Author: newsdesk

  • PM Imran Khan tests positive for COVID-19

    PM Imran Khan tests positive for COVID-19

    Prime Minister Imran Khan has tested positive for COVID-19.

    Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Health, Dr Faisal Sultan announced the news and said that the premier is self-isolating at home.

    Later, senior PTI leader Senator Faisal Javed Khan said that PM Khan is “experiencing mild symptoms” and “will continue to work from home over video calls”.

    PM Khan had received the first dose of his COVID-19 vaccine on March 18. Interacting with the media after receiving his shot, PM had urged everyone to get vaccinated for the virus. It is pertinent to add here that PM Imran is yet to receive the second dose of the vaccine, which will be administered to him after a month.

    The Ministry of National Health Services also clarified that PM Khan was “not fully vaccinated when he contracted the virus”.

    “He only got the first dose and merely two days ago which is too soon for any vaccine to become effective,” asserted the minister, adding: “Anti-bodies develop 2-3 weeks after the second dose of COVID vaccines.”

    Meanwhile, several PTI leaders including Sheikh Rasheed, Usman Buzdar and Hammad Azhar have wished the premier a swift recovery.

    Pakistan has reported 3,876 cases over the past 24 hours — the highest since July 2020.

    Wishing PM Imran Khan a swift recovery.

  • Daren Sammy spotted enjoying ‘Pakistan’s beauty’ in Swat

    Daren Sammy spotted enjoying ‘Pakistan’s beauty’ in Swat

    After playing tape-ball cricket with fans on the streets of Lahore, West Indian cricketer Daren Sammy was spotted soaking in the snow-capped peaks of Swat and Northern Pakistan.

    Sharing a picture of himself in the mountains, the Peshawar Zalmi coach expressed his gratitude towards exploring Pakistan as a tourist.

    “I was disappointed that the Pakistan Super League (PSL) got postponed but I’m super grateful I got to discover the beauty of Pakistan outside of cricket,” said Sammy.

    Meanwhile, Kamran Akmal also shared a video of Sammy and himself enjoying his the first ever Zip Line experience on Twitter, he wrote: “First ever Zip line Experience #MalamJabba and it was just great…MaShaAllah Pakistan is so beautiful.”

    “Thanks @PeshawarZalmi for arranging a family trip to MalamJabba it’s been a beautiful trip.Thanks to Local management for your hospitality Pakistan Flag of Pakistan Zindabad,” he added.

    PSL’s sixth edition — which started on February 20 — was postponed on March 4 due to rising COVID-19 cases among players and officials involved in the tournament.

    While several foreign players departed for their respective countries after the tournament was suspended, Hashim Amla and Sammy had prolonged their stay in the country due to some professional commitments.

    During their tour of Pakistan’s norther areas, Amla, Sammy, Kamran Akmal and other players from the Peshawar Zalmi were also spotted socialising with fans.

  • Noor Bukhari apologises to Zoya Nasir for criticising bride’s dress

    Noor Bukhari recently expressed her reservations over a local bride’s outfit.

    “Where are we heading? Is this our tradition?,” said Noor while talking about the bride’s dress.

    Noor’s comments irked Zoya Nasir who jumped in to defend the bride.

    “It’s her wedding day. It’s her dream day,” said the actor. “The bride is not enforcing her beliefs or lifestyle on anyone and no one has the right to publicly disgrace her very personal choice with their own two cents.”

    “Lest no forget what the person in objection has done in the past,” she continued. “She had pretty good role to play where we are headed. If Ms Noor was free to do what she did, same goes for everyone else.”

    “It’s good that she had a calling and is following her faith but that doesn’t give her the authority to name and shame,” she added.

    Responding to Zoya’s outrage, Noor apologised to her.

    “I apologise Ma’am Zoya Nasir. I did very wrong in past and I regret what I did,” said the former actor.

    “It concerns me because there use to be a time dulhan looked so pretty in haya,” said Noor. “But still I realised my mistake and took down the post.”

