Indian singer Sonu Nigam got emotional while listening to Pakistan’s young rock star Hadia Hashmi. In his latest vlog, Sonu Nigam was listening to the Nescafe Basement’s hit song Bol Hu and expressed how awestruck he was by the song and the vocals of the Hadia Hashmi.
The song, released in February 2019, features Hashmi and Soch the Band. They performed in the fifth season of the show Nescafe Basement.
“It’s been a while since anything has touched my soul like this! What a song, what lyrics, what composition! Wah! Soch the band, kya soch hai!”, Nigam said in the video.
Hashmi was only eight years old at the time. Many celebrities praised the young star and Bol Hu was also featured in 2019 Bollywood thriller Malang.
Soch then thanked the singer for his words. “We have grown up following you and listening to your music so it’s like a dream come true for us. Thank you, Sonu Sir! It is always gratifying and nice to hear something heartfelt like this from a fellow artist across the border.”
Zulfi, the producer of Nescafe Basement, also posted a video on Facebook to thank Nigam.
“I just saw Sonu Nigam’s video on Bol Hu and I thought it only made sense that I express my gratitude in a similar manner,” he said.
“I don’t only have one thing to thank him for, there are multiple things. The first thing I would want to thank him for is the way his reaction must have elated the spirits of Adnan, Rabi and Hadia. There’s no comparison to that. They would want to work even more seriously towards their dreams. God has given you a gift; do not let it go to waste”, he added.
Agha Ali has responded to the backlash he received after a video clip of him and his wife Hina Altaf went viral on social media. In the clip, Hina and Agha shared that at the time of their marriage, the only promise that Agha took from Hina was that she will never get fat or gain weight.
The couple received immense criticism on social media and people called them out for promoting fatphobia.
In a story posted to his Instagram, Agha clarified his statement and said that he asked his wife not to gain unnecessary weight because she is an actress and needs to look fit.
“No producer or director or writer would like to have an overweight heroine,” said Agha.
He added: “She was chubby before and has worked really hard to keep fit. I myself have had a weight loss journey.”
The actor also expressed his anger over the matter and said that has is not a fat-shamer and has never made fun of or ridiculed overweight people. He also said that he will host a live session to discuss the matter.
Fahad Mustafa, Yasir Hussain and Iqrar ul Hassan Syed have extended their support to Saba Qamar and Bilal Saeed after they received backlash for shooting part of their upcoming music video at Lahore’s historical Wazir Khan Mosque.
Iqrar ul Hassan requested all his followers to accept Saba and Bilal’s apologies and said that Bilal’s respect in his eyes has increased after his apology message. Fahad later retweeted Iqrar’s tweet and urged everyone to forgive and move on.
Yasir Hussain also extended his support to his Lahore Se Aagay co-star and called out trolls spreading hate.
Shafaat Ali also voiced his support, though he did not explicitly name anyone.
There is a selective hatred against almost all Actors/Singers/Artists in general in Pakistan. People follow them, yet look down upon them. People always love to spew hatred towards them. They just need a chance.
Last weekend, Saba and Bilal found themselves in hot water after they released the teaser of their upcoming music video Qubool Hai. Part of the music video, which has been directed by Saba herself, has been shot inside Wazir Khan Mosque upsetting the public, who demanded strict action be taken against those who allowed the video to be shot inside the mosque.
Chief Minister Punjab Usman Buzdar also took notice of the incident following which the Punjab Auqaf department suspended the manager of Masjid on Sunday. According to reports, the CM sought a report from the minister concerned and the department’s secretary on the matter.
“The mosque is the holiest place and no one can be allowed to trample upon its sanctity. Whosoever is found responsible will not be spared,” an official handout quoted the chief minister as saying.
After severe criticism and backlash, Bilal, in a video message apologised for hurting the public’s sentiments and clarified that they did not dance or record any music in the mosque.
“We realise what has happened over the past few days has hurt your sentiments deeply,” says Bilal in the video. “We as Muslims, as decent human beings and as artists will never, ever trivialize or condone disrespect to Islam or any other religion, race, caste, colour or creed. If we have unknowingly hurt anyone’s sentiments we apologise to you all with all our heart.”
He continued: “Alhamdulilah I am a Muslim and I was raised in a Muslim household. I cannot even think about doing something that would disrespect my religion. I solemnly affirm in the name of Allah that neither did we play any music in the mosque and nor did we dance and the witness to that is the management of the mosque.”
Referring to the clip in which he is twirling Saba, Saeed said: “There was a move that we did for the sake of the photoshoot. We were not following any dance sequence and neither was there any music playing in the background. We understand that we have unintentionally made a mistake and we are acknowledging our mistake.”
“Saba Qamar and I, are just humans like the rest of us and to err is human,” he further said. “As a Muslim, if I was in your place, maybe I would also think the same. So we also apologise to you, and hope that you can let this go. As a realisation on our part, I am also removing the entire sequence from the video, and assure you that we won’t make such mistakes in the near future.”
