Turkish actor Burak Deniz is currently in India to attend the 23rd edition of FICCI Frames in Mumbai. Deniz, a Bollywood fan, has expressed admiration for Indian celebrities in different interviews.
During a talk with India Today he was asked if he has watched Indian movies. Burak Deniz expressed admiration for Aamir Khan and said that he has watched PK and 3 Idiots. “Who doesn’t love Aamir Khan? He is an actor but more than that he is involved in a lot of other activities. He is very impressive and the greatest actor in the world! I have a lot of respect for him,” he said, adding that he would love to act in a Bollywood film. “I’ll need to learn Hindi first and how to sing and dance,” he jokingly said.
Burak Deniz was also captured on video mimicking Shah Rukh Khan’s renowned hand gesture, known as his signature pose. The video shows a host instructing Burak on how to execute the pose, but before he could finish the lesson, Burak seemed to grasp the reference and effortlessly performed the gesture.
Pakistani Foreign Minister (FM) Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, who just wrapped up his visit to Goa, said that he did shake hands with his Indian counter partner S. Jaishankar at a dinner that was held in an unofficial capacity.
During an interview with India Today, Bilawal said, “In all our unofficial engagements we always shake hands and we had dinner conversations amongst other foreign ministers but we did not hold a bilateral engagement.”
Earlier, when both ministers greeted each other in front of the media they didn’t shake hands and this created headlines in India.
Clearing up the confusion, Bilawal said that his aim to visit India was to attend Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO). “Unless India reviews the action it took on August 5, 2019 (abrogation of Article 370), Pakistan is not in a position to engage bilaterally with India.”
When pointed out by a journalist that “Pakistan can’t sponsor terror directed against India”, the minister, taking a jibe at Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), said “This wolf whistling around the word terrorism which is ultimately an Islamophobic wolf whistle not only to whip up Hindu sentiment in India but also to brow beat Pakistan, that might be election strategy for some but not effective terrorism strategy”
The Pakistani foreign minister said the country wishes to quell terrorism “not because India said it or the Indian government said so, but because we want to end this menace”. He said terrorism has caused the “largest number of casualties” in Pakistan among any of the other SCO countries.
“India will have to explain what Kulbhushan Jadhav, a state actor, a navy commander, was doing in Pakistan carrying out terrorist attacks on Pakistani soil. Does that not come under cross-border terrorism?” he asked.
Bilawal also reminded Indian Journalist Rajdeep Sardesai that Pakistan is the only country on Earth that has completed two Financial Action Task Force (FATF) objectives.
He said that it is not productive for India to continue accusing Pakistan of sponsoring terror activities.
I am, unlike you, not choosing to read only one line of UN Security Council resolution – FM Bilawal Bhutto Zardari in an interview with India Today. @BBhuttoZardari pic.twitter.com/kc3R0QerAe
— Ramsha Quttab Uddin Khan 🇵🇸 (@wamsha92s) May 5, 2023
Pointing out that India violated bilateral agreements and international agreements on Aug 5, 2019, by revoking the special status of Jammu Kashmir, Bilawal Bhutto also mentioned the 2007 Samjhauta Express bombing where around 70 people, mostly Pakistanis, were killed. “We are yet to see any justice,” he reminded Sardesai.
He repeatedly said that both India and Pakistan have different perspectives on terrorism, adding that Pakistan is “willing to engage with any concerns that India might have but India will also have to address our concerns.”
Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari addressed the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Council of Foreign Ministers (CFM) in India, Goa on Friday.
During his address, the young minister who is leading Pakistan’s delegation, talked about climate change, importance of a peaceful and stable Afghanistan, poverty alleviation and Pakistan’s commitment to multilateralism among other things.
Bhutto started his address by reiterating Pakistan’s strong commitment to SCO saying,“There couldn’t be a more powerful indication of the importance that Pakistan attaches to the SCO than my presence here in Goa for this CFM”.
Bilawal also talked about eradicating the menace of terrorism. “Let’s not get caught up in weaponising terrorism for diplomatic point scoring.”
Bilawal reiterated Pakistan’s commitment to multilateralism for maintaining international peace and harmony.
“A peaceful and stable Afghanistan is a key not only to regional integration and economic cooperation but also to global peace and stability,” said Bilawal while talking about the importance of peaceful and stable Afghanistan.