    “Where is the freedom of speech? Why [does] it [have] to become news whenever I post anything on my post or page?” questioned Noor.

    “Still I apologise for my mistake. Ab me chup hi rahun gi,” she added.

    Bukhari turned to religion to seek contentment after her fourth divorce. She has often used social media to share her religious experiences and spread spiritual awareness. In January 2020, she reportedly remarried ex-husband and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf leader Awn Chaudhry. The couple has two daughters together.

  • Minal Khan hits back at troll criticising her choice of clothing

    Minal Khan hits back at troll criticising her choice of clothing

    Pakistani celebrities are often trolled and moral policed for their choice of outfits and clothes. Minal Khan was recently at the receiving end of criticism for her choice of outfit.

    The actor, who recently appeared on Timeout with Ahsan Khan with close friend Saboor Aly, ended up grabbing the attention for the wrong reasons. Though the show has not aired as yet, the moral police has been calling them out for their choice of clothing ever since behind-the-scenes pictures and videos from the episode went viral on social media.

    However, Minal is not having any of it.

    Responding to a user, who commented “Begairti ki hd,” on one of her pictures, Minal said: “Kaheen aur jakr bhaashan dein pls, agli dukaan mein jayein. Yahan window shopping nahi horhi.”

    Earlier, Ayesha Omar had also given a befitting reply to a troll who criticised her for her choice of outfit.

    Responding to a social media user who had criticised her outfit for being revealing, Ayesha had said: “I’m definitely not promoting/ asking/urging women to expose their bodies. That is their own choice as wearing this dress was mine. As wearing whatever you want is yours.”

    In another comment, when a user remarked that such outfits provoke rape cases, Ayesha hit back saying: “Oh so that explains 4-month-old babies, 5-year-olds and 7-year-old girls and being raped?”

    Meanwhile, other actors who hit back after being moral policed include Mehwish Hayat, Zoya Nasir and Komal Aziz Khan.

  • Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt’s eldest son testifies against father in court

    Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt’s eldest son testifies against father in court

    Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt’s eldest son Maddox Jolie-Pitt has reportedly testified in the former couple’s divorce trial and has said not “very flattering” things about his father.

    “Maddox has already given testimony as [an] adult in the ongoing custody dispute, and it wasn’t very flattering toward Brad,” an “inside” source told Us Weekly on Thursday. “He doesn’t use Pitt as his last name on documents that aren’t legal and instead uses Jolie. Maddox wants to legally change his last name to Jolie, which Angelina has said she doesn’t support.”

    The report comes hours after Jolie reportedly told the court that she will offer “proof” at trial to support her claims of domestic violence against ex-husband. Court filings, submitted last week, indicate that Jolie and her children are willing to offer “proof and authority in support” of the abuse claims. Reports further said that Jolie said she is prepared to detail her negative experiences with Pitt, during their 10-year relationship and two-year marriage.

    Jolie and Pitt have six children. Besides, 19-year-old Maddox, there is Pax, 17, and Zahara, 16, Shiloh, 14, and twins Knox and Vivienne, 12.

    Jolie, 45, and Pitt, 57, have been embroiled in a bitter custody and divorce battle since Jolie filed for divorce in September 2016, ending their jet-setting, movie star lifestyle together that made them one of Hollywood’s superstar couples.

    Soon after the couple’s split, it was revealed that Pitt was being investigated by the FBI and child welfare services in Los Angeles, related to reports he got “verbally abusive and physical with his children” on a private jet returning from Europe. A number of reports claimed that Maddox was the main focus of Pitt’s aggression on the flight. However, the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services cleared Pitt in November 2016 after investigating the actor.

  • Rohail Hyatt to no longer produce Coke Studio

    Rohail Hyatt, during a Twitter exchange with a fan, has revealed that he is stepping down as Coke Studio’s (CS) producer.

    Responding to a user who asked him about this year’s CS, Rohail said: “I’m sure CS (Coke Studio) is being planned, but not by me.”

