A Malaysian man has sparked controversy on social media by announcing an ingenious service where he rents himself out as a “villain” that harrases clients’ partners, allowing the latter to pose as heroes by confronting him.
Earlier this month, 28-year-old Shazali Sulaiman took Malaysian social media by storm by announcing a “villain for hire” service that would allow clients to show off their masculinity and make a big impression on their partners or romantic crushes. After being told that his unkept long hair and biker clothing make him look like a gang member, Sulaiman was inspired to start a service that relied on his physical appearance to make a profit. For a fee, clients can set up a time and place where he would show up to pick on their partner, thus giving them a chance to intervene and pose as a hero or a knight in shining armor.
“Are you tired of your partner thinking you are weak? For a reasonable fee, I can help you prove them wrong,” Sulaiman wrote in a social media post designed to attract attention to his new service. “Just tell me the time and place, and I will show up to ‘disturb’ your partner, giving you the chance to step in as the hero and take me down.”
Shazali Sulaiman’s “villain-for-hire” service is priced at 100 ringgit ($22) on weekdays and 150 ringgit during weekends. If the client opts for a location that requires him outside his native city of Ipoh, they have to cover his travel costs as well.
“When the boyfriend went to the bathroom, I pretended to ‘harass’ his girlfriend. When he came back, he confronted me like a hero,” Sulaiman described a recent episode at a shopping center in Ipoh.
The young man’s unique service went viral on Malaysian social media, dividing people into two camps – those who praised Sulaiman for thinking outside the box and having a hustle mentality, and those who criticized him for potentially breaking the law by “harassing” people. Shazali responded to his critics explaining that “it is all just an act, like WWE. No one gets hurt, I am the only ‘loser’.”
