshad also has an Instagram account named @arshadchaiwala.insta has around 39K followers. He keeps posting updates about his café. He recently formed a new Instagram page @chaiwalauk_ak where he also shared a video of CNN chronicling his journey

Arshad Khan's
Instagram account

Chaiwala café by Arshad Khan features a cute décor with decorated cups, tea kettles and colourful walls

Blue-eyed chaiwala: Journey
from Islamabad to London

“Indulge in the authentic flavours of real, fresh Karak Chai, brewed with love and tradition. No artificial shortcuts here, just the genuine goodness of a ladle-brewed delight. Step into Cafe Chaiwala and savour Arshad Khan's true chai recipes served in beautifully hand-painted clay pots( yes! You can take them home too”, Arshad wrote on his new Instagram handle dedicated to his UK-based outlet

Arshad Khan's cafe
in London