“I had never imagined my name would be associated with something like this. As a Muslim, I am extremely regretful of this and apologise on behalf of all of us, including Saba and our entire team,” he concluded.
Earlier, Saba had also clarified that “this is also the only sequence that was shot at the historical Wazir Khan Mosque” and is a prologue to the music video.
“The BTS video that’s making rounds on social media was just a circular movement to click stills for the poster of ‘Qubool’ depicting a happily married couple right after their Nikah. Hurting or offending anyone or being disrespectful to a holy place is as unimaginable and unacceptable for me as for any decent human being,” she had said.
There is never a dull day with Pakistani celebrities around because someone ends up passing a problematic statement. And the irony is that most of these statements are passed on Nida Yasir’s morning show Good Morning Pakistan.
The latest to come in the line of fire is newlyweds Hina Altaf and Agha Ali. In a video clip going viral on social media, Hina and Agha shared that at the time of their marriage, the only promise that Agha took from Hina was that she will never get fat or gain weight. The clip is from an Eid Special Show (1:15:07 onwards) of Yasir’s Good Morning Pakistan in which Hina and Altaf appeared for the first time as a married couple.
While talking to the host, Agha and Hina were sharing snippets about their married life, when the topic moved towards food and gymming. When the two shared that they are both foodies, Nida asked if they have a tendency to gain weight.
In response, Agha said: “At the time of our wedding, I only took one promise from Hina.”
“Please moti mat hona (Don’t gain weight),” chimed in Hina while laughing. She added that whenever she is eating and Agha walks by, he remarks, “Bas eik hee wada liya tha (I only took one promise).”
Hina joked that she took the same promise because it is a difficult one to fulfill. The trio then discussed how Agha is looking slimmer and that Hina will soon work on losing weight.
Soon after the clip went viral, social media users called out the couple for promoting fatphobia and unrealistic beauty standards. They also criticised the actors of being “tone-deaf” and passing problematic statements.
Agha Ali needs to shut up and learn that body shaming is disgusting. Also Hina needs to stop laughing at this sickness https://t.co/dwjiT5P0u0
HAHAHAHAHA soooo funny!! such a shweeetooos look how fatphobic we are 😍 allah ji KUCH nahi chahiye sawai total dictatorial control over your size & appearance babyyyy wah https://t.co/q0vXDul6GY
of course men would find nothing wrong with this.. because deep down they all want women to adhere to unrealistic beauty standards https://t.co/GAVaAmojiU
I feel disgusted that even to this date, there are men telling women to reduce their waistline is what will make them perfect and the women not dumping them THAT exact moment? Imagine spending your life under constant scrutiny of your body and what you eat?That's emotional abuse
Diriliş: Ertuğrul is a hard one to top but Nawazuddin Siddiqui’s Raat Akeli Hai managed to do that and has been trending at number one on Netflix Pakistan since the past ten days. Hollywood’s recent teenage rom-com The Kissing Booth 2 has also proven to be popular among the Pakistani audiences and has been trending since it released on July 24. To be honest, The Kissing Booth 2 was a welcome addition to the top 10 list which apart from Diriliş: Ertuğrul usually features dark or erotic (read: 365 Days) movies.
Starring Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Radhika Apte, Raat Akeli Hai is a murder mystery which revolves around the murder of a rich landlord on the night of his wedding. It appears that post the success of Sacred Games, Bollywood has found a new genre to explore – crime and the corrupt police system of India. Many recent films and series have centred on this theme, for example, Malang, Pataal Lok, The Family Man.
While Radhika plays the dead man’s newlywed wife Radha and the prime suspect, Siddiqui plays the police officer who is investigating the case. The plot and story of the film are unoriginal and something we’ve seen many times before in Hollywood and Bollywood films (Most movie critics and some members of the audience have also compared it to Knives Out). All through the film, I found several references to Amazon Prime’s Pataal Lok and Sonakshi Sinha-Sidharth Malhotra’s Ittefaq.
However, what makes the film worth a watch is the brilliant execution, performances and cinematography. Nawazuddin, as always, delivered a stellar performance as the cop investigating the case. Apte also gave a good performance as did the supporting cast of the film including Shweta Tripathi as Karuna Singh, Nishant Dahiya as Vikram Singh and Aditya Srivastava as Munna Raja. The chemistry between Nawazuddin and Radhika was crackling but it was let down by the weak development of the script and was not explored properly.
Radha
Vikram Singh
Moreso, given that the film can be classified as a whodunnit (a complex, plot-driven variety of the detective story in which the puzzle regarding who committed the crime is the main focus), it makes a fun one-time watch as you keep trying to figure out who the killer is. Be prepared for a slow first-half and a confusing but relatively fast-paced second half – the last 20 minutes of the movie are the most engaging and hold your attention.
