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  • Chinese phone makers: A big threat to Google Play

    China’s top smartphone makers Huawei, Oppo, Xiaomi, and Vivo have collaborated to build a shared platform to compete with Google’s Play store, latest reports have revealed. The move is believed to be a direct threat to the $1 trillion parent Alphabet company and the de-facto US dominance of Android.

    Manufacturers in China rely on Android to run their devices but they use domestic app stores inside China, where Google services are blocked. Chinese manufacturers have continued to reply to pre-installed Google Play, offering the users the most popular social apps like Facebook and WhatsApp that are not available for download in China.

    The four Chinese handset makers together shipped around 40pc of the world’s smartphones in the fourth quarter of 2019.

    They will now let foreign app developers like Facebook upload and update the software to all the respective stores, through the new platforms, with a single click.

    If this initiative materializes successfully, this will create a new universe of apps which will be in direct competition with Google Play Store.

  • PTI: Firdous admires Fawad Chaudhry’s ‘struggle to always stay in headlines’

    Special Assistant to the Prime Minister (SAPM) on Information and Broadcasting Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan has admired her predecessor, former federal minister for information Fawad Chaudhry, for his “struggle to always stay in headlines”.

    According to the details, with cracks continuing to emerge within the ranks of the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and rumour having it that both Awan and Chaudhry are not the best of friends ever since the latter was sacked and replaced by the former, the SAPM, in an exclusive interview with The Current, was asked what she liked the most about her predecessor.

    “His [Fawad Chaudhry’s] struggle to always stay in headlines,” she said.

    Chaudhry has time and again been accused of “pulling political gimmicks” as the federal minister for science and technology and an aide of PM Imran Khan, by the general public, leaders of his own party as well as those belonging to the opposition.

    To another question, Awan, who is not an elected member of the parliament, said that election defeat under Imran was not a defeat. “It’s a victory for my ideology,” she said.

    “Social media is an unguided missile with warheads but no target,” the SAPM said when asked what was that she disliked the most about social media.

    Awan also said that she was not a misogynist — her verbal attacks “were for people and not genders” –, shared how she thought that parliamentarians should not get a pay raise, and those who criticised her for not being an elected representative, “lacked sense”.

    WATCH THE FULL INTERVIEW:

  • Ghinwa Bhutto joins PTM rally

    Ghinwa Bhutto joins PTM rally

    Wife of the late Murtaza Bhutto and Pakistan People’s Party-Shaheed Bhutto (PPP-SB) chairperson Ghinwa Bhutto, in a first, has joined a gathering of the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM) in Karachi to show solidarity with the rights-based alliance.

    According to reports, the PTM on Sunday held a rally in Karachi to mark the first death anniversary of their comrade Arman Loni — allegedly killed during a police crackdown on a PTM protest in Loralai last year — and also demanded the release of its chief, Manzoor Pashteen.

    PTM had maintained that Loni was killed in a police crackdown and demanded that the Balochistan government take notice of his death. However, a later report did not find any marks of violence or injuries on the deceased’s body.

    The PTM had obtained permission to hold the public meeting with a crowd of 300-350 people, Deputy Inspector General (East) Amir Farooqi told a private media outlet. He added that the demonstrators had assured authorities that they would abide by the law.

    The PTM also held a gathering in Loralai, thronged by a large number of people.

  • You can now report corruption, bribery on Pakistan Citizen’s Portal

    You can now report corruption, bribery on Pakistan Citizen’s Portal

    A category for ‘Corruption and Malpractices’ has been introduced on the Pakistan Citizens’ portal to curb these illegal practises from the government departments. The portal now allows people to report corrupt practices on the complaint lodging mechanism.

    The Prime Minister’s Performance Delivery Unit (PMDU) has introduced the category on the directives of Prime Minister Imran Khan. As per the unit, subcategories have also been made to help citizens classify the nature of the complaint.

    Matters related to the corruption in public funds, bribery, and kickbacks can be reported under financial corruption. While irregularities in recruitment, procurement, and allotment processes fall under the Violation of Merit/Rules category.

    Similarly, favoritism, unauthorized privileges, etc. characterise the Power Abuse section.

