Current Final

Tag: social media

  • ‘Gunjal’; What is it about and when is it releasing? We have the details

    ‘Gunjal’; What is it about and when is it releasing? We have the details

    Upcoming thriller ‘Gunjal’ is the talk of the town, a film that promises to revive the industry with an insight into the crisis of child abuse in Pakistan. The film boasts of a star-studded cast with the likes of Ahmed Ali Akbar, Resham, Ahmed Ali Butt, Samiya Mumtaz and Amna Ilyas. The team behind ‘Gunjal’ was present at the prelaunch event held at University of Management and Technology (UMT) where we got some interesting details about the film, including the wholesome reason why Resham wanted to work with Ahmed Ali Akbar.

    When is ‘Gunjal’ releasing?

    Gunjal will release in theatres across Pakistan on 8th December.

    What roles will Ahmed Ali Akbar and Resham be playing?

    Ahmed Ali Akbar will be playing the role of journalist Shahbaz Bhatti, who investigates the murder of prolific child activist Iqbal Masih. Speaking at the event, Ahmed opened up about his reason for choosing the role.

    “Gunjal is inspired by the life of a prolific child activist and is an insight into the trials and tribulations of Iqbal Masih and what he went through, and the conditions he was working in under and the events that took place. It’s also about the life of a regular person who overtime, through the eyes of Iqbal Masih, starts to see things that are very common around us, yet we don’t notice them.”

    “It’s about the rights of children… and is inspired by Iqbal Masih’s legacy,” stressed Ahmed. “It’s very relevant, on what Iqbal wanted to accomplish, it was relevant then and is still now. It’s happening in front of us. So I feel it is our duty but it takes time to act upon it.”

    Resham said her role in ‘Gunjal’ was quite different from her previous films. She plays Sarwat, the founder of a newspaper ‘Nai Subh’. Resham explained that her character tries to ensure her journalistic stories are focused on truth and justice.

    The sweet reason behind why Resham wanted to work on Gunjal: Ahmed Ali Akbar

    Resham also shared the sweet reason that propelled her to take part in the film, revealing it was her desire to work with Ahmed Ali Akbar.

    “I had watched all of ‘Parizaad’ from that point on I really wanted to work with him. While Ahmed’s drama was airing I didn’t watch it because I was suffering from depression and had lost a lot friends. Then I decided to watch all the episodes on Youtube. After finishing it, I made a prayer to Allah while watching alone, that I hoped to work with this man some day. Two-and-a-half months later the film’s director Shoaib sahab reached out and asked if I would act in his film. I asked who would be the hero, and he said ‘Ahmed Ali Akbar’. I said ‘The Parizaad one!’ and was overjoyed!”

    Resham shared she had watched the last episode of Parizaad with Ahmed, which she said she was extremely lucky for. “Despite the fact that I’m his senior, but I’m still a huge fan of his.”

  • Fan passes away from cardiac arrest during Taylor Swift’s concert

    Fan passes away from cardiac arrest during Taylor Swift’s concert

    Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour concert in Rio, Brazil, suffered a setback when a fan passed away of cardiac arrest. Ana Clara, 23, had flown in from the centre west region to see her favourite musician perform live. According to People, she fainted before Taylor’s gig began, dying shortly after in the hospital where she was taken for treatment.

    Brazil is in the grip of intense heatwaves. On Friday, the temperature in Rio hit 39.1C. Multiple fans have revealed they were not allowed to take water bottles inside with them during the show. In several videos, Taylor was seen passing out water bottles while performing ‘All Too Well’ when fans began chanting “water, water”.

    Swift released a statement on Friday on her Instagram account, expressing grief on Ana’s passing, writing that she was devastated by the loss.

    “I can’t believe I’m writing these words but it is with a shattered heart that I sasy we lost a fan earlier tonight before my show. I can’t even tell you how devastated I am by this. There’s very little information I have other than the fact that she was so incredibly beautiful and far too young.”

