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  • Best OSTs of 2022, 2023: Nominees revealed for 9th HUM Awards

    Best OSTs of 2022, 2023: Nominees revealed for 9th HUM Awards


     
     
    The HUM 9 Awards are going to take place at Ovo Arena Wembley in London on September 28, 2024. This year’s nominees for Best OST of Dramas 2022 & 2023 are in, and the competition is heating up.
     
    Here is the list of dramas that are nominated for Best OST of dramas of 2022 and 2023:

     
     Ishq E Laa: This song is sung by Azaan Sami Khan and written by Asim Raza
      
     Sang-e-Mah: Sahir Ali Bagga’s musical masterpiece delivers an emotional depth that resonates with listeners of Sang-e-Mah. The song is sung by Atif Asalam, while the lyrics are written by Fatima Najeeb.
      
    Dobara:  Shuja Haider create a memorable tune for Dobara OST, and it’s really well sung by Sehar Gul Khan and Shuja Haider, and the lyrics are written by Imran Narmi and Shuja Haider.
     
     

    Bakhtawar: With the melodious voice of Shiraz Uppal’s mesmerizing vocals, this OST is turning heads and is set to leave a lasting impression. The lyrics of the song are written by Mubashir Hasan.


    Yunhi: The last nomination for HUM Style is the OST of Yunhi, beautifully sung by Shae Gill, Sami Khan and written by Sami Khan.

  • Oasis announce 2025 worldwide reunion tour kicking off in UK

    Oasis announce 2025 worldwide reunion tour kicking off in UK

    British rock legends Oasis announced Tuesday they will reunite for a worldwide tour, as brothers Liam and Noel Gallagher ended an infamous 15-year feud.

    The band behind hit songs including “Wonderwall”, “Don’t Look Back In Anger” and “Champagne Supernova”, will play an initial 14 gigs next year in Cardiff, Manchester, London, Edinburgh and the Irish capital, Dublin, starting in July.

    Oasis also plan to play in “continents outside of Europe later next year,” according to a statement posted on their website.

    Formed in Manchester, northwest England, in 1991 and credited with helping create the Britpop era of that decade, Oasis’ reunion tour will be the Gallagher brothers’ first performances since 2009 after they fell out.

    “The guns have fallen silent. The stars have aligned. The great wait is over. Come see. It will not be televised,” Oasis said, as it announced the reunion alongside the first details of the tour.

    The announcement capped days of hints and heightened speculation the band was set to play again.

    However, there was no announcement regarding the release of any new music, while Oasis will reportedly not play next year’s Glastonbury festival despite widespread speculation.

    “Oasis today end years of feverish speculation with the confirmation of a long-awaited run of UK and Ireland shows forming the domestic leg of their Oasis Live ’25 world tour,” the online statement added.

    – ‘Hottest tickets’ –

    The tour will begin over two nights at the Principality Stadium in the Welsh capital Cardiff from July 4, 2025, followed a week later by four gigs at Heaton Park in their hometown, Manchester.

    Oasis will then play London’s Wembley Stadium — on July 25 and 26 as well as August 2 and 3 — before taking to the stage over two nights at Murrayfield Stadium in the Scottish capital Edinburgh.

    The UK and Ireland gigs will conclude with two performances at Dublin’s Croke Park in mid-August.

    “Their only shows in Europe next year, this will be one of the biggest live moments and hottest tickets of the decade,” the statement said.

    A press release said there had been “no great revelatory moment that has ignited the reunion — just the gradual realisation that the time is right”.

    It promised “a set full of wall-to-wall classics,” hailing the “charisma, spark and intensity that only comes when Liam and Noel Gallagher are on-stage together”.

    Tickets for the UK dates will go on sale from 9:00 am (0800 GMT) on Saturday, with Dublin tickets available from 8am (0700 GMT) the same day.

    Social media was abuzz with the news, with the band’s post racking up hundreds of thousands of likes and fans sharing their excitement.

    Manchester teaching assistant Michelle Locke, 45, told AFP she was “well excited” after hearing the “great news”.

    “We’ll be up early… trying to get tickets,” she said, posing in front of a mural to the Gallaghers in south Manchester.