    In addition to this, citizens can also report physical or sexual harassment, threatening and blackmailing, under the harassment category. Any case regarding fake documents and impersonation will go under the Fraud/Mockery section.

    PMDU said these categories will not only facilitate the public, but they will also organise the complaint lodging process. It will also protect the integrity of the portal as most of the cases received through this platform are proved to be mala fide and irrational serving only vested interests.

  • Oscars 2020: Complete, highly satisfying list of winners

    Oscars 2020: Complete, highly satisfying list of winners

    On Sunday night in Los Angeles, Neon’s ‘Parasite’ made history as the first non-English language film to win the best picture at the Oscars.

    The film nabbed four wins in total at the 92nd Academy Awards, including for director Bong Joon Ho, international feature film and original screenplay. Universal’s ‘1917’ nabbed three wins — for visual effects, cinematography and sound mixing. 

    After more than three hours of Oscars fare, from red carpet proceedings and Billie Eilish memes, to entertaining speeches and triumphant wins, Hollywood’s biggest night is done and dusted.

    Here’s the full, highly satisfying list of winners.

    (Category winners mentioned in bold)

    Best picture

    • 1917
    • The Irishman
    • Jojo Rabbit
    • Joker
    • Little Women
    • Marriage Story
    • Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood
    • Parasite
    • Ford v Ferrari

    Best actress

    • Cynthia Erivo, Harriet
    • Renée Zellweger, Judy
    • Scarlett Johansson, Marriage Story
    • Charlize Theron, Bombshell
    • Saoirse Ronan, Little Women

    Best actor 

    • Joaquin Phoenix, Joker
    • Leonardo DiCaprio, Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood
    • Antonio Banderas, Pain and Glory
    • Adam Driver, Marriage Story
    • Jonathan Pryce, The Two Popes

    Best director

    • Bong Joon-ho, Parasite
    • Sam Mendes, 1917
    • Todd Phillips, Joker
    • Martin Scorsese, The Irishman
    • Quentin Tarantino, Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood

    Music (Original song)

    • “I’m Standing With You” from Breakthrough
    • “Into The Unknown” from Frozen II
    • “Stand Up” from Harriet
    • “(I’m Gonna) Love Me Again” from Rocketman
    • “I Can’t Let You Throw Yourself Away” from Toy Story 4
    • “Glasgow” from Wild Rose

    Music (Original score)

    • Joker
    • Little Women
    • Marriage Story
    • 1917
    • Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker

    International feature film

    • France, Les Misérables
    • North Macedonia, Honeyland
    • Poland, Corpus Christi
    • South Korea, Parasite
    • Spain, Pain and Glory

    Makeup and hairstyling 

    • Bombshell
    • Joker
    • Judy
    • Maleficent: Mistress of Evil
    • 1917

    Visual effects

    • Avengers: Endgame
    • The Irishman
    • The Lion King
    • 1917
    • Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker

    Best film editing

    • The Irishman
    • Jojo Rabbit
    • Joker
    • Ford v Ferrari
    • Parasite

    Best cinematography 

    • Roger Deakins, 1917
    • Rodrigo Prieto, The Irishman
    • Lawrence Sher, Joker
    • Jarin Blaschke, The Lighthouse
    • Robert Richardson, Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood

    Best sound mixing

    • Ad Astra
    • Joker
    • 1917
    • Ford v Ferrari
    • Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood

    Best sound editing

    • 1917
    • Ford v Ferrari
    • Joker
    • Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood
    • Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker

    Best supporting actress

    • Laura Dern, Marriage Story
    • Florence Pugh, Little Women
    • Margot Robbie, Bombshell
    • Kathy Bates, Richard Jewell
    • Scarlett Johansson, Jojo Rabbit

    Best supporting actor 

    • Brad Pitt, Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood
    • Al Pacino, The Irishman
    • Joe Pesci, The Irishman
    • Anthony Hopkins, The Two Popes
    • Tom Hanks, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood
    https://twitter.com/BradPittWeb/status/1226679118764412928

    Documentary short feature

    • In the Absence
    • Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone (If You’re a Girl)
    • Life Overtakes Me
    • St. Louis Superman
    • Walk Run Cha-Cha

    Documentary feature

    • American Factory
    • The Cave
    • The Edge of Democracy
    • For Sama
    • Honeyland

