Sacha Baron Cohen Offers To Pay Fines For Tourists Who Wore ‘Borat’-Style Mankinis In Kazakhstan

Sacha Baron Cohen, who’s perhaps best known for portraying Borat Sagdiyev, has offered to pay for the fees six Czech tourists incurred. They were charged when they were donning Borat’s signature one-piece “mankini” swimsuit.

SACHA BARON COHEN OFFERS TO PAY FOR BORAT-INSPIRED FINES

The Borat persona debuted in the 2006 satirical film Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan. The fictional Kazakh journalist popularized the mankini outfit, which the six Czech tourists were wearing when they posed for a picture in Astana. They were each fined 22,500 tenge, which roughly converts to $67. Media reported the event on November 14.

Cohen published a post on Facebook on November 21, explaining that he was happy to pay for the fees in lieu of his fans:

While the Borat character has garnered a considerable fanbase, Cohen’s film was nevertheless the subject of much controversy. Borat was banned from Kazakhstan, although Kazakhstan’s foreign minister later expressed his gratitude for Cohen’s work in 2012. The film’s popularity was valuable in attracting tourists to the country, increasing the amount of visitors ten times.