    “I’m not going to be able to speak about this from stage,” Taylor continued, “because I fell overwhelmed with grief when I even try to talk about it. I want to say now I feel this loss deeply and my broken heart goes out to her friends and family. This is the last thing I ever thought would happen when we decided to bring this tour to Brazil.”

    On Saturday, the ‘Anti Hero’ singer released another statement, announcing that she was postponing her Saturday night concert in Rio due to extreme temperatures. The show has now been rescheduled for Monday.

    “I’m writing this from my dressing room in the stadium. The decision has been made to postpone tonight’s show due to the extreme temperatures in Rip. The safety and well-being on my fans, fellow performers, and crew has to and will always come first.”

  • ‘Content creators are selling their families for influence’: Fahad Mustafa

    ‘Content creators are selling their families for influence’: Fahad Mustafa

    Actor and producer Fahad Mustafa was a guest on Shoaib Akhtar’s show where he was asked about the rise of social media influencers and content creators in Pakistan and whether he would accept them as co-actors in any drama he works in. The ‘Mayi Ri’ producer responded with a scathing remark on the lengths people from this profession are willing to go to for the sake of going viral.

    “They are selling their families for content,” asserted the actor. “Their content is making kheer in the kitchen, rubbing their mother’s feet and then going as far as visiting a graveyard…Matlab yeh kya hai, yeh kaunsa content hai?” [What is this, what kind of content is this?]

    Fahad further explained he would never want to be known for this kind of work. “I can tell both good or bad story, but I will never sell my house for the sake of views. I will never sell myself this way.”

    The ‘Mein Abdul Kadir Hoon’ actor further compared content creators to those working in the acting industry, and pointed out how such influencers would never survive in such an industry because of the extensive time it took to produce a project.

    “If you ever go on a shoot, or you’re sitting on a set here, it takes time,” shared Fahad. “There’s a process. They can’t work longer than two or eight hours. And how would they understand? They have their phone and can make something in 10 seconds.”

  • X user wins hearts by sharing story of inter-faith marriage of Palestinian parents

    X user wins hearts by sharing story of inter-faith marriage of Palestinian parents

    An X (formerly Twitter) user, Beisan, is winning hearts on social media by sharing the love story of her Palestinian parents. Beisan revealed her parents, a Muslim man and his Christian wife, have been married for over 40 years.

    In her next post, Beisan shared that inter-faith marriages were not permitted in Israel, where under the law, interfaith unions are not legally recognised. Because of this, her parents had to move to Canada in order to legalise their union.

    Twitter users were moved by Beisan’s dedication to her parents, a reminder of the enormous love Palestinian men hold for their families.

    A user shared: “In high school I went on a trip to Nippissing & the weather was colder than I packed for. When I got home & told my father he was furious that I didn’t call him to bring sweaters, it was only a 3 hour drive. It’s hard to describe the intensity of a Palestinian father’s love.”

  • Filipino Catholic nun chooses to stay behind in Gaza, defying mandatory evacuation

    A 63-year-old Filipino nun is making international headlines by defying the Philippine government’s evacuation attempts and choosing to stay in Gaza. Since the genocide began on October 7, the Philippine government has successfully evacuated 111 civilians from the region. However, the unnamed nun who is from the Missionaries of Charity, has chosen to remain as the last Filipino in Gaza.

    Most of the evacuees were forced to leave family residents behind.

    The Philippines Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Eduardo De Vega spoke to Arab News about the nun and how her defiance of the Filipino government makes her a symbol of “Filipino spirituality”:

    “She’s with the Missionaries of Charity… they will not leave. After all, they believe…that (what they are doing) is spiritual,” he said.

    “She will be the last Filipino left in Gaza, (and) is a symbol of Filipino spirituality and how we pray for solidarity with those suffering, and for world peace.”

    Dr Vega reported the nun is safe right now. The Philipine DEmbassy of Jordan has remained in touch with her, to whom she had simply asked to ‘pray for her’.

