Author: newsdesk

  • Zara Noor Abbas steps in to defend Sadaf Kanwal for her comment on Shahroze Sabzwari’s photo

    Zara Noor Abbas steps in to defend Sadaf Kanwal for her comment on Shahroze Sabzwari’s photo

    Sadaf Kanwal seems to have ruffled some feathers once again. The model, who is rumoured to be in a relationship with Shahroze Sabzwari, recently raised eyebrows after she left a questionable comment on her rumoured beau’s photo.

    According to details, Sadaf had commented ‘Happy Birthday Mama’ under Shahroze’s post in which he was wishing his mother Safina Behroze on her birthday.

    Though Sadaf later deleted her comment, it was not before many followers took screenshots and soon it went viral on social media.

    While Shahroze and Sadaf have kept silent, Zara Noor Abbas took to social media to express her displeasure on the matter.

    Shahroze and Sadaf reportedly became friends late last year met while rehearsing for their performance at the third IPPA Awards held in Oslo, Norway. The two have maintained that they are just friends. Zara had also performed on the same awards.

    Read more – Syra, Shahroz end their marriage

    Meanwhile, Shahroze recently split from Syra Yousuf after eight years of marriage. The couple in their official statement said that ended their marriage due to “irreconcilable differences”.

  • Fact Check: Authorities break silence on claims regarding top judge ‘contracting coronavirus’

    Fact Check: Authorities break silence on claims regarding top judge ‘contracting coronavirus’

    Claim: Chief Justice Gulzar Ahmed has contracted COVID-19

    Fact: CJP Gulzar Ahmed has not tested positive for COVID-19

    Authorities have rubbished claims regarding Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Gulzar Ahmed contracting coronavirus, which had surfaced after an employee reportedly from the top judge’s chamber at the Supreme Court (SC) tested positive for COVID-19 on Tuesday.

    According to Dawn, the apex court, in a statement, has said that the CJP, his family and his secretary have all tested negative for the coronavirus.

    The statement added that the top judge’s tests were conducted after an employee of the court developed symptoms of Covid-19, following which he was put under quarantine as a suspected coronavirus patient.

    The employee, a Naib Qasid at the apex court, had first tested negative for the virus, but the result was “doubtful” and another test was conducted which turned out to be positive, the statement read.

    The employee has now been isolated at a polyclinic in Islamabad.

    Earlier in the day, reports circulated on local media that an employee in the CJP’s chamber had tested positive. However, the statement did not clarify whether the coronavirus-positive employee worked in the chief justice’s chamber but merely referred to him as an “employee of the Supreme Court”.

    The reports had led to claims that the top judge had also tested positive for COVID-19.

    VERDICT: FALSE

  • Adnan Jaffar makes Hollywood debut with ‘Homeland’

    Adnan Jaffar makes Hollywood debut with ‘Homeland’

    Adnan Jaffar, who is currently essaying the role of Dr Feroz in the blockbuster drama Ruswai, has silently made his Hollywood debut with Homeland. The actor appeared in the ninth episode of the eighth season titled In Full Flight and essayed the role of a Pakistani General named Aziz who has a brief but heated exchange with Bunny Latif, played by the enigmatic Art Malik.

    In a recent interview, Jaffar, who started his career as a broadcast journalist, shared how he ended up getting the role in the final season of the award-winning series. He revealed that the team of Homeland was looking for an “English-speaking actor with a South Eastern face” and since a few of his films are available on Netflix, they ended up discovering him.

    “I was approached through a casting person who sent me an audition script, which I promptly recorded and sent back. They took a few weeks and luckily, the production team cast me in the character. To be honest, I wasn’t expecting it, being a ‘nobody’ on the international scene. So many people audition without success, plus it was such a high profile series. Any Indian actor could easily have done it, but I guess me (a Pakistani actor) being in it brought more authenticity,” Jaffar has said.

    Adnan further shared that the scenes were shot in Casablanca, Morocco and that his whole experience was very professional. He added that “playing a Pakistani Army officer was a proud moment” for him.

    Adnan began his career as a broadcast journalist for Dawn News. He made his film debut in 2015 in Jalaibee followed by Manto (2015), Moor (2015) and Jeewan Hathi (2016). He has also been part of many successful dramas, the most recent being Daasi and Ruswai.

    Meanwhile, Homeland in the past has often come in the line of fire for hurting Muslim and Middle Eastern sentiment. The show has also been criticised for showing Pakistan in a negative light within its storyline.

  • Sajjad Ali produces new song while in isolation

    Sajjad Ali produces new song while in isolation

    While the coronavirus has made the whole world to go under lock-down but it has not stopped Pakistani singer Sajjad Ali from creating music. The singer recently released a new song Dost on April 10 for his fans across the world.

    Sajjad Ali not only wrote the song but recorded it while practicing social distancing. He released the song on various social media platforms.

    Ali took to social media and wrote, “This video has been made during the ongoing two-week, 24-hour complete lock-down.”

    The song is melodious with beautiful lyrics. The video of the song only featured Ali, keeping in view the rules of isolation.

    Listen to the song here:

    https://www.instagram.com/tv/B-zNzZ5JNIP/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
  • Lockdown extended till April 30 but barbershops will remain open

    Lockdown extended till April 30 but barbershops will remain open

    The federal cabinet on Tuesday decided to extend the lockdown imposed to deal with the coronavirus pandemic in the country till April 30.

    According to reports, the decision was taken in a meeting of the cabinet chaired by Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan, keeping in view the increasing number of coronavirus infections and the persisting economic situation in the country.

    During the meeting, it was decided that apart from opening the construction industry, other economic and financial sectors will also be made operational.

