Sania Mirza has penned a cheeky wish for husband Shoaib Malik on his 39th birthday.
Sharing a picture of herself and Shoaib from her birthday celebrations in Karachi, Sania wrote: “Happy birthday to this guy who I can’t live with or without.”
“May you have the best year, month and day with lots of love, laughter and success,” she continued. “I will tell you all this when you are back from practice in person but as they say – is it really a birthday wish if it hasn’t been done on the gram?”
Happy birthday to @realshoaibmalik one of the finest all rounder in World cricket. Still super fit, doesn’t forget the old friends, knows the art how to remember people and how to give them respect. pic.twitter.com/K1NDqTc6zV
438 Internationals, 11767 runs, 218 wickets. International cricketer for 4 decades since 14th October 1999. Champions Trophy winner in 2017. Scored 10,387 T20 runs, most by an Asian & 3rd highest in world. Inaugural Lanka Premier League Champion. Happy Birthday @realshoaibmalik.
Happy Birthday Shoaib Malik, Will always be thankful for your exceptional and match-winning knock vs India in Champions Trophy 2009, That was surreal.#HappyBirthdayShoaibMalik
Queen of morning shows Nida Yasir celebrated her birthday on a bright Sunday afternoon at The Forest in Karachi.
All of Nida and husband Yasir Nawaz’s friends including Bushra Ansari, Javed Sheikh, Zeba Bakhtiar, Humayun Saeed, Adnan Siddiqui, Iqra Aziz, Yasir Hussain and Faysal Quraishi were present on the occasion.
Check out pictures and videos from the star-studded party below:
Comedian and actor Kapil Sharma and wife Ginni Chatrath welcomed their second child – a baby boy – Monday (February 1) morning.
Announcing the news on social media, Kapil said: “Namaskaar we are blessed with a baby boy this early morning.”
He added that both the baby and mother are doing well and thanked everyone for their “love, blessings and prayers”.
Namaskaar 🙏 we are blessed with a Baby boy this early morning, by the grace of God Baby n Mother both r fine, thank you so much for all the love, blessings n prayers 🙏 love you all ❤️ginni n kapil 🤗 #gratitude 🙏
Just last week, in an interactive session on Twitter, the comedian had said that The Kapil Sharma Show is going off-air for a short while because he wanted to be at home for his wife to welcome their second baby.
Kapil and Ginni became parents for the first time in December 2019 when they welcomed their baby girl Anayra. They celebrated their angel’s first birthday in December 2020 and Kapil had also shared some adorable pictures from the celebrations.
Anushka Sharma has shared the first glimpse and revealed the name of her newborn daughter.
Sharing a family picture, Anushka said: “We have lived together with love, presence and gratitude as a way of life but this little one, Vamika has taken it to a whole new level!”
“Tears, laughter, worry, bliss – emotions that have been experienced in a span of minutes sometimes!” said the actor further, adding: “Sleep is elusive but our hearts are SO full.”
“Thanking you all for your wishes, prayers and good energy,” she added.
The picture of the couple along with the newborn went viral on social media garnering more than 2.6 million likes within an hour of being shared by Anushka.
Anushka and Virat Kohli welcomed their bundle of joy on January 11, 2020. At the time of the birth, the power couple had requested the paparazzi to respect their privacy and not click pictures of their newborn. They had also sent gifts to the media with their request.
Meanwhile, before her daughter’s birth, Anushka while speaking to Vogue Magazine had said that she wants to raise her child away from media attention as she does not want to “raise brats”.
“We’ve thought about it a lot. We definitely do not want to raise a child in the public eye—we don’t plan on engaging our child in social media,” the actor had said. “I think it’s a decision your child should be able to take. No kid should be made to be more special than the other. It’s hard enough for adults to deal with it. It’s going to be difficult, but we intend to follow through.”
Ayeza Khan has dethroned Aiman Khan to become the most followed Pakistani celebrity on Instagram with 8 million followers. Aiman has 7.9 million followers on the social media application while Mahira Khan follows closely behind with 7 million followers.
“Thank you guys so much for the love and respect! It is exciting to have such a huge number of followers here,” said Ayeza celebrating the milestone.