    Several other Filipino’s in Gaza have expressed uncertainty in leaving because of their attachment to the place, while others have refused because their Palestinian spouses would not be able to join them.

    “We are still trying to convince them to leave,” De Vega responded. “We hope we can evacuate them all.”

  • Alia Bhatt is done with criticism of husband Ranbir Kapoor

    Alia Bhatt is done with criticism of husband Ranbir Kapoor

    Bollywood A-list couple Alia Bhatt and Ranbir Kapoor were embroiled in several controversies due to the latter’s sexist comments. In August, the actor was slammed by netizens for being a “toxic, privileged man” following Alia’s revelation in a Vogue interview that Ranbir didn’t allow her to wear lipstick when the two were dating.

    READ MORE: ‘While we were dating, Ranbir told me not to wear lipstick’: Alia’s Vogue interview sparks outrage

    Now, Alia has addressed the criticism directed at her husband in an interview on Koffee With Karan.

    “I have a very candid way of speaking…things just get picked out of context which happened recently. My team told me ‘Ye kuch out of hand jaara hai’. There were serious articles written about how he was a toxic man.”

    Alia added that she was concerned about the criticism, as Ranbir is the opposite of toxic.

    Ranbir’s advice was to ignore what the media said about her, as long as her career was doing well, Alia narrated.

    “Ranbir says this, ‘Alia the audience owns you, they can say whatever the hell they want to say about you, as long as your movies are doing well please don’t complain sitting in your apartment in Bandra.”

    Speaking about the criticism, Ranbir revealed he was okay with being labelled as an example of ‘toxic masculinity’, because the fight was bigger than him:

    “Recently, I was reading an article about being toxic and something relating to some statement I made, and I understand. Listen, I am on your side. Whatever you are fighting against this toxic masculinity, I am on the side of people who are fighting for it. So, if they want to use me as a face, I am fine because their fight is bigger than just me feeling bad about them having an opinion on what I said.”

    READ MORE: ‘It doesn’t matter’: Ranbir Kapoor responds to label of ‘toxic masculinity’

  • ‘If Ahsan Khan had not been married, I would have taken him’: Saba Qamar

    ‘If Ahsan Khan had not been married, I would have taken him’: Saba Qamar

    Actor Ahsan Khan invited Lollywood A-lister Saba Qamar as a guest for his Youtube session ‘Lo Kar Lo Baat’. As the two actors drove around, discussing various topics, Saba hilariously revealed she would have married Ahsan had he not been committed to someone else.

    Ahsan asked the ‘Kamli’ star which actor she would have married had he not been committed, after which the actress cheekily pointed to him.

    Saba then revealed that she had a crush on the ‘Udaari’ actor before she became a big star.

    “Back when I wasn’t an actress, I managed to swipe Ahsan Khan’s number from somewhere and I would send him missed calls and messages. Just to tell him that one day I will work with him.”

    “And the day I began working with Ahsan,” Saba recalled while laughing, “You started a fight with me after which I hated you. I cried a lot but I forgive you now.”

    Ahsan apologised for the fight, and joked that he had fights with all of the actresses with whom he had good chemistry on screen. Saba then said that after their fight, she began understanding him and fell even more in love. But by the time she would have confessed her feelings, Ahsan got married.

    Ahsan said he was shocked, and thought Saba wanted to remain an independent woman to which the actress laughingly said “When girls say ‘No I won’t get married’, it actually means they want to!”

  • Beloved Gazan Christian music teacher bled to death after Israeli troops shot her

    Beloved Gazan Christian music teacher bled to death after Israeli troops shot her

    Palestinian music teacher Elham Farah bled to death in Gaza after she was shot by IDF soldiers and left alone to bleed on the street for hours. Her family members and students are recalling her as a woman known for her smile.

    Fareh, the daughter of the Palestinian poet Hanna Fareh, lived in the al-Rameh neighbourhood of Gaza, teaching music for decades before retiring. She had been sheltering inside a church during Israeli airstrikes, and had stepped outside to check if her home was bombed when she was shot.

