5 questions about Hasbulla, answered

Why is Hasbulla famous?

Hasbulla shot to fame in 2021 thanks to a few TikTok videos and live streams of him doing mundane activities like eating strawberries or talking to his cat, Barsik.

One of his earliest viral videos shows him driving around a scooter and schooling a young man about pandemic restrictions. But what really took him to the pinnacle of popularity was his publicized feud with fellow internet sensation and Tajik singer Abdu Rozik.

The two were engaged in constant back-and-forths on social media and even had multiple face-offs, similar to the ones MMA fighters have before fights. In one of the videos pertaining to the gimmick, Hasbulla emulated Khabib Nurmagomedov and earned the nickname 'Mini Khabib'. Incidentally, he also hails from Nurmagomedov's home country, Dagestan.

Since then, Hasbulla's popularity has been on the rise. He has appeared in videos with multiple superstars and influencers and has become a global public figure.

In March 2023, he attended an NBA game between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Dallas Mavericks, where he had a pre-game chat with Luka Doncic. When his face showed up on the Jumbotron, the wild crowd response was a testament to his growing fame.

Given that Hasbulla is an influencer, it is difficult to put one's finger down on what exactly makes him so popular and appealing to the mass. It is highly probably that the cuteness factor, along with the curiosity about his condition, is what generated the interest about him. But the other side of this coin is somewhat dark.

Hasbulla's fame is a burning example of how little people have been the target of mockery for the sake of entertainment for centuries.

Back in 2021, the head of the Little People Sports Association of Russia, UIyana Podpalnaya told gazeta.ru called out media outlets for allowing this discriminatory discourse. "It’s not like it’s even an exhibition fight, they’re paid a lot of money and it’s a show to make people laugh. There is nothing serious about it, this is not a sport. This is unethical, wrong, from my point of view," he said."