    Best costume design

    • Sandy Powell & Christopher Peterson; The Irishman
    • Mark Bridges; Joker
    • Arianne Phillips; Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood
    • Jacqueline Durran; Little Women
    • Mayes C. Rubeo; Jojo Rabbit

    Best production design 

    • Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood
    • The Irishman
    • 1917
    • Jojo Rabbit
    • Parasite

    Live-action short film 

    • Brotherhood
    • Nefta Football Club
    • The Neighbors’ Window
    • Saria
    • A Sister

    Best adapted screenplay

    • Steven Zaillian, The Irishman
    • Greta Gerwig, Little Women
    • Taika Waititi, Jojo Rabbit
    • Anthony McCarten, The Two Popes
    • Todd Phillips & Scott Silver, Joker

    Best original screenplay

    • Rian Johnson, Knives Out
    • Noah Baumbach, Marriage Story
    • Sam Mendes & Krysty Wilson-Cairns, 1917
    • Quentin Tarantino, Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood
    • Bong Joon-ho, Parasite

    Animated short film 

    • Dcera (Daughter)
    • Hair Love
    • Kitbull
    • Memorable
    • Sister

    Animated feature film

    • How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World
    • I Lost My Body
    • Klaus
    • Missing Link
    • Toy Story 4
  • Case against ‘The Legend of Maula Jatt’ reportedly withdrawn

    Case against ‘The Legend of Maula Jatt’ reportedly withdrawn

    It has been a long wait but it appears that the troubles for The Legend of Maula Jatt will soon end and the film will finally get a chance to see the light of the day.

    According to reports, Sarwar Bhatti who had filed a case against the film for copyright infringement has withdrawn his case and has reached an agreement with the makers. Speaking to Epk, Bhatti said “Ammara Hikmat [producer] and Bilal Lashari [director] are like my children. Someone misguided them but all kids tend to make mistakes and therefore I am willing to put everything behind me. I am doing this for their welfare, for the revival of cinema and to give the much-needed boost to Pakistan’s film industry. I will no longer be a hurdle in the release of The Legend of Maula Jatt.”

    It is being further reported that Bilal Lashari’s father Kamran Lashari and some mutual friends helped resolve the issues between the two conflicting parties.

    Meanwhile, the producer of the film Ammara Hikmat while speaking to Galaxy Lollywood said, “With the intervention of few elders, Mr Bhatti resolved his differences with us and extended his support in the larger interest of the film industry, and we are grateful to them.”

    Ever since the director of The Legend of Maula Jatt Bilal Lashari announced this film in 2013, the film was embroiled in legal cases after Sarwar Bhatti came forward and claimed that Maula Jatt was his property. He had filed an application for a stay order to prevent the director from using the character, name and dialogues and asked for the film to be banned from releasing.

    Read more – ‘The Legend of Maula Jatt’ faces another twist

    While a release date has not yet been announced, rumours are rife that the film will release on Eid ul Fitr. And if that is the case it will be Fawad vs Fawad at the box-office because Money Back Guarantee is also scheduled to release on Eid-ul-Fitr along with Urwa Hocane and Farhan Saeed’s Tich Button.

  • Zara Noor Abbas apologises to those left behind by PISA organisers

    Zara Noor Abbas apologises to those left behind by PISA organisers

    The first Pakistan International Screen Awards stirred more controversy than celebration. Though the event was a star-studded one with Pakistan’s A-listers in attendance, the organisers of the awards came under fire for ‘disrespecting’ other actors especially senior ones.

    Zara Noor Abbas, who was among those in attendance, took to social media to pen a note on the incident, asking everyone to respect each other, adding that “everyone who travelled here had no clue of who would be eventually present here or not present here.”

    “We all as a fraternity will always stand together in the good the bad and the ugly,” she wrote.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/B8TdCDSBc9Q/

    Read more – Pakistan International Screen Awards comes under fire for ‘disrespecting’ nominees

    PISA, which took place in Dubai on February 7, came under fire for ghosting actors and nominees and not giving them their due respect. Among those who were left hanging included Osman Khalid Butt, Ahmed Ali Akbar, Nadia Afgan, Nabeel Zafar and Ali Safina.