    Hammam Farah, her relative, posted on X that during his aunt’s last moments, her phone battery ran out so she couldn’t reach out to relatives for help. Other civilians or rescue personnel couldn’t rescue her because of intense shooting in the area. Hammam said that IDF snipers shoot civilians in the leg in order to bait fighters who might try to rescue the injured person.

    Since her death, Gaza residents have flooded social media with tales of Farah’s resilience, warm heart and good nature.

    “Oh my love, Miss Ilham, my love!!!! The music classes we took with you at Cairo School were some of the best. We used to love when you would play for us and sing: ‘I write your name, my country, on the sun that never sets, neither my money nor my children, for your love there is no lover.’”

    Another user shared a video of Elham playing the piano at Kamaliyah School, which was the oldest school in Palestine.

    “Martyr teacher Elham Hanna Farah in 2021 returns to her childhood memories and plays inside the Kamaliya School in the Al-Zaytoun neighborhood in the Old City of Gaza, which is the oldest school in Palestine. The activity was a celebration of restoring and cleaning the place in an initiative by the Iwan Center for Cultural Heritage of the Islamic University of Gaza.”

  • ‘Grace is a quality few have’: Indian designer Masaba Gupta shuts down Ramiz Raja over racism

    ‘Grace is a quality few have’: Indian designer Masaba Gupta shuts down Ramiz Raja over racism

    Pakistani commentator and former cricketer Ramiz Raja landed in a storm of controversy when a viral video showed him laughing at a racist joke about West Indies cricketer Sir Viv Richards and his former partner actress Neena Gupta.

    The clip was from Cricket Mastiyan on Suno News HD where Ramiz was seen laughing about a racist joke regarding Vivian’s skin color. One of the hosts said: “I do watch cricket matches and my heart broke when Vivian Richards went into a relationship with Neena Gupta. I wrote a couplet then. ‘Jo ladkiyan khud ko kehti hain malika-e-aliya, Unko fir milta hai Mr Kaliya.’”

    The couple’s daughter, fashion designer Masaba Gupta slammed Ramiz, calling him out in a tweet on X (formerly Twitter)

    “Dear Ramiz Raja (sir) grace is a quality few have. My father, mother, and I have it in spades. You have none. Sickening to see you laugh on national TV in Pakistan at something the world stopped laughing at about 30 years back. Step into the future. All 3 of us are here with our chin up.”

    Sharing her tweet on her Instagram account, Masaba wrote she will never stop calling out those who target her mother with racist comments.

    “It’s nearly 2024 – no matter who you are I will call you out on racism and shaming my mother on television. Won’t have it. That is still my fight.”

    The incident follows the scandal of former cricketer Abdul Razzaq who was slammed for a misogynistic comment about Bollywood actress Aishwarya Rai during a panel. Shahid Afridi, sitting next to Razzaq, laughed at the distasteful comment.

    Razzaq has since issued an apology.

    Social media users applauded Masaba for calling out sexist behavior, and slammed Pakistani cricket players for using women as punching bags to score points.

  • Osama Bin Laden’s ‘Letter to America’ is going viral on TikTok

    Osama Bin Laden’s ‘Letter to America’ is going viral on TikTok

    Almost 12 years after he was killed, Osama Bin Laden is back in the mainstream discourse after an essay he wrote in 2000, titled ‘Letter To America’, went viral on TikTok. Users began sharing a link from The Guardian on the social media platform, which the website has now removed. In the widely circulating letter, Osama addressed the American public to explain Al-Qaeda’s militant philosophy. Notably, he talks about Israel’s occupation of Palestine.

    Read the full letter below:

    The letter has since then gone viral on Twitter and TikTok with users declaring the letter has changed their perspective of 9/11 attacks. Users reported the hashtag had gained over 9 million views on the social media platform

    TikTok has said in a statement that they have removed the videos as the trend violates rules about “supporting any form of terrorism.” But the letter and excerpts from TikTok videos are still available on Twitter.