The actor then went to talk about her journey as an actor and how she focused on her work and not on increasing her Instagram followers.
“I must say that the only reason I am able to celebrate this today is that I know how hard I worked to achieve whatever I have on this day,” said Ayeza. “I never focused my work and life towards getting a bigger number of followers. It never works in the long run. My mother has always taught me that it’s important to work hard and build your legacy and be patient. When you have those all the good stuff comes without you knowing.”
Ayeza further talked about the disproportionate relationship between the numbers of followers and influence one can have.
“Growing number of followers doesn’t guarantee a long term success if you’re hollow from the inside. There is a reason why someone with a few thousand followers on Instagram can have more influence on people than someone with tons of millions of followers,” said Ayeza, adding: “Please don’t be that fool that runs after numbers.”
The actor continued: “For me, I never worked towards growing my Instagram numbers. Instead, I have always focused all my energy into my work, my acting and modelling especially, and the fan following grew itself.”
“I’m thankful to all of you guys because it feels great to have so many people recognise your talent and work, rather than blindly taping that follow button and not even knowing what I actually do,” she concluded.
British-Pakistani-American fashion designer famed for Netflix’s makeover series Queer Eye, Tan France in a recent interview with a local media publication opened up about being a queer Pakistani-Muslim and shed light on his love for his home country.
Talking about taking the burden of representation, France said: “I think the pressure on me is a little different – I am the only member of the LGBTQ community, who is also South Asian and very open about the fact that I am Muslim also. And so, I’m a few things in America – I’m an immigrant, I’m Muslim, I’m South Asian and I’m gay – and there hasn’t been anybody like that on TV in the US before, or entertainment in general, so the pressure is really really great. It’s the hardest part of this job without a doubt.”
He continued: “I’m sure you can imagine when you are somebody who is a little different, a lot of Pakistanis don’t appreciate that. There still are a lot of small-minded Pakistani people in and outside of Pakistan, who say ‘we don’t have gay people in our community’, and that’s the most difficult part when there’s nobody else to help you balance it out. When there’s only one person to focus your anger on, you are responsible to make sure you are the ‘perfect’ version of that. That pressure is a lot.”
“The first year of Queer Eye was very difficult, though I’m very grateful for its success. Being on such a massive international show may be lovely for my white castmates because they just get to enjoy the joy of being famous and successful and wealthy and all those things,” said the reality show star further.
“Whereas for me the bigger the show got, the more pressure I got from my own community, to be perfect, to not bring shame onto the community. To not embarrass Pakistan. And that’s not easy, and it doesn’t get any easier,” said Tan, adding that the pressure on his has become less now “because I’ve stopped giving a sh*t, quite honestly, what ‘Uncle Bilal’ thinks of me – but – the bigger my star gets, the more pressure is put on me.”
Later, responding to another question, France said: “The amount of DMs I get through the likes of Instagram, both good and bad where the Pakistani community is saying we don’t have gay people here. Well, that is ridiculous. The other community, the gay community, and the ally community say we need people that show that we exist, that we are not alone, we are not monsters and we deserve love and kindness. The fact that I get those DMs so regularly, makes it clear that things aren’t where they need to be in Pakistan.”
“That’s why people like me are so important in entertainment. If I had people like me on TV, I wouldn’t have felt like a freak, I wouldn’t have felt alone as a child. I think it comes from the top, so laws need to be changed from the top”, said France.
Meanwhile, recalling memories from the last time he visited Pakistan, Tan said: “My favourite memory is my last trip, about 14 years ago when I went to Rawalpindi to design my sister-in-law’s wedding lehenga. My brother was getting married, and our family was to provide the clothes so I was a designer, and I said I want to design it, but I want to go to Pakistan to make it.”
“So, I went with my mom, and we stayed in Rawalpindi with my brother’s wife’s family who also came with us (I’m really close with my sister-in-law) and I had probably one of the best vacations of my life. I helped cook every day and my sister-in-law’s mom, who has never been to England–found it so strange that this boy from England wanted to make gobhi and bhindi every morning with her -and I would teach her to make it my way! She was just so confused that this boy was cooking!”
