Author: newsdesk

  • KP govt suspends 800 protesting teachers

    KP govt suspends 800 protesting teachers

    With protests for increase in teachers’ salaries and other incentives continuing on the fifth day, the district education officer (DEO) in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Karak has suspended 800 primary school teachers.

    Teachers have been protesting since Tuesday outside Peshawar’s Jinnah Park and have been firm in continuing their strikes until the fulfilment of their demands. They have also demanded that the government decides against privatisation of primary schools in the province.

    “We don’t want to go on strike or protest, but we have no other options left,” All Teachers Association (ATA) Haripur President Akhtar Nawaz told media outlets on Friday.

    “The demand for upgradation of teachers’ pay scale was accepted during the previous government led by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf [PTI], but it has not been implemented yet,” Nawaz complained.

    He said they were also demanding the provincial government awarded permanent status to teachers selected on the basis of a contract in 2022.

    President of the All Primary Schools Teachers Association (APSTA) Azizullah Khan stated, “On the pretext of pension reforms, the provincial government has cut down several allowances from the pension, which we were previously entitled to.”

    Earlier, KP Financial Advisor Muzammil Aslam had warned protesting teachers by saying that those involved in the protest would face pay cuts.

    Responding to teachers’ demand for pay scale upgradation, he said that it was impossible to upgrade the status of 175,000 teachers at the same time.

  • KMKT actor Areej Chaudhary reacts to comparisons with adult star Dani Daniels

    KMKT actor Areej Chaudhary reacts to comparisons with adult star Dani Daniels

    Actress and model Areej Chaudhary, known for the role of Natasha in the hit drama serial ‘Kabhi Main Kabhi Tum’ has addressed netizens’ comments on her “resemblance” to adult films star Dani Daniels.   

    “The first thing is that I don’t like responding [to such things] at all… [and] it’s a very good approach. The second thing is that you need to be mentally strong if you are in this field. You need to have a strong head,” she said during her appearance on Nadir Ali’s podcast. 

    To a question regarding how she felt about it or her family’s reaction, Areej said that she chose to stay unaffected. “If you’re hearing something, pay no heed to it. What people say… what they post… none of it matters. The people who know you, know you.”

    The Kabhi Main Kabhi Tum actress also revealed how the situation first came to her notice.

    “Actually, I didn’t even know who that person was. I once shared it on my WhatsApp status, did not even read it properly. It just looked like a normal clip from my own drama. When my friend pointed out that I hadn’t read what was written, I checked it out. I quickly deleted it and understood what was happening,” she said.

    Earlier, the Tark e Wafa actress also opened up about her hit role and the lessons viewers can learn from the storyline. In an interview with Connect Cine, Areej reflected on the chemistry that had developed between Mustafa and Sharjeena.

    “Their connection is very different. The first thing I want to tell you about them is that Sharjeena was getting married to someone else, but it didn’t happen. She then got married to Mustafa,” Areej said when asked about the chemistry of the couple from the hit drama. 

    In an interview with ‘Something Haute’  Areej talked about her character in the trending drama.

    The host, Hassan Choudhry, asked, “What similarities are there between Natasha and you?”

    “I could never be her in real life. I may be like Natasha when it comes to appreciating art, but other than that, I don’t like anything about her. I would never do something like that in my life,” she responded.

    Areej, who is yet to announce her next role, has also starred in drama serials such as ‘Wo Pagal Si’, ‘Tark E Wafa’ and ‘Sitam’.

  • Mehwish Hayat’s bold look as Lady Don in Honey Singh’s ‘Jatt Mehkma’ music video

    Mehwish Hayat’s bold look as Lady Don in Honey Singh’s ‘Jatt Mehkma’ music video

    Indian Punjabi singer and rapper Yo Yo Honey Singh has released the video for his song ‘Jatt Mehkma’


    The music video features Pakistani actress Mehwish Hayat looking absolutely dazzling as Lady Don.


    The actress shared a post announcing the release of the music video yesterday.


    The video had been highly anticipated for months, with its teaser recently released to much fan fare. Now, the full video has created a sensation.


    In the song released under the T-Series banner, Mehwish Hayat can be seen in a fierce lady don look.


    The song is part of Honey Singh’s recent music album ‘Glory,’ with its audio already released.


    Interestingly, Yo Yo Honey Singh directed the music video himself.


    Check the video below:

  • Hardik Pandya’s ex-wife and him are ‘still a family’ despite split

    Hardik Pandya’s ex-wife and him are ‘still a family’ despite split

    Natasha Stankovich, Serbian actress and ex-wife of Indian cricketer Hardik Pandya, has dismissed rumors of relocating to her home country, saying that the couple are “still a family” despite their marriage ending. 