Teen rom-com The Kissing Booth 2 is the exact opposite of Raat Akeli Hai. It is a light-hearted film which doesn’t demand much, though I do wish it demanded less time. While the film was a big hit and the makers have already announced that the film has a third part which has already been filmed and is currently in the post-processing stage, the film is nothing out of the ordinary. It is a typical rom-com featuring two teenagers who are trying to figure out a long-distance relationship and the deal with the baggage that comes with it. It can test your patience at a few instances especially when Elle tries to avoid being a clingy girlfriend but mostly it’ll have you rolling your eyes at the cliches. The makers have also weaved in several subplots, creating a bit of a jumble.
The performances were also not something to speak off. Joey King who plays Elle and Jacob Elordi who plays Noah were dull and had limited expressions. Noah, in particular, seemed to have a poker face throughout the film. The only person who truly demonstrated his acting abilities was Taylor Zakhar Perez who plays Marco.
Marco
If you’re a fan of sappy, teenage rom-coms, give this a watch. Else feel free to skip it and leave it for the teens.
After confusing fans with a cryptic picture of rings with no caption, Aamina Sheikh has confirmed that she has indeed tied the knot. The actor shared a picture of herself with her husband and daughter. According to reports, Aamina’s husband is a computer engineer based in Dubai.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CDqFkANB4eo/
https://www.instagram.com/p/CDqFxAxB_6h/
Earlier, Aamina had shared the picture of the rings in a grid form with ‘Bismillah’ hinting that she has tied the knot or has gotten engaged.
Saba Qamar and Bilal Saeed have found themselves in hot water after they released the teaser of their upcoming music video Qubool Hai. Part of the music video, which has been directed by Saba herself, has been shot inside Wazir Khan Mosque upsetting the public.
Though Saba and Bilal in the caption clarified that “this is also the only sequence that was shot at the historical Wazir Khan Mosque” and is a prologue to the music video, the teaser did not go down well with the audiences who called out the actor and singer for hurting religious sentiments.
“The BTS video that’s making rounds on social media was just a circular movement to click stills for the poster of ‘Qubool’ depicting a happily married couple right after their Nikah. Hurting or offending anyone or being disrespectful to a holy place is as unimaginable and unacceptable for me as for any decent human being.”
“Despite this, if we have unknowingly hurt anyone’s sentiments we apologise to you all with all our heart,” they added in their post.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CDoMcOtB6ch/
Social media users demanded that strict action be taken against those who allowed the video to be shot inside the mosque.
Recording the dance scene in a mosque—the best & sanctimonious place on the earth according to our religion(Islam)—shows how far undogmatic our some celebs r that they don't know the rudimentary values.This is not right & acceptable at all.Shame on you!!#SabaQamar#Bilalsaeedpic.twitter.com/THd8X4zOKo
Later, spokesperson of the Punjab Government Mashwani Azhar said that an inquiry has been ordered into the matter and strict action will be taken against those involved in allowing the video to be shot in the Masjid and those who violated the terms of the NOC. Azhar even attached the notification in his tweet.
“Secretary Aquaf Govt of Punjab has already ordered DG Auqaf to conduct an inquiry of the Masjid Wazir Khan matter where private company shooting Saba Qamar, Bilal Saeed video violated terms of NOC, agreed with the administration,” wrote Azhar on Twitter.
While we may not be enjoying Mansha Pasha’s ongoing drama Mohabbat Tujhe Alvida entirely, we love her style and outfits in the drama.
And it turns out that the actor designed her looks herself, taking inspiration from fashionistas Blake Lively and Timothée Chalamet, who often style themselves. The actor shared this tidbit in a story posted to her Instagram.
Mahira Khan says it’s about time technicians and those involved behind the scenes get their due credit and respect.
While wishing choreographer Nigah Jee on his birthday, Mahira said: “I have been wanting to say this for a while – I hope that our award shows create categories for our technicians. It’s about time! I hope we get to see choreographers, cinematographers, art directors, editors etc get recognition. Our films/dramas are nothing without them.”
https://www.instagram.com/p/CDl43L7B5yq/
Mahira makes a valid point here. Technicians including the set crew are an integral part of any film or drama without whom a film would be incomplete.
Meanwhile, with cinemas expected to reopen from August 10, it is likely that Mahira’s upcoming films Quaid e Azam Zindabad and The Legend of Maula Jatt will release soon.
Bilal Maqsood has voiced his distaste for advertisements which start running every time you tune into YouTube. As annoying as they are, advertisements while watching a drama or listening to a song are not as bothersome as the ones that pop up when you are listening to or watching religious content.
“Imagine listening to Surah-e-Rehman and it is interrupted in the middle by a lawn or a cooking oil ad, it’s highly disrespectful,” said the singer in an Instagram post.
Meanwhile, the Strings band member has been keeping his followers entertained by sharing throwback pictures and interesting tidbits of the band’s journey through the years.