“It was one of my favourite trips, I loved it so much! The rest of the time I would do whatever I wanted. I could go and explore, I went to a zoo, a theme park in Islamabad, it felt like the most fun trip there,” he shared.
Sarah Khan has said that Allah has made men and women as equals and that people shouldn’t try to distinguish them as superior or inferior.
In an exclusive interview with The Current, Sarah said: “I believe in gender equality. I do not say that women should be superior, they should be treated as equals. The status Allah has given to them, we should follow that. Do not try to make it a competition.”
“Women are already strong, then why do we have to say that the women are strong as well or they should be given equal salaries as men,” remarked the actor further.
“I think, instead of fight for the rights, we should educate our sons. Don’t teach your daughters to go to ‘Aurat March’, educate your sons and teach them that their mother is also a woman,” she continued. “[A] woman is the one who runs the house, does the house chores and supports the man. If your wife is not helpful, then how will you be happy? Allah has already granted status to the woman, but I think men should be given the same rights. They deserve the same, not only women.”
Sarah, who is married to renowned singer Falak Shabir, also opened up about her marriage saying that it gave it more freedom. Sarah and Falak tied the knot in July 2020.
“To be honest, I am now [after marriage] doing my work much more freely and with a lot more passion. It wasn’t like this before. One of the reasons was that I used to be at home occupied with so many things, with my siblings etc,” said the actor.
“Now after marriage, it’s just me and my husband. He gives me so much freedom and encourages me to pursue my passion and wants me to succeed in my work. I enjoy working even more now and I want Allah to give every girl a husband like him,” added Sarah.
Besides her marriage and thoughts on gender equality, Sarah also discussed her sister’s Noor Zafar Khan’s career, her ongoing drama Raqs e Bismil and what she would have been if she wasn’t an actor in the interview. Check it out below:
Bakhtawar Bhutto-Zardari and Mahmood Y Choudhry have said their qubool hais and have officially tied the knot.
Sharing pictures from the wedding on social media, Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari expressed his happiness over the occasion and remembered his late mother Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto.
“Happiest moment in many years to see my sister Bakhtawar getting married,” wrote Bilawal on Twitter. “Felt like our mother was watching over us in this moment of joy.”
“Wishing them both all the best of for their new life together. Masha’Allah!,” he added.
Similarly, sharing a lovely picture of the bride and groom, Aseefa Bhutto-Zardari wrote: “Wishing you a lifetime of happiness and joy. Mubarak Mubarak.”
“I love you, my dear sister. I wish you a happy married life,” she added.
The nikkah ceremony is expected to be followed by a baraat reception on Saturday, January 30. According to a spokesperson of Bilawal House, close to a thousand guests have been invited to the reception. Invitations have reportedly also been sent to important political leaders of the country including military leaders and judicial heads.
Earlier, the bride had shared pictures of herself getting her bridal mehndi done.
Meanwhile, Minister for Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry extended his best wishes towards the newlyweds.
Congratulations to @BakhtawarBZ and Mahmood, I’m sure that you’ll have a lot of fun together. Prayers n Blessings ***
Bakhtawar and Mahmood got engaged on November 27, 2020, in an intimate ceremony at the Bilawal House Karachi. For the unacquainted, Bakhtawar’s husband “Mahmood Choudhry is the son of Mohammad Younas and Begum Suraiya Choudhry who hail from the old town of Lahore,” according to a statement issued by the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP).
“Mahmood, the last born of five siblings was born on July 28, 1988, in the city of Abu Dhabi. He completed his primary schooling in Abu Dhabi and secondary schooling in the United Kingdom. Mahmood further went on to read Law at the University of Durham.”
“The family’s primary country of residence remains the United Arab Emirates (UAE) where Mahmood continues to run his businesses in construction, finance and tech,” added the statement.
Kapil Sharma has expressed his desire to visit Kartarpur Sahib in Pakistan.
In an #AskKapil session on Twitter, the Indian comedian, while responding to a Pakistani user, who asked him if there is any chance of him visiting Pakistan, Kapil said: “I want to visit Kartarpur Sahib”.