    – ‘Best news’ –

    In Camden, the north London neighbourhood famous for live music and where Oasis were fixtures in the mid-’90s, others were equally enthused.

    “It’s the best news in the world… it’s what we need!” said Pauline Weir, 50, manager of the Modfather clothing store.

    Oasis has long been synonymous with Britpop music, when it enjoyed a fierce rivalry with London band Blur, co-founded by Damon Albarn.

    The Manchester outfit was also notorious for public fights between Liam and Noel.

    The sibling tensions came to a head during a spat at a 2009 Paris festival, when Liam broke one of Noel’s guitars.

    The brothers have not played together since — but both have still regularly played the band’s hits to sold-out crowds.

    Until now, they had largely communicated in public through taking swipes at each other on social media.

    The brothers have teased at a reconciliation before, with Noel last year saying “never say never”.

    The hints became firmer more recently, with social media accounts for the brothers and Oasis all trailing Tuesday’s much-anticipated announcement.

    The now-confirmed reunion will take place 30 years after Oasis’s 1995 album “(What’s the Story) Morning Glory?”, which received international critical and commercial acclaim.

    Meanwhile, tracks from the first recording session for its debut album “Definitely Maybe”, released a year earlier, will be put out Friday — a day after its 30th birthday — Britain’s Press Association (PA) news agency said.

  • Fans love Maya Ali’s fashion choices as she enjoys family time in UK

    Fans love Maya Ali’s fashion choices as she enjoys family time in UK

    Actress and model Maya Ali continues to capture hearts with her on-screen and off-screen performances.
    Currently, Maya is in the UK, where she’s spending quality time with her family.

    Having fun along with her mother, brother, sister-in-law, and adorable niece, Maya shared pictures of the holiday on her Instagram with the caption, “Always grateful… . ”.


    The Yunhi actress has completed the shooting of her upcoming drama ‘Sun Mere Dil’, written by controversial writer Khalil Ur Rehman Qamar and directed by Haseeb Hassan.


    Here are some comments from fans who adored her looks:

  • Big names including Naumaan Ijaz, Samiya Mumtaz not nominated for Hum Awards 2024

    Big names including Naumaan Ijaz, Samiya Mumtaz not nominated for Hum Awards 2024

    Nominations for the 9th Hum Awards have been announced, however, there are no nominees for best supporting actor or actress this year.


    Despite their stellar performances, some of the biggest names in the entertainment industry, including Naumaan Ijaz, Samiya Mumtaz, and Asif Raza Mir, have been ignored in the nominations. Many notable actors like Sarah Khan, Junaid Khan, and Maham Shahid have missed out on nominations for best supporting actor and actress.