In a world facing geo-political flux, dividing the world between us and them – the SCO has emerged as a platform for promoting mutual understanding – FM @BBhuttoZardari at the SCO Council of Foreign Ministers#PakatSCO 1/2 pic.twitter.com/D2SMcXq8eG
It is our collective duty to fight against fascism and historical revisionism that is leading to violent ultra nationalism anywhere in the world – FM @BBhuttoZardari at the SCO Council of Foreign Ministers#PakatSCO 2/2 pic.twitter.com/Yb3uj7467Y
Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari is leaving for India today to attend a moot of the Foreign Ministers of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) being held in Goa today (Thursday).
The foreign minister shared a video message on Twitter in which he said that his attendance in the meeting will give a clear message on how much importance Pakistan gives to SCO.
He added that he is looking forward to engaging bilaterally with the member countries.
On my way to Goa, India. Will be leading the Pakistan delegation at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization CFM. My decision to attend this meeting illustrates Pakistan’s strong commitment to the charter of SCO.
— Bilawal Bhutto Zardari (@BBhuttoZardari) May 4, 2023
Alongside the CFM meeting, the Foreign Minister will also hold meetings with counterparts from friendly nations. Pakistan became a member of SCO after joining the body in 2017.
There is no possibility of postponing the Asia Cup or shifting the tournament to a neutral venue, Asian Cricket Council (ACC) sources have confirmed to Dawn News, stating that it did not send any notification to the member countries.
Pakistani media reports have claimed that if the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) does not agree to play the Asia Cup at a neutral venue, the tournament may be out of the hands of the country.
Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary Jay Shah and the Chairman Asian Cricket Council (ACC) have stated that India will not travel to Pakistan for Asia Cup 2023. The tournament is scheduled to be hosted by Pakistan but BCCI continuously threatens PCB that they will not send their team to the host country and force the Cup to shifted to a neutral venue.
Asia Cup 2023 is scheduled to be played in September but the final date has not been announced yet.
PCB management committee has proposed a hybrid model in which Pakistan will play their matches in Pakistan but India will play their matches in Dubai. Najam Sethi had clarified that “We will decide where the Indian team will play their matches, not them. We have the right to decide and we will not back off from the hosting”
The Indian cricket board is believed to want the entire tournament to be shifted to the UAE, as was done in 2018 and 2022 when India and Sri Lanka hosted the tournament.
A member of the ACC board said on condition of anonymity that “messages have been exchanged but no discussion or proposal has been made to postpone the Asia Cup”.
He further said that if the Asia Cup is canceled, the PCB will be informed first, but nothing has happened so far.
According to him, the ACC will have to convene an executive board meeting to postpone or cancel the event. Sources further said that Chairman Jay Shah can call a meeting (virtual or physical) in 7 days, but so far there is no information about any such meeting.
ACC sources said that to the best of their knowledge, the last official exchange of mail between the PCB, ACC and BCCI was an invitation to assure the Indian team of maximum security and best hospitality.
He said that however, obviously, it is difficult for India to travel to Pakistan in the current sensitive political environment.
Another issue is how much money the official broadcaster has promised on contracts, which include at least two guaranteed Pak-India matches and a bonus third match if both teams reach the final.
“We should remember the media rights and the deal with Star Sports who have paid crores of rupees for at least two Pak-India matches in the Asia Cup,” he said.
Sources are clear that if the board meeting of ACC will decide to cancel the tournament so it will not only effect the participation of Pakistan in World Cup 2023 but will be a dangerous thing for the bilateral relationships of Pakistan with other countries.
In a positive development, Pakistan’s press freedom ranking has improved, with the country moving up seven spots to number 150 on the list.
However, India’s position has slipped to 160 compared to last year’s stats when the country was placed at 150. China has been placed in the second last spot in the ranking list and North Korea has been put in the last.
May 3rd marks World Press Freedom Day, an opportunity to celebrate the fundamental principles of press freedom; to assess the state of press freedom throughout the world; to defend the media from attacks on their independence and to pay tribute to journalists who have lost their lives in the line of duty.
The World Press Freedom Index also revealed a shocking general slide, with an unprecedented 31 countries deemed to be in a “very serious situation”.
Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif took to Twitter to pay his tributes to all journalists across the world “for the commendable work they are doing to inform and educate the people.”
On World Press Freedom Day, I pay glowing tributes to journalists across the world, particularly those in Pakistan for the commendable work they are doing to inform & educate the people. The environment in which they work is often full of challenges & risks and yet they never…
Indian director Sudipto Sen’s upcoming film ‘The Kerala Story’ has attracted widespread backlash for claiming to represent the stories of 32,000 women from the state who were lured into converting to Islam by Muslim men and then taken to Afghanistan to join militant outfit Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS).
