Abdul Salam Maftoon is currently competing in the television music competition, “Afghan Star.”
It was one of the judges on the show who remarked on Maftoon’s familiar look turning the singer into an overnight celebrity.
Trudeau is regularly rated as one of the most attractive world leaders, and Maftoon said he hopes it could gain him more votes on the “Afghan Star” program.
“People have forgotten my name and now they just call me ‘Justin Trudeau,'” Maftoon told AFP.
While the singer said he didn’t know anything about the Canadian Prime Minister until he saw photos on social media, he told AFP he now believes that “the resemblance has boosted my chances of winning the competition by 50 percent.”
As things stand Maftoon is into the last eight of the competition, with another elimination round to come on Thursday.
If he makes it through, the final will be held on March 21.
Viewers of the show vote for their favorite acts, and so far Maftoon has done well thanks to a selection of romantic folk songs that he performs in both Dari and Pashto, the two official languages of Afghanistan.
His performances have drawn praise from the judges too.
“His voice is very satisfying. He has that god-gifted vocal ability,” said Afghan-born Canadian musician Qais Ulfat, the judge who first noticed Maftoon’s celebrity doppelganger, according to AFP.
“This guy could be the next Justin Bieber.”
The singer, who performs at weddings and birthday parties in the northeastern province of Badakhshan as a way of providing for his wife and four children, predicts that business will be boosted by his new-found fame, according to AFP.
“When I go back to my hometown people will definitely call me,” Maftoon told AFP.
And the singer would also like to meet his lookalike one day.
“I want to meet him if he wants to because he is a global personality and I am a poor man from a remote part of Afghanistan,” he told AFP.
“We will see what happens.”
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