    Here the names of Viewers, Choice categories 2022

    Best actor female

    Kubra Khan for Sang-e- Mah

    Sonya Hussyn for Tinkay Ka Sahara

    Hadiqa Kiani for Dobara

    Yumna Zaidi for Bakhtawar

    Ramsha Khan for Hum Tum

    Hania Amir for Sang-e- Mah

    Yumna Zaidi fir Ishq – e- Laa

    Here the names of Viewers, Choice categories 2022

    Best actor Male

    Ahad Raza Mir for Hum Tum


    Atif Aslam for Sang-e- Mah


    Azaan Sami Khan for Ishq – e- Laa

    Bilal Abbas for Dobara


    Farhan Saeed for Badashah Begum


    Sami Khan for Tinkay Ka Sahara

    Here the names of Viewers, Choice categories 2022

    Best onscreen couple


    Azaan Sami Khan and Yumna Zaidi for Ishq e La

    Bilal Abbas Khan and Hadiqa Kiani for Dobara

    Hania Aamir and Zaviyar Naumaan Ijaz for Sang e Mah

    Ramsha Khan and Ahad Raza Mir for Hum Tum

    Here the names of Viewers, Choice categories 2022

    Best Drama serial


    Bakhtawar


    Dobara


    Hum Tum


    Ishq-e-Laa


    Sang-e- Mah


    Tinkay Ka Sahara

    Here the names of Viewers, Choice categories 2023

    Best actor female

    Dananeer Mobeen for Mohabbat Gumshuda Meri

    Sehar Khan for Faiy Tale 2

    Hiba Bukhari for Jhok Sarkar

    Kinza Hashmi for Mere Ban Jao

    Mawra Hocane for Neem

    Maya Ali for Yunhi

    Here the names of Viewers, Choice categories 2023

    Best actor male


    Ameer Gilani for Neem


    Bilal Ashraf for Yunhi


    Farhan Saeed for Jhok Sarkar


    Hamza Sohail for Fairy Tale 2


    Khushhal Khan for Mohabbat Gumshuda Meri


    Zahid Ahmed for Mere Ban Jao

    Here the names of Viewers, Choice categories 2023

  • Ayeza Khan’s hilarious reaction to fan made dramas

    Ayeza Khan’s hilarious reaction to fan made dramas

    Actress Ayeza Khan’s YouTube search for her dramas led to a funny surprise: fan made videos that made her laugh.

    Ayeza shared a story on her Instagram in which a thumbnail of a YouTube video titled ‘Danaish Taimoor naraz Ayeza Khan ko mania London lay gay.’
    The Jaan-e-Jahan actress wrote on her insta story, “When you search your name on YouTube to watch your drama and see the fan made dramas! Lol.”

    Ayeza jokingly tagged her husband and wrote, “Aisa ha Kya?? Tu me Narazz hn apse. This calls for another vacation. The actress couldn’t help but exclaim, “Aisa ha Kya??”
    Last month, Danish Taimoor and Ayeza Khan celebrated their 10th wedding anniversary in London, both shared their pictures on Instagram.

  • No, Khawaja Asif, there are no global firewalls to restrain social media

    No, Khawaja Asif, there are no global firewalls to restrain social media

    Defence Minister Khawaja Asif has claimed that safety firewalls are being implemented to ensure checks and balances on uncontrolled social media sites. He made this statement during his appearance on the talk show ‘Faisla Aap Ka’ with journalist Asma Sherazi.

    ‘’Everything will be fine after some days,’’ he said.

    Khawaja Asif added that developed, democratic countries like the United Kingdom (UK) and the United States (US) also have protective systems to filter out content and websites deemed anti-state and anti-society.

    “Many Internet Service Providers (ISPs) also have filters or use different technologies to address spam, phishing attacks, and other unwanted content, but these are all private companies,” explains Jason Pielemeier, the executive director of the US-based Global Network Initiative (GNI), in a conversation with Geo Fact Check.

  • Taylor Swift returns to stage in London after Vienna concert plot

    Taylor Swift returns to stage in London after Vienna concert plot

    Taylor Swift will return to the stage in London on Thursday to end the European leg of her “Eras” tour, a week after her Vienna concerts were cancelled due to a suicide attack plot.

    Around 90,000 fans will again pack London’s Wembley Stadium for the first date in the five-day run, with additional ticket checks and restrictions in place.

    Last week, all three of the American mega-star’s shows in the Austrian capital were cancelled following the discovery of an Islamic State-inspired plan to launch an attack using explosives and knives.

    Three alleged Islamic State sympathisers have been arrested on charges of plotting the atrocity, which was thwarted with the help of US intelligence.

    London’s Metropolitan Police has said there was “nothing to indicate that the matters being investigated by the Austrian authorities will have an impact on upcoming events here in London”.

    The force was working “closely with venue security teams and other partners to ensure there are appropriate security and policing plans in place”, a police spokesperson said in a statement.

    Fans have been warned on Wembley’s website to expect “additional ticket checks” around the stadium.

    – ‘Tay-gating’ –

    Swift’s return to the British capital, following three sold-out shows in June, also comes two weeks after three young girls were killed in a stabbing at a dance class themed around the pop star’s music in northwest England.

    Following the knife attack, Swift said she was “completely in shock” and at a “complete loss for how to ever convey my sympathies to these families”.

    She has not yet commented on the decision to cancel the Vienna shows.

    London’s mayor Sadiq Khan told Sky News that the city was “going to carry on working closely with police, ensuring that the Taylor Swift concerts can take place in London safely”.

    “We have a huge amount of experience in policing these events, we’re never complacent, many lessons were learned after the awful Manchester Arena attack,” Khan added.