    Later, Rohail confirmed the same to a local media publication but did not share further details.

    However, Hyatt clarified that he will continue to make music and entertain his fans.

    Hyatt joined Coke Studio in 2008 with its first season and stepped down after 6 seasons. He was later brought back for the 12th season in 2019, though it failed to impress audiences. Rohail also produced the latest Season 13, which had only twelve songs due to COVID-19 restrictions and lockdowns.

  • Atif Aslam is on FBR’s radar again

    Atif Aslam has been issued a notice by the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) yet again for non-payment of advance tax worth 0.60 million.

    According to reports, the deadline for filing the advance tax for the third quarter was March 15 and the singer failed to clear his dues by then.

    Earlier in January 2021, the FBR had reportedly sent Aslam a tax notice worth 58 million after the audit of his income for the year 2018. The award-winning singer was given one month’s notice to pay the tax.

    This is not the first time a member of the entertainment industry has come on FBR’s radar, few months ago the FBR had sent a notice to Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, seeking an explanation for his alleged bank accounts.

    In 2019, the FBR also launched an initiative to collect tax from the citizens and requested showbiz and media personalities to declare their assets, warning them that if they don’t they will also face disciplinary action.

    Meanwhile, Atif has not yet commented on the matter.

    Aslam is one of Pakistan’s biggest stars. Besides having millions of fans and followers across the globe, the singer also made it to the inaugural Forbes Asia’s 100 Digital Stars list, which highlights celebrities from across the Asia Pacific region who have taken the digital world by storm.

  • Lahore barber uses broken glass, hammer and butcher’s knife to cut and style hair

    Lahore barber uses broken glass, hammer and butcher’s knife to cut and style hair

    A barber from Lahore Ali Abbas has gone viral on social media for his unique method of styling and cutting hair. He uses different tools such as broken glass, hammer and butcher’s knife to cut his customer’s hair. Abbas sometimes also uses fire to style the customer’s hair.

    Talking about his unique way of styling hair, Abbas told ARY News that he wants to invent unusual techniques in his profession.

    “Meri koshish hoti hai ki har din main kuch naya se naya try karun. Today, I cut his hair with glass and styled it in layers. Kaam dil se karein toh kaamyaabi milegi zaroor (I try to do something new every day. Today, I styled his hair in layers with cut glass).”

    For one of his female customers, Ali used a butcher’s knife and she was happy with the styling.

    “I am really satisfied. During the process, I was slightly scared but it’s really good,” said the woman.

  • Babar Azam responds to harassment allegations

    Babar Azam responds to harassment allegations

    Babar Azam on Friday responded to the allegations of harassment on him and the case that has been petitioned before a local court in Lahore.

    Speaking to the media via video link, the Captain of the Pakistan Cricket Team said: “This is my personal matter and my lawyer is dealing with it in court. We face many hurdles in life and this is not the first one and I don’t want to discuss it further as I want to focus on the upcoming series of South Africa and Zimbabwe.”

    Earlier on March 18, a local court in Lahore had ordered the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to register a case against the skipper for harassing and blackmailing his former class fellow Hameeza Mukhtar.

    During the media interaction, Azam also addressed the rumors of his clashes with the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) management and the selection committee regarding the selection process of the players.

    “I want to clear all rumours [of a rift] between me and the management. It is better if these things remain in the meeting rooms. Debate is good for the team, some people agree with the debate and some do not. This is a normal thing and should remain in the meeting rooms,” said Azam.

    He further said: “This is not my team, this is our team. So, I do understand the protocols of selection.”

    “The role of captaincy is given to me and I have to utilize the players according to the situation [of the match]. I welcome the new team and InshAllah the results of the tour will be good,” added the captain.

    Earlier, rumors were rife that if there is a rift among Chief Selector Mohammad Wasim, head coach Misbah-ul-Haq and captain over the player-selection criteria but later Wasim had denied reports that there were any differences on the selection matters.

    The national side will face Proteas in three ODIs and four T20Is in South Africa, starting from April 2.