    Natasa, who flew to Serbia with their son Agastya after separating from the cricketer in July, returned to India weeks later. “I cannot leave India because Agastya attends school here,” she disclosed, while emphasizing that despite their separation, “Pandya and I remain a family for our son.”


    In a new interview, she said, “The family is here at the end of the day. We [Hardik and I] are still family. We have a child, and the child will always make us family at the end of the day. Agastya needs to stay with both parents.”


    Natasa also mentioned, “I visit my home country annually but always return to India to raise my child.” 


    The Serbian star dismissed any preconceived conceptions of what her life is like now.  “I am at peace with myself. I’m at peace with people assuming things about me.”


    The former couple, who married in 2020 in a low-key court wedding and welcomed their baby boy in July of the same year, confirmed in a joint separation statement that they will continue to co-parent their son Agastya.


    Following the separation, Pandya is rumored to be dating British singer and TV personality Jasmin Walia.

  • When is Pakistan’s first ever Netflix series coming to our screens?

    When is Pakistan’s first ever Netflix series coming to our screens?

    Author and drama writer Farhat Istiaq’s novel Jo Bachay Hain Sang Samait Lo is making its way to a Netflix adaption with fans eagerly awaiting the release of the much anticipated drama series.  

                 
    Farhat has shared some exciting details about the fairly secretive upcoming series on Connect Cine. 
      

    Indian journalist Faridoon Shahryar asked, “What is the latest update of Jo Bachay Hain Sang Samait Lo?”
     
     “Insha’Allah, most likely it will be released next year. Our shooting is complete, and you’ll witness a high-quality product, shot in Italy, the UK, Islamabad, Karachi, and across multiple locations. It has a vibrant mix of locations, adding an enjoyable flair. Italy, for instance, holds special significance as I was inspired by my years spent there, I adore its history and the love I developed for the place led me to write a novel centered around it.” 


     Italy plays a key role in Farhat Ishtiaq’s novel, almost acting as a character.
      

    “In fact, Italy itself is almost like a character in the novel, featuring the cities of Rome, Milan, and Florence as integral parts of the story. So naturally, in the drama adaptation, Italy will also play a key role, with all the places I mentioned in the novel beautifully depicted on screen,” she explained.
     
    The Kabhi Main Kabhi Tum writer also highlighted the challenges of adapting a novel for the screen, particularly for an OTT platform like Netflix.  

    Farhat said, “In novels, you’re freer to express, but for a screen adaptation, especially an OTT platform, adjustments have to be made to meet different requirements. The essence of the novel, however, remains intact.”

                                                                         
    The host asked, “Who are your favorite writers?”

    “I have many, I love reading Ghalib and Faiz Ahmed Faiz’s, Ahmed Faraz, Munir Niazi poetry deeply touches me, a good verse stays with me for days, and I can live happily with it for a long time. Although I don’t write poetry , I greatly admire its beauty, the way a poet can convey what would take pages to express in a novel with just a couple of lines. Among fiction writers, Bano Qudsia, Ashfaq Ahmed, and Qurratulain Hyder stand out, and in English literature, Shakespeare and Thomas Hardy. I read everything, I enjoy good and bad literature and don’t just restrict myself to good literature; I enjoy reading everything, even things that are considered  not-so-good,” Farhat concluded.

  • ‘Influencer content is causing depression,’ says Zoya Nasir

    ‘Influencer content is causing depression,’ says Zoya Nasir

    Actress Zoya Nasir has said that the content of many social media influencers is based on lies, causing many young people to fall victim to depression and anxiety.


    She recently appeared on the FHM podcast, where she opened up about social media influencers sharing fake content.


    She said, “From globally popular social media influencers to national level social media stars, they are showing false content on social media.”


    She added, “Influencers often include false content in their videos on fitness, lifestyle, beauty, and weight loss secrets, which many people are unaware of.”

    Pointing out that f content shared by social media influencers is considered good content by common users, Farhat said that users they try to be like them but don’t have enough resources to emulate that lifestyle. 

    According to the actress, “Social media influencers have money and resources, but they influence the minds of other viewers by showing content falsely and unrealistically, which causes many people to suffer from depression.”


    Zoya Nasir said, “People who see the content of social media influencers without thinking, they are suffering from depression and anxiety because they cannot live like them.”


    In response to another question, she said, “It has also become easy to create deepfake videos of others through artificial intelligence (AI) tools, and many people are being targeted.”