    He was referring to the 2017 bombing at an Ariana Grande concert that killed 22 people, some of them children.

    Fans without tickets will also not be allowed to “tay-gate” the event — the practice of Swift fans standing outside the venue during the live show to hear the music.

    – Royal audience –

    The stadium’s website says that “no one is allowed to stand outside any entrance or… at the front of the stadium” and “non-ticket holders will be moved on”.

    While the practice was not permitted at her June concerts there, some fans still managed to gather outside Wembley.

    After two performances in Madrid at the end of July, Swift noted around 50,000 “people came out and listened to the show” from a nearby hillside on both nights, “participating in the show from afar”.

    Meanwhile, her last London appearances were attended by some high-profile names.

    They included Keir Starmer, who was then running to become Britain’s prime minister, and Prince William — celebrating his birthday — along with his children, Prince George and Princess Charlotte.

    The singer posted a photo posing with the royals and her boyfriend, American football player Travis Kelce, with the caption “Happy Bday M8! London shows are off to a splendid start”.

    After wrapping up the European leg of her record-breaking tour — which began in Paris in May and saw the star perform across the continent — Swift will then head back to North America.

    Its final leg there starts on October 18 in Miami.

  • July remittances post significant hike

    July remittances post significant hike

    The Pakistani diaspora has sent $3 billion back home in July, 48 percent higher than the previous year, The News has reported.
    State Bank Pakistan (SBP) data shows that remittances from Saudi Arabia increased by 56 percent to $761 million in July, while those from the United Arab Emirates increased by $611 million.
    The percentage reflected a 94 percent surge from the UAE compared to July 2023.

    Remittances from the United Kingdom totaled $443 million, a 45 percent increase from the previous year. Workers also sent $300 million from the United States, a 24 percent hike from last July.
    The research director at AKD Securities Limited, Awais Ashraf said, ‘’This increase is mainly due to the movement of worker remittance into the formal channel, spurred by the reduced rate difference between exchange companies and the interbank market’’.

    Throughout FY24, Pakistan posted a current account deficit of $681 million, equivalent to 0.2 percent of the gross domestic product.

  • Western ambassadors to skip Nagasaki memorial after Japan exclude Israel

    Western ambassadors to skip Nagasaki memorial after Japan exclude Israel

    Ambassadors from Western countries including the United States will skip a ceremony marking the 79th anniversary of the bombing of Nagasaki after Israel was snubbed, officials said Wednesday.

    Nagasaki’s mayor last week said that Israel’s ambassador Gilad Cohen was not invited to Friday’s event in the southern Japanese city because of the risk of possible protests over the Gaza conflict.

    The US and British embassies said on Tuesday that their ambassadors would not take part as a result, and that their countries would be represented by lower-ranking diplomats.

    Media reports said that Australia, Italy, Canada and the European Union, who together with the US, Britain and Germany signed a strongly worded joint letter to Nagasaki’s mayor last month, would follow suit.

    US ambassador Rahm Emanuel will not attend “after the mayor of Nagasaki politicised the event by not inviting the Israeli ambassador”, an embassy spokesperson told AFP.

    Instead Emanuel, 64, who was ex-president Barack Obama’s chief of staff, will go to a separate event at a temple in Tokyo, the spokesperson said.

    The British embassy said that ambassador Julia Longbottom would also not be in Nagasaki, saying that not inviting Israel “creates an unfortunate and misleading equivalency with Russia and Belarus — the only other countries not invited to this year’s ceremony.”

    A spokesperson for the French embassy said that its number two would attend, telling AFP that the “decision not to invite the representative of Israel is regrettable and questionable”.

    Nagasaki mayor Shiro Suzuki had said last week that the decision not to invite Cohen was “not politically motivated” but based on a desire to “hold the ceremony in a peaceful and sombre atmosphere”.

    In June Suzuki said Nagasaki had sent a letter to the Israeli embassy calling for an “immediate ceasefire” in Gaza.

    Cohen, who was invited to and attended a memorial ceremony on Tuesday in Hiroshima, last week had said the Nagasaki decision “sends a wrong message to the world”.

