Incredibly sad story of what happened to the £1 fish man
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Here's the heartbreaking story of what happened to the 'One Pound Fish' man after leaving Queen's market in Upton Park, London.
Picture this - it's 2012, the Olympics are in London, the world hasn't gone to s**t and everyone is wearing luminous glasses with bars across the eyes.
It was a simpler time, a time when James Arthur's break-out cover 'Impossible was competing with an unlikely viral star - Muhammad Nazir, who created the incredible One Pound Fish Song.
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But following his quick rise to fame, he suddenly disappeared from the public eye. So, what exactly happened?
To understand this heartbreaking story, it's important to understand how Nazir came to the UK.
The YouTube sensation was born in Pattoki, Punjab, and grew up listening to Bollywood music. He would often sing at school, worked for his family-owned transport company, and went on to marry his wife, Kashifa.
The pair had four children and Nazir eventually moved to London for a better life, going to work at the fishmongers in Queen's market.
Little did he know he'd end up becoming a national treasure.
Nazir's boss had tasked him with using a trader's call to attract customers, so he penned the incredible £1 Fish Song.
You know the one: "Come on ladies, come on ladies / One pound fish / Have-a, have-a look / One pound fish / Very, very good, very, very cheap / One pound fish / Six for five pound / One pound each."
The song was recorded and put on YouTube, where it quickly became a hit - so much so, it reached 29 in the UK top music chart and Nazir was quickly signed to Warner Music.
But just as everything seemed to be working out for Nazir, he went to Pakistan.
There's some contention around what happened next, as Nazir told the BBC that he returned home to apply for a French visa to perform there.
However, other outlets claimed that the fishmonger's newfound fame had alerted immigration services to his expired visa and was rejected on the grounds that he breached his student visa by creating a music video with Warner Music.
And so, in December 2012 as his hit song was climbing the charts, he was deported until he could apply for a new one.
An official document from the UK border agency in 2013 reads: "By your own admission, during your time of your previous leave in the UK, you were signed as a singer by an entertainment company."
According to the New Statesman, Nazir was declined re-entry to the UK in 2016.
However, Nazir maintains that he wasn't aware of any wrongdoing and speaking of the refusal to the publication, he said: "It is a very hard punishment. I made British people happy."
He then said of the refusal: "It was technically a mistake, but not made by only one person. Warner Brothers released the music. If I am guilty, I am not the only person. The world is not for innocent people.”
Thankfully, Nazir may've had a tricky journey but his story has a slightly happier ending - the singer now reportedly selling 'UK made vape liquid' for £1 a pop. And yes, he made a song about it.
