'Very nice': Kazakhstan adopts Sacha Baron Cohen's Borat catchphrase

Borat is back, and this time the Kazakhstan tourism agency is on board

The catchphrase made famous by Borat in 2006 has been embraced by the Kazakhstan tourism board as the country's new tourism slogan. Photo 20th Century Fox

Tourism officials in Kazakhstan have adopted the catchphrase made famous by comedian Sacha Baron Cohen as the country's new official tourism slogan.

In something of a U-turn attitude after the first Borat comedy in 2006 was banned across the country, Kazakhstan is now embracing the most famous phrase from the satire as a way to market the destination.

In the film, Cohen played a reporter visiting the US from Kazakhstan. His character routinely voiced racist, anti-Semitic and misogynist views and portrayed them as normal in the central Asian country. He also regularly commented that things in the country were "very nice."

This same catchphrase from Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan is now the star of the show in the country's tourism video.

Depicting towering mountain peeks, traditional cuisine and colourful markets, modern architecture and scenic city views, each clip also shows tourists exploring the country and commenting that it is "very nice".

"Kazakhstan? Very nice! It's a place you may have heard of, that's nicer than you ever imagined," states the introduction to the video on the Kazakhstan tourism YouTube page.

"How can you describe a place this surprising in just two words? As a wise man once said, 'Very nice!'," it continues.

The timing of the video comes with the release of the second Borat movie on Amazon Prime last week.

Borat Subsequent Moviefilm: Delivery of Prodigious Bribe to American Regime for Make Benefit Once Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan replays the same stereotypes from the first film and adds a few more.

Tourism in Kazakhstan

Before the coronavirus outbreak, Kazakhstan's tourism industry was thriving with more than 9 million tourists visiting in 2018, making it the 45th most visited country in the world.

The global pandemic has temporarily halted this with most foreign nationals currently not allowed to enter Kazakhstan due to restrictions in place to help control the virus.