  • Dale Steyn unhappy with South Africa’s T20I squad against Pakistan

    Dale Steyn unhappy with South Africa’s T20I squad against Pakistan

    Dale Steyn is unhappy with South Africa’s T20I squad for the home series against Pakistan next month.

    Read more – Dale Steyn says PSL is ‘more rewarding’ than IPL

    Reacting to the squad on Twitter, Steyn questioned selectors for dropping main players like Faf Du Plessis and David Miller from the squad.

    “I missed the reason why our big dogs aren’t playing the T20s against Pak?” questioned the renowned.

    It must be noted here that Pakistan and South Africa will play three T20Is. After Pakistan, South Africa has also announced their white-ball squads for the tour. The 17-member T20I and 22-member ODI squad will be led by Temba Bavuma.

    Proteas ODI squad

    Temba Bavuma (Captain), Quinton de Kock (wk), Beuran Hendricks, Heinrich Klaasen, Janneman Malan, Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram, David Miller, Lungi Ngidi, Anrich Nortje, Andile Phehlukwayo, Kagiso Rabada, Tabraiz Shamsi, Jon-Jon Smuts, Rassie van der Dussen, Junior Dala, Lutho Sipamla, Wiaan Mulder, Sisanda Magala, Kyle Verreynne, Daryn Dupavillon, Lizaad Williams

    Proteas T20 squad

    Temba Bavuma (Captain), Bjorn Fortuin, Beuran Hendricks, Reeza Hendricks, Heinrich Klaasen, George Linde, Rassie van der Dussen, Janneman Malan, Sisanda Magala, Dwaine Pretorius, Tabraiz Shamsi, Lutho Sipamla, Kyle Verreynne (WK), Pite van Biljon, Migael Pretorius, Lizaad Williams, Wihan Lubbe.

    Pakistan Squads:

    T20I: Babar Azam (captain) (Central Punjab), Shadab Khan (vice-captain) (Northern), Arshad Iqbal (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Asif Ali (Northern), Danish Aziz (Sindh), Faheem Ashraf (Central Punjab), Haider Ali (Northern), Haris Rauf (Northern), Hasan Ali (Central Punjab), Mohammad Hafeez (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Mohammad Hasnain (Sindh), Mohammad Nawaz (Northern), Mohammad Rizwan (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Mohammad Wasim Jnr (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Sarfaraz Ahmed (Sindh), Shaheen Shah Afridi (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Sharjeel Khan (Sindh) and Usman Qadir (Central Punjab)

    ODI: Babar Azam (captain) (Central Punjab), Shadab Khan (vice-captain) (Northern), Abdullah Shafique (Central Punjab), Danish Aziz (Sindh), Faheem Ashraf (Central Punjab), Fakhar Zaman (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Haider Ali (Northern), Haris Rauf (Northern), Hasan Ali (Central Punjab), Imam-ul-Haq (Balochistan), Mohammad Hasnain (Sindh), Mohammad Nawaz (Northern), Mohammad Rizwan (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Mohammad Wasim Jnr (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Sarfaraz Ahmed (Sindh), Saud Shakeel (Sindh), Shaheen Shah Afridi (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa) and Usman Qadir (Central Punjab)

    Test: Babar Azam (captain) (Central Punjab), Mohammad Rizwan (vice-captain) (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Abdullah Shafique (Central Punjab), Abid Ali (Central Punjab), Azhar Ali (Central Punjab), Faheem Ashraf (Central Punjab), Fawad Alam (Sindh), Haris Rauf (Northern), Hasan Ali (Central Punjab), Imran Butt (Balochistan), Mohammad Nawaz (Northern), Nauman Ali (Northern), Sajid Khan (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Salman Ali Agha (Southern Punjab), Sarfaraz Ahmed (Sindh), Saud Shakeel (Sindh), Shaheen Shah Afridi (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Shahnawaz Dahani (Sindh), Tabish Khan (Sindh) and Zahid Mahmood (Southern Punjab)