    Tailors, plumbers, electricians, mechanics and barbers will be allowed to run their businesses, while the ban on transport, air travel and reopening of markets, shopping malls, marriage halls and other public places would remain in place.

    The final approval to extend the lockdown will be given in the next meeting of the National Coordination Committee (NCC) also scheduled for today.

    By the time this report was filed, the number of COVID-19 infections in Pakistan stood at 5,812 with 100 deaths and 1,378 recoveries. Punjab had reported 2,856 cases while Sindh trailed behind at 1,518, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) at 800, Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) at 233, Balochistan at 231, Islamabad at 131 and Azad Jammu & Kashmir (AJK) at 43.

  • Taher Shah explains the philosophy behind ‘Farishta’

    Taher Shah came, he saw and he conquered. And though his latest offering Farishta failed to impress fans who wanted more from the singer, the song managed to create a buzz and was trending on all social media platforms.

    While everyone kept referring to Farishta as the Urdu version of Shah’s previous song Angel, the singer has now stepped forward to explain the philosophy behind his latest masterpiece.

    “The philosophy of the song Farishta is that children are like angels,” wrote Shah. “Angels are sacred so we can righteously equate them with angels. These little individual are the essential component of our life.”

    The singer proceeded to explain the importance of children in our lives before writing, “The basic tale of the song video is, one cute child who as a king visits the fantasy world with his loyal friend unicorn who comes from the skies and take the child to beautiful fantasy world and where one butterfly meet with child which ultimately becomes fairy for the child and then like an ‘Farishta‘ both fall in love with each other for forever.”

    The singer added the kid’s personality resembles his own son and that he has dedicated this video to him and all children in the world.

    Watch the song here:

  • Coronavirus: Pakistan reports 1,378 recoveries as fatalities fall down to 7pc

    As the number of coronavirus deaths in Pakistan hit 100 on Tuesday, the country also reported what was its 1,378th recovery — maintaining recoveries’ triumph over fatalities like also seen even in the worst-hit parts of the world, including the United States (US), Italy and Spain among other countries.

    As per the details, Pakistan jumped from 1,026 recoveries on Sunday to 1,378 two days later while the total number of infections stood at 5,782 by the time this report was filed.

    On April 12, the country had reported that a bit over a thousand patients had recovered from the novel coronavirus — COVID-19.

    According to reports, the development had put the number of fatalities in Pakistan at a mere 8 per cent against 92 per cent recoveries out of the total number of closed cases.

    At the same time, the US had reported 40 per cent fatalities while those in Italy and Spain stood at 37 per cent and 21 per cent, respectively.

    The death to recovery ratio on Tuesday, however, improved further not only in Pakistan but also in the worst-hit US.

    According to the details of closed cases by Worldometers, Pakistan now has 93 per cent recovered patients while the US has 61 per cent with a slight improvement against Sunday’s 60 per cent.

    In additional good news, the two hardest-hit European countries have maintained their number of recoveries as even two days later, the percentage of recoveries in Italy and Spain still stands at 63 and 79, respectively — with no surge in the percentage of fatalities among closed cases.

    While the improvements still aren’t good enough, they come following a sudden spike in coronavirus infections and fatalities across the globe, which has led to countries being forced to make efforts aimed at dealing with the global pandemic.

  • Quiz: Which show/drama should you be watching during self-isolation

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  • People choosing not to donate? PM’s coronavirus relief fund gets only Rs225m in 11 days

    People choosing not to donate? PM’s coronavirus relief fund gets only Rs225m in 11 days

    Prime Minister (PM) Imran’s Khan coronavirus relief fund, which was set up in March to assist the government in mitigating the impact of the global pandemic, seems to not have attracted generous donations as it has received only Rs225 million within the first 11 days — since March 30.

    According to data shared by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) with officials of the Ministry of Finance, Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) and Ehsaas Programme, as of April 10 — the date of the last update — the total amount in the fund stood at Rs225 million.

    Analysts say that a possible explanation for this low figure lies in the fact that a number of private organisations and individuals are actively participating in relief activities themselves, having fewer reasons to donate to the PM’s fund.

    It, however, isn’t the first time when such a programme has received disappointing responses. The dams fund created by PM Imran and the Supreme Court (SC) to collect $12 billion for the construction of Diamer-Bhasha and Mohmand dams was excessively promoted on multiple media forums, but could only gather Rs12 billion, including over Rs1.7 billion from overseas Pakistanis.

    Meanwhile, the premier has appealed to overseas Pakistanis to donate generously to help the government cope with the ongoing health crisis in the country.

    In a video message released Monday, he noted that the entire world was struggling against the COVID-19 pandemic.

    The lockdown has adversely affected the world economy, resulting in growing poverty across the globe, especially in developing countries like Pakistan, he said. 

  • VIDEO: Hunger forces man in India to share milk with stray dogs

    VIDEO: Hunger forces man in India to share milk with stray dogs

    A man and a pack of stray dogs are seen in a scramble for milk spilt on a road in Agra in stomach-churning visuals that speak volumes on the desperation of India’s poorest during the nationwide lockdown to contain the spread of the deadly coronavirus pandemic.

    The image is from Monday morning on Agra’s Ram Bagh Chauraha when a large milk container overturned, sending a stream of milk down the road, just 6 km from the Taj Mahal. NDTV’s Kamal Khan tweeted the heartbreaking video.

    A pack of dogs was joined by a man who is seen trying to scoop up as much of it as he could in a small earthen pot.

    The 21-day day lockdown announced by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi last month, that is widely expected to be extended once it ends on Tuesday, has pushed hundreds of thousands of people across India into poverty and hunger.