It appears there is now a consensus among working people. Since the beginning of the pandemic, the one thing that has troubled several people more than the pandemic itself is the unceasing Zoom meetings and online corporate calls. While many people used social media platforms as outlets to vent their frustration on the matter or shared their views with friends and colleagues, actor-comedian Danish Sait has tried to capture the essence of these annoying calls in a hilarious new video. Aptly titled “Hi!”, it shows Danish imitating the characteristic manners in which people behave on these calls.
The video shared on Instagram has Danish repeating the word “Hi” many times. In the clip, he also plays on the technical snags that hit these calls or the fact that people often forget to unmute themselves or that they tell others mundane and obvious things. This includes saying for the umpteenth time “Hi, you're on mute,” or “So, let's take this meeting forward.”
The video asks, “Hi! What is everybody on these corporate calls smoking?”
Nearly 30,000 people have liked the video within an hour of being shared and many Instagram users are impressed by Danish Sait's eye for detail. “Didn't know when the video ended, kept on watching for 4 min,” said a person with username Rao0002.
“Attention to detail, who else noticed the Hi on Mute!” said Yashir. “Too relatable,” said another user.
Some others added the typical reactions that Danish had missed in his video. “Hi am I visible?” said Ananya Srinivas. “Hi, is my voice clear,” wrote Shashwat Kaushik, adding to the list.
“Hi, please turn on the video,” said Samuel Mathew P.
These video calls and chat services are often tricky to use. Often, without realising, people end up being part of what has now been categorised as “Zoom fails”. There have been multiple instances when people have been caught erring on video calls, primarily because they did not equip themselves quickly to transition to this mode of communication.
Danish Sait, also a television host, has worked in the 2020 film French Biriyani and the web series Afsos.