The trailer for the movie debuted online on November 3 last year. It opens with the story of Fathima Ba (played by Adah Sharma), who is a Hindu Malayali nurse and claimed to be one of the 32,000 Hindu and Christian women who were abducted and sent to Afghanistan. Since then, the film has been criticized by Indian politicians such as Congress leader and Leader of Opposition VD Satheesan for spreading misinformation that would only further marginalise the Muslims living in India:
“The film is a bundle of lies. It says 32,000 women were converted and sent to Islamic State-held areas. Its trailer gave enough hints of its content. It is intended to defame the state and community and Sangh Parivar outfits are behind this.”
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan released a statement on 30 April where he slammed Sen for pushing the so-called claim of ‘love-jihad’ through the film, a conspiracy theory pushed by Hindutva members which alleges that Muslim men lure Hindu and Christian women through seduction or kidnapping to convert them into Islam. He further accused the filmmaker of threatening religious harmony by “sowing the seeds of communalism” through the debunked claim that 32,000 women were kidnapped from India and handed over to ISIS.
“In the movie trailer, we see a hoax that 32,000 women in Kerala were converted and became members of the Islamic State. This bogus story is a product of the Sangh Parivar’s lie factory.”
The central controversy surrounding the film was it’s claim that 32,000 women were forcibly converted to Islam in Kerala and were sent to ISIS, which has been debunked by several credible publications to be untrue. But speaking to India Today, the producer of the film, Vipul Shah, said that the focus was not the numbers, but the fact that forced conversions are still happening throughout India:
“We don’t want to get into the debate on the numbers, we want to talk about the issue. We want to bring notice to the human tragedy happening in Kerala and in India.”
Actor Adah Sharma also defended the movie’s false pretext, by telling India Today that she had spoken to the women who inspired the story:
“I spoke to some of these women. There will be testimony from those who will be brave enough to come in front of cameras.”
Politicians like Shashi Tharoor have also slammed the filmmakers for spreading misinformation regarding the 32,000 figure, and addressed it in a lengthy Twitter post where he also said that his 2021 tweet was not proof that the allegations of the filmmakers were real:
“Many are spreading this 2021 tweet of mine as if it undermines my present objections to the trailer & publicity for “The Kerala Story”. Yes, I was approached then by three Kerala mothers and was aware of a fourth, and I was open about my concerns about their daughters’ radicalisation. But four cases are a far cry from the 32,000 that the film-makers are alleging. If there really were so many ISIS female members from Kerala, that would mean double the number when you count their husbands, whereas even Western intelligence sources says the number of ALL Indians in ISIS does not approach three figures. This gross exaggeration and distortion of the Kerala reality is what I am objecting to.”
Many are spreading this 2021 tweet of mine as if it undermines my present objections to the trailer & publicity for "The Kerala Story". Yes, I was approached then by three Kerala mothers and was aware of a fourth, and I was open about my concerns about their daughters'… https://t.co/R8Vn1RsfpU
In a tweet posted on Monday, Tharoor offered Rs1 crore to anyone who would be able to prove that 32,000 women had been forcibly converted and sent to ISIS.
Now there’s an opportunity for all those hyping the alleged conversions of 32,000 women on Kerala to Islamism — to prove their case and make some money. Will they be up to the challenge or is there simply no proof because none exists? #NotOurKeralaStorypic.twitter.com/SrwaMx556H
ALT News, in an investigative piece, revealed that the director Sudipto Sen had first mentioned the figure on a Youtube channel ‘The Festival Of Bharat” where he talked about how he calculated the final number, with the help of a speech delivered by the former Kerala CM Oommen Chandy:
“In 2010, former Kerala CM Oommen Chandy put a report in front of Kerala assembly. In front of my camera, he denied that anything had happened. But in 2010, I documented a case where he (Chandy) said that every year approximately 2,800 to 3,200 girls were taking up Islam. Just calculate it for the following 10 years, and the number is around 32,000.”
When the publication spoke to Sen on the phone, the author Shinjinee Majumder writes, the director claimed that he picked the number up from an article published by ‘The Times Of India”:
“This figure (32,000) is not mine. It was a piece of news in The Times of India… one thing I can tell you is that Oommen Chandy, the chief minister of Kerala, had placed this number in the state assembly. So this is not my number, I have got all the documents with me.”
However, no publication quoting such a large number has come to light. But ALT News reports that in 2012, India Today reported the Kerala chief minister Oommen Chandy informing the state minister about how 2,667 young women had converted to Islam between 2006 to 2012. Especially, Chandy had said that there was no evidence of forced conversions in the state, and the fears of ‘love jihad’ were baseless.