    She added, “A woman made an inappropriate deepfake video of an actress and made it viral. Such trends are very dangerous, and this technology should be used for other important works.”

  • Does Imran Khan have ‘family relations’ with Donald Trump since 80s? Fawad Chaudhry certainly thinks so

    Does Imran Khan have ‘family relations’ with Donald Trump since 80s? Fawad Chaudhry certainly thinks so

    Former Federal Minister Chaudhry Fawad Hussain has stated that the founder of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Imran Khan, has “family relations” with newly elected United States President Donald Trump.

    Appearing on Samaa’s programme, DO TOK on Friday, Fawad Hussain claimed: “Imran Khan has pictures with Donald Trump’s wife, Ivana Marie Trump, on Google,” which, according to Chaudhry, indicated: “Imran Khan has personal relations with the Trump family.”

    The former Broadcasting and Information Minister further stated that Donald Trump does not have a “superficial relationship” with Imran Khan, claiming that both have known each other since 1980.


     
    Due to the party founder’s “cordial relationship” with Donald Trump, Imran Khan was received warmly by the then American President on his arrival in Washington DC back in July 2019, Fawad added.

    He further claimed that the Pakistani diaspora had shown massive support to Republican candidate Donald Trump during the US presidential election days.

    Earlier, Zulfi Bukhari, a close aide of Imran Khan, while announcing his US visit to meet a “close friend” in the Trump family to discuss the Khan case, had claimed: “Donald Trump’s daughter and son-in-law are friends of mine.”

    He had also said that Donald Trump had a “soft corner” for the founder of PTI, noting that the newly elected US President Donald Trump had also shown concern over Imran Khan’s incarceration.

  • ‘I have severe OCD,’ reveals Saheefa Jabbar

    ‘I have severe OCD,’ reveals Saheefa Jabbar

  • Watch: Zhalay Sarhadi brings laughter with her new ‘Guru Jee’ reel

    Watch: Zhalay Sarhadi brings laughter with her new ‘Guru Jee’ reel

    Actress Zhalay Sarhadi has gone viral on social media with her lip-sync performance to the audio of Indian spiritual leader Dr. Anrudha Charya, also known as Guru Ji.


    She recently shared a video on Instagram where she is seen lip-syncing to one of Guru Ji’s viral comedy videos.


    In the viral video, a girl expresses her sadness about not finding a partner for marriage, saying, “I am 28 right now; I’ll turn 29 on October 30.” Hearing this, Guru Jee advises her to get married soon.


    After listening to Guru Jee’s advice, the girl shares her sorrow, saying, “I’ll get married if I find someone. If you know anyone suitable, let me know, and I’ll marry him.” At this, Guru Jee points to a boy sitting in the gathering and says, “Marry him,” causing the girl to blush.


    “Jab Guru jee nay live rishta karwa diya (When Guru Jee arranged marriage),” she wrote in the caption of the video post, along with a series of hashtags.


    Social media users have praised Zhalay Sarhadi perfect lip-sync performance in the video.


    This is not the first time that Zhalay Sarhadi has lip-synced to Guru Ji’s videos.

    She previously shared a video in which a girl asks Guru Ji for advice on how to reduce anger.

              View this post on Instagram                      

    A post shared by Zhalay Sarhadi Official (@zhalay)

  • Quetta railway station blast leaves 24 dead

    Quetta railway station blast leaves 24 dead

    At least 24 people were killed and 46 injured on Saturday morning in a bomb blast at Quetta Railway Station.

    Speaking to journalists, Quetta Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Operations Mohammad Baloch said that the explosion seemed to be a “suicide blast,” adding that an investigation is underway to probe the nature of the blast.

    “The blast took place inside the railway station when the Peshawar-bound express was about to leave for its destination at 9 am,” Mohammad Baloch stated.

    According to the SSP Operations, around 150-200 passengers were present at the Quetta railway station when the blast occurred.

    Balochistan government spokesperson Shahid Rind confirmed the casualties and revealed that several people were wounded in the explosion, out of whom ten were in critical situation.
     


    Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti condemned the attack and ordered an immediate investigation of the powerful explosion, noting that terrorists who target innocent people do not deserve any sympathy.

    Meanwhile, the banned and militant outfit Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) claimed responsibility for the explosion.

    Earlier, train service had been suspended in the province on August 26, following a blast carried out by the BLA, which destroyed the railway bridge between Kolpur and Mach.

    Nine people, including five school-going children, had also been killed, and 29 were injured in a blast near girls schools in Mastung, Balochistan district on November 1.