Speculations of Kapil’s show going off-air have been circulating for some time now. When one Twitter user asked Sharma about this, he said that he is taking some time off to be “at home with my wife to welcome our second baby.” However, details about
Bcoz I need be there at home with my wife to welcome our second baby 😍🧿 https://t.co/wdy8Drv355
Meanwhile, Kapil is also gearing up for the release of his upcoming film on Netflix. Earlier this month, Kapil took to Twitter to make an announcement about his upcoming project. However, it is still unclear whether the project is a comedy special, series, or film.
Zeb Bangash is disappointed with Bollywood’s version of Bibi Sanam. Performed originally by Zeb and Haniya on Coke Studio, the international hit landed up in the Hindi film Cabaret, where it was sung by Usha Uthup.
In an opinion piece published on Scroll India, Bangash wrote: “From the moment my cousin Haniya and I released our version of Bibi Sanam on Coke Studio, it resonated with people from Kabul to Kolkata and beyond, becoming one of our most-loved and celebrated numbers. Its success spawned many other versions on YouTube and it was a delight to see and hear people from all over the world engaging with the song with so much love.”
She continued: “In time, many classic versions were uploaded. In 2013, inspired by Ustaad Shamsuddin Masrur’s performance of the song in the 1960s, I recorded an entirely fresh version of Bibi Sanam with my Brooklyn-based band SANDARAA. Not surprisingly, this version became a crowd-pleaser on SANDARAA tours even to predominantly Western audiences in North America.”
Zeb further wrote: “I came across a recently uploaded Bibi Sanam video from a Bollywood film. The film was completed a few years ago, but I hadn’t heard of or seen it. I was eager to see what space had been carved out for this beautiful folk classic by the multi-billion dollar industry we all follow and participate in so actively. The names attached to the project heightened my excitement. Usha Uthup, whose beautiful spirit and voice has inspired me since childhood, and Richa Chadha, an actor I respect as someone who stood up against objectification of women on the silver screen.”
However, the song left the singer disappointed.
“I finally heard the song, I was unsettled, disappointed by its re-imagining. I could not find Richa’s spirit or Usha’s voice in the song, neither could I find the soul of Qandahar, Tajqurghan, Kabul jaan, or Sisstaan — all the places the song has referenced,” wrote Zeb while expressing her thoughts on the rendition.
“Instead, the song was forcibly put in a place it was never meant for. I must admit it deeply disturbed me to see a cover of our loving tribute/rendition juxtaposed against the general ongoings of a forgettable Bollywood item song. What was infused into the innocence, the freshness, and sweetness of Sistaan is unwanted aggressive sexuality. Sadly, it felt perhaps for the first time a version has compromised the beauty of an ancient poetic, musical and spiritual tradition.”
Zeb said that the Bollywood version depicting gyrating women dancing around poles raises a stream of uncomfortable questions for her.
The singer further wrote: “The past 12 months, we saw social movements promoting inclusion and equality, we participated in them virtually and created a real global social impact. Social media provides an opportunity for authentic and discerning collaborations. In the context of this hyper-connected environment, I need to ask whether we as artists and content creators are making lazy and uninformed artistic choices?”
“When you sing a song in a new language, you acquire an intimacy not only with the music, but also its people, as you gain access to its stories and histories. You then suffuse it with your own histories and culture – if done right, it is always a process of inclusion. This is especially true for rich spiritual soundscapes. Is it too much to hope that this can culminate in evolution beyond the item number?” she questioned.
“When a dominant cultural machine imposes its careless vulgarity upon lesser-known spiritual traditions, it can undermine the culture and ultimately re-form and warp an identity from sacred to profane.”
“Bibi Sanam has always possessed a mesmerising quality, magic kept alive for centuries, by artists and audiences, meshed with their personal memory, experience, and history. For me the Bollywood version is a disservice to the song’s meaning and the culture it comes from,” she concluded.
Zebunisa Bangash is a Pakistani singer-songwriter from Lahore. Her family originally hails from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Given her prolific career and her ability to sing in various languages and appeal to audiences of all ages across cultures and continents, it is no wonder that Zeb has a huge international fan following around the world.