When ANI news shared this report with Sen, his response was:
“Let the intolerance reach a crescendo. I’ll share my data after the film is released. Why should I defeat the cause of my film?”
Similarly, Kerala Police had also refuted the claims that 32,000 women had been sent to Syria as “totally baseless”.
While a report published in 2020 by the United States Department of State’s Country Reports on Terrorism said that there were only 66 known Indian-origin fighters associated with ISIS in 2020, of which 34 terrorism cases were related to ISIS and NIA arrested 160 people by the end of September.
Moreover, The Hindu reported in June 2021 that four Indian women were traced in an Afghanistani prison, who had travelled with their husbands to join the Islamic State in Khorasan Province (ISKP), and it was unlikely that they would come back to India.
As a response to the growing backlash, the film trailer has now changed the title description from 32,000 women to just three young girls, as shared by several Twitter users.
From 'Heartbreaking and gut-wrenching stories of 32000 females in Kerala! Coming Soon!' TO 'True story of 3 young girls from different parts of Kerala'. Propaganda Movie teaser has NOW changed the description of 'The Kerala Story' on YouTube. pic.twitter.com/GIUAomaX5i
With the film set to release on 5 May and despite calls to authorities to ban the film on grounds of hate speech and misinformation, NDTV reported today that the Indian Supreme Court had refused to entertain a petition to seek a stay on the release of ‘The Kerala Story’ because it had been cleared by the censor board:
“There are varieties of hate speeches. This film has got certification and has been cleared by the board. It’s not like a person getting on the podium and starts giving uncontrolled speech. If you want to challenge the release of the movie, you should challenge the certification and through appropriate forum”.
Several documents regarding the declining support of key allied countries to the United States (US) have been leaked, a report published by Washington Post has stated.
According to one of the leaked documents, Hina Rabbani Khar, Pakistan’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, argued in March that her country can “no longer try to maintain a middle ground between China and the United States.”
In an internal memo she titled “Pakistan’s Difficult Choices,” Khar cautioned that Islamabad should avoid giving the appearance of appeasing the West. She said that in order to preserve Pakistan’s partnership with the United States, the country will be sacrificing the full benefits of a “real strategic” partnership with China.
According to another leaked document, Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif’s aide ask him to remain neutral in the Ukraine conflict because it could jeopardise the country’s ties with Russia.
India, likewise, appeared to avoid taking sides between Washington and Moscow during a conversation on February 22 between Indian national security adviser Ajit Kumar Doval and his Russian counterpart, Nikolay Patrushev, another of the leaked documents indicates.
The leaked documents have surfaced when the US is no longer the unchallenged sole superpower in the world, as its former allies make strategic ties with China and Russia while the Middle East goes through its own course correction as former rivals reconcile with deals brokered by China.
The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) has clarified that former Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Qamar Javed Bajwa’s statement about Pakistan army not being fully compatible to fight against India has been taken out of context.
“To this end, views of the former army chief on the future threats to Pakistan, which he shared with media persons in an off-the-record interactive session, have been quoted out of context,” ISPR said.
It added that the army “always took and will continue to take pride in our operational preparedness and utmost combat worthiness.”
Earlier, Senior Journalist Hamid Mir said that Bajwa had told journalists in 2021 that the Pakistan Army is not capable of getting into combat against the rival country.
He claimed that immediately after the ceasefire, Indian Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi had to visit Pakistan in 2021 but the then-Foreign Minister (FM) Shah Mahmood Qureshi and former PM Imran Khan weren’t aware of it.
When Khan demanded that details regarding Modi’s visit should be given to Foreign Office (FO) “Bajwa came to the FO with his entire convoy and gave a lecture”.
“This was the same lecture that he gave in front of us once too that army tanks are not capable of running and there is no diesel for troop movement,” the journalist said.
The journalist’s claims were picked up by Indian media and reported by major news outlets.
Looks like the apple didn’t fall far from the tree. After Suhana’s entry into the world of entertainment, Aryan Khan is set to follow in his father Shah Rukh Khan’s footsteps with his directorial debute.
On Tuesday, the eldest son of the superstar shared a snippet of the ad of the upcoming streetwear brand ‘D’YAVOL X?’, which starred the Bollywood Badshah himself.
The project has received praise from social media users, with plenty of applaud for Aryan’s acting and his direction skills, saying that he had a bright future ahead of him.
Previously, Aryan had announced on his Instagram page that he had finished writing his first web series, which will be made under the banner of his family’s production house ‘Red Chillies Entertainment’.