    “As a close friend and like-minded nation of Japan, Israel has attended this ceremony for many years to honor the victims and their families,” he wrote on social media platform X.

    On Monday Cohen told US broadcaster CNN that the security concerns were “invented” and that he was “really surprised by (Suzuki) hijacking this ceremony for his political motivations.”

    In their letter to Suzuki seen by AFP, the six Western envoys had warned that if Israel was excluded “it would become difficult for us to have high-level participation at this event.”

    Government spokesman Yoshimasa Hayashi on Wednesday declined to comment, saying invitations were “a decision for the organiser, Nagasaki City.”

    A Nagasaki official in charge of the ceremony said it was “obviously better to have high-level individuals, like ambassadors themselves, taking part”.

    “What is important is that representatives of the countries will attend the ceremony,” he told AFP.

    hih-mac-stu/kaf/mca

    © Agence France-Presse

  • Exclusive: Pakistani scientist on the verge of curing baldness

    Exclusive: Pakistani scientist on the verge of curing baldness

    Unexpected discoveries have long been a catalyst for scientific research, leading to major breakthroughs in fields ranging from medicine to technology.

    Now, in an unexpected development, scientists have discovered a crucial piece of the puzzle: hereditary baldness, also known as androgenic alopecia.

    Dr. Muhammad Yar, a tenured associate professor at COMSATS University Islamabad and a biomaterial researcher, and Sheila MacNeil, an Emeritus Professor of Tissue Engineering at the University of Sheffield in the UK, are the two minds behind this latest development.

    Years ago, Dr. Muhammad Yar was working on the development of biomaterials for advanced wound care i.e. dressings (medical gels) which can help faster healing of chronic wounds, and agents which can support new blood vessels formation known as angiogenesis.

    So, in 2014, during a visit to the University of Sheffield, Dr. Muhammad Yar discussed the angiogenic potential of 2-deoxy-D-ribose with Professor Sheila MacNeil.

    Following their discussion, they decided to test the compound together.

    From chickens to rats

    Initially, when the dressing gel, containing 2-deoxyribose, was tested on chicken fertilised eggs, a lot of new increased blood vessels were seen growing towards tested material.

    “We were really happy and then we went towards patent filing. A company was interested in its commercialization as wound care drafting for diabetic and burn patients,” he recalls.

    The deoxyribose gel was then tested on full-thickness wounds, where it successfully promoted healing. It was, however, also observed that longer and thicker hair grew along the edges of the wounds.

    “We thought that 2-deoxy-D-ribose is doing something else as well. Apart from helping in faster regeneration, it’s helping in faster growth of hair as well,” he says.

    And that is how, after working on the development of wound healing, they dived into the possible baldness treatment.

    They tested the deoxyribose gel on mice with testosterone-driven hair loss and applied a small amount of the gel to their bare areas.

    In weeks time, the fur grew back thicker and longer, showing results comparable to minoxidil, the well-known hair loss treatment sold as Rogaine, which doesn’t actually prevent hair loss and often results in minimal regrowth in some cases.

    “This is working really nicely,” Dr. Muhammad Yar updates on the latest developments.

    Happy news for bald people?

    With ‘impressive results’ in mice, the scientists believe there’s a good chance that 2-deoxyribose will be tested on humans next.

    Dr. Muhammad Yar confirms that while testing on humans is the goal, it will first require further lab work to understand the mechanism of action of 2-deoxyribose and to obtain approvals from regulatory bodies.

    “We are expecting around a year and a half to two years’ time before we test this on humans.”

    If deoxyribose gel proves effective on humans, it could treat alopecia and support hair regrowth after chemotherapy.

    Why does Pakistan lag behind?

    When asked why it’s rare to hear about Pakistani scientists working on groundbreaking research, Dr. Muhammad Yar believes that the key is in translational research.

    “We have to develop something in the lab and put this in the market. This is very, very important for economic uplift in Pakistan as well as for the universities.”

    He also asserts the need for business training programs for faculty and students at Universities.

    “The research which academics are doing at the universities is really important. There is a space in the market evaluation and business knowledge among faculty and students that could help translate these technologies from the lab to the clinic,” he points out.