  • Nasir Jamshed’s wife warns cricketers of corruption after husband gets jailed

    Nasir Jamshed’s wife warns cricketers of corruption after husband gets jailed

    Pakistani cricketer Nasir Jamshed’s wife, Dr Samara Afzal, has penned a heartfelt letter on the difficulties her family faced and advised other players to not get tempted into corruption after her husband was jailed on Friday for match-fixing.

    After a Manchester Crown Court judge handed Jamshed a 17-month jail sentence for being involved in fixing a February 2018 Pakistan Super League (PSL) match in Dubai, Dr Samara took to social media and wrote: “Today is the most difficult day of my life as Nasir starts his custodial sentence & I figure out what to tell my 4-year-old.”

    “I’ve felt the need to write this in the hope that others learn from Nasir’s mistakes & no one goes through the pain we have suffered in the last 3 years,” she added.

    She further wrote: “Nasir could have a bright future had he worked hard and been committed to the sport that gave him so much but he took a short cut and lost everything: his career, status, respect and freedom. He would have got UK nationality and played country cricket and he threw his chance away. He would do anything to turn the clock back and not lose everything, especially his daughter who he’s very close to but it’s too late for him. I hope all cricketers look at his example as a deterrent against corruption.”

    She wrote she was aware that there are too many financial expectations from families in Pakistan but nothing justifies corruption.

    “An international cricket can probably earn more than I as a doctor can so I can’ understand the need to partake in corruption. I know in Pakistan one person is expected to provide for a dozen others but that doesn’t justify corruption. Praying for your country is a privilege and not an entitlement which as we have seen can be taken at any time.”

    “I hope and pray no other cricketer gets lured into to this temptation for money and no family has to bear the pain and humiliation we have endured and continue to do so.”

    Jamshed was arrested with Yousef Anwar and Mohammed Ijaz last February in a National Crime Agency (NCA) probe. He had encouraged other players to fix a PSL game back in February 2018 by getting batsmen to avoid scoring runs from certain balls in return for a share of £30,000 (Approx Rs 6,000,000). Anwar and Ijaz were jailed for 40 and 30 months, respectively.

  • Valentines Day gift guide for men within Rs3,000

    Valentines Day gift guide for men within Rs3,000

    Want to make a guy feel special but don’t know what to get? Here is the list of gifts men will love and where you can find them. The best part: they’re all under Rs 3,000.

    Cologne

    DESCRIBE is the perfect scent for the Pakistani alpha male.

    Available at J. Perfumes

    Shirts

    T-shirts or collar shirts? Pick whichever your guy likes to wear on a daily basis.

    Tip: Don’t choose what you like, make sure it fits his style.

    Available at Outfitters, Dockers, Cotton and Cotton

    Wrist watch

    You might think that wrist watches are outdated. But not for guys.

    Available at Ali Express

    Wallet

    Everyone needs a wallet, and even a simple basic one will do.

    Find it at Jafferjees

    Accessories

    Cufflinks, ties or tie pins are also a good option.

    Find it at Charcoal

    Beard Oil

    Beard oil is a popular choice of gift if your man flaunts a mustache and beard.

    Find it at Dari Mooch, M Belle Beaute

  • Mahira Khan is ‘upset’ with Meera Jee for the first time

    Mahira Khan is ‘upset’ with Meera Jee for the first time

    Meera Jee’s contempt for Mahira Khan is no secret. Meera has often voiced her dislike for Mahira on several occasions and has referred to her an “overrated actress.”

    But it appears that when the two meet, there’s no hate, only love. Mahira and Meera both recently attended the first Pakistan International Screen Awards in Dubai where they happened to cross paths. And Sheheryar Munawar recorded the entire interaction on his Insta story.

    In the video, Mahira can be seen telling Meera that she is upset with her for critising her yet again.

    “This is the first time I am actually upset with you Meera Jee after becoming friends because you said something about me again,” said Khan.

    To this, Meera responded, “I swear I never said anything about you Mahira.”

    Watch their interaction here:

    https://www.instagram.com/p/B8UJcAPhYzc/

    Earlier in January, Meera in an interview had remarked that “Mahira is not a talented actor. I am more brilliant than her,” adding that the superstar only gets importance because she shared the screen with Shah Rukh Khan in the Bollywood film Raees.