Author: optimum_tech
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انصار بھائی کے نام
5 اپریل 2003کی بات ہے، جیو میں میرا پہلا دن تھا۔ ایچ آر ڈپارٹمنٹ سے ابو طالب بھٹو مجھے نیوز روم لے کر گئے اور تھوڑا بہت بتایا کہ کہاں کون سا ڈپارٹمنٹ بیٹھا ہے۔ اور پھر طالب نے مجھے ایک صاحب سے ملوایا اور کہا کہ اب آپ انصار صاحب کے حوالے۔ وہ میری سید انصار علی نقوی سے پہلی ملاقات تھی ۔میں بہت خوش قسمت رہی کہ مجھے خبروں کی دنیا میں اظہر عباس، ناصر بیگ چغتائی، زاہد حسین، مجدد شیخ، ایم کے عباس جیسے استاد ملے لیکن انگلی پکڑ کر چلنا مجھے انصار بھائی نے سکھایا۔انصار بھائی نے پہلے تعرف پر مجھے مسکرا کر دیکھا اور کہا “کیسی ہو لڑکی، تیار ہو کام کے لئیے؟”عام طور سے ہم پہلی مرتبہ ملتے وقت تھوڑا تکلف رکھتے ہیں لیکن ان کے لہجے کی اپنائیت اور نظروں کا خلوص اتنا گہرا تھا کہ میری زبان سے یہی الفاظ ادا ہوئے “میں کام کے لئیے تیار ہوں، آپ سکھانے کے لئیے تیار ہو جائیں، اور میں آپ کو انصار بھائی بلاؤں گی”. وہ اپنے مخصوص انداز سے مسکرائے ، سر اثابت میں ہلایا اور اخبار دے کر کہا کہ پڑھنا شروع کرو۔بس پھر میں نے پڑھنا شروع کیا اور انھوں نے اسی اخبار کی دوسری کاپی پر مارک کرنا۔ تھوڑی دیر کے بعد انھوں نےاپنا والا اخبار مجھے دیا تو وہ مجھے شرمندہ کرنے کے لئیے کافی تھا۔ لیکن انھوں نے میری غلطیوں کی صرف نشاندہی نہیں کی بلکہ اس کی تصیح بھی کرتے گئے۔میرا ان کا سترہ سال کا ساتھ تھا ، اتنی یادیں اور باتیں ہیں جنھیں قلم بند کروں تو دیوان ہو جائے۔ تو بس بے ربط جو واقعات یاد آتے جا رہے ہیں، لکھتی جارہی ہوں ۔انھوں نے مجھے بینا سرور کے پاس بھیجا اور کہا کہ” تمہیں ہم دس پندرہ دنوں میں ہی دبئی بھیجنے والے ہیں، دنیا دیکھی گی تمہیں، ہماری اور اپنے گھر والوں کی عزت رکھنا، اپنے کام اور کردار دونوں سے” وہ ہمیشہ کہتے تھے کہ اچھا اینکر بننے کے لئیے theory بہت ضروری ہے۔بینا سرور نے مجھے فائلوں کا ایک پلندہ دیا کہ اگلے دن اس میں سے ٹیسٹ ہو گا۔ میں نے انصار بھائی کی جانب ایسے دیکھا کہ پہلے ہی دن دھوبی پٹخا!!!! اور انھوں نے انتہائی صفائی سے نظریں دوسری جانب پھیر لیں، جیسے وہ مجھے جانتے ہی نہیں۔Typical Ansar Bhai!واضح کر دوں کہ اس وقت واحد نیوز چینل صرف جیو ہی تھا، خبریں دبئی میڈیا سٹی میں موجود جیو کے اسٹوڈیو سے ہوتی تھیں۔ ندا سمیر (اس وقت ندا فاطمہ) خبریں پڑھتی تھیں اور ندا کا شروع کے دنوں میں کچھ ذاتی وجوہات کی بناپر پر پاکستان میں رہنا ضروری تھا۔ اس وقت کوئی بھی خاتون اینکر اسکرین پر نہیں تھی۔ اس لیے جیو کی کوشش تھی کہ مجھے جلد از جلد آن ائر کر دیا جائے۔ اب اتنے کم عرصے میں ایک گھر سے آئی housewife کو سبق گھول کر ہی پلایا جا سکتا تھا۔ تو یہ مشکل کام انصار بھائی کو سونپا گیا اور انھوں نے بھی رات کے تین تین بجے تک دفتر میں بٹھا کر میرا “ر” “ڑ” ٹھیک کرایا (شکر ہے “ش” “ق” درست تھا میرا)۔اور یہی نہیں بلکہ رات کے اس پہر جب میں گھر جاتی تو میرے شوہر نامدار کو فون کرکے میری ساری غلطیاں نوٹ کروا چکے ہوتے کہ اب امی بننے کی تمہاری باری ۔گو کہ جیو میں سب نے مجھے اپنے گھر کا فرد سمجھ کر میری صلاحیتیوں میں اضافے کی کوشش کی، بتایا، سکھایا لیکن مجھے یہ کہنے میں کوئی ہچکچاہٹ نہیں کہ اگر انصار بھائی نے اتنی محنت نا کی ہوتی تو شاید میں شہرت تو کما لیتی لیکن وہ نام اور عزت نہیں حاصل کرپاتی جو آج مجھے حاصل ہے۔۔میں کراچی چھٹیوں پر آئی ہوئی تھی اور میرا miscarriage ہو گیا تھا۔ الکریم نے ان کو تلاش کر کے صرف انھی کو اطلاع دینا مناسب سمجھا۔ اس سے بڑھ کر ان پر اعتماد اور قربت کی کیا مثال دی جا سکتی ہے؟جیو کی ابتدا کی ٹیم ایک خاندان کی طرح تھی۔ ہم اب چاہے کسی بھی ادارے میں ہوں، ہمارے دل ایک دوسرے سے اسی خلوص اور محبت سے بندھے ہوئے ہیں۔مجھے جیو جوائن کئے ڈیڑھ سال ہو چکا تھا، میں دبئی میں ہیbased تھی۔ اور وہاں موجود سب لوگ ایک ہی ہوٹل میں مقیم تھے جسے ہم جیو محلہ کہتے تھے۔ انصار بھائی دبئی کے دفتر کام سے آئے ہوئے تھے۔ لیکن اس عرصے میں، میں اپنے اس نئے خاندان سے خاصی گھل مل گئی تھی۔ تو ہنسی مزاق اور گفتگو بھی بغیر سنسر کے ہوتی تھی۔ کسی کی بات کا جواب دیتے ہوئے میں نے کہہ دیا کہ “پونکا کروں گی”. میری شامت آ ئی کہ انصار بھائی آفس میں پیچھے بیٹھے تھے اور انھوں نے سن لیا۔ اتنی ڈانٹ پڑی مجھے کہ آج تک یہ لفظ دوبارہ نہیں کہا ۔ ان کے غصہ کی وجہ یہ فکر تھی کہ الکریم کیا سوچیں گے کہ کیسا ماحول ہے جیو کا ؟ اس طرح کی زبان استعمال ہوتی ہے ؟اور میرا بیٹا, جو کہ اس وقت دو سال کا تھا, اس کی تربیت پر کیا اثر پڑے گا؟بتانا یہ چاہ رہی ہوں کہ وہ کام کے ساتھ ساتھ ادارے کے ماحول پر بھی کنٹرول اور نظر رکھتے تھے اور بچوں کی تربیت کو بھی اہمیت دیتے تھے۔ صرف اپنی ذات تک نہیں بلکہ اپنے اطراف کے لوگوں کو بھی balance and ethics in life کی تلقین، ہمیں دل سے اپنا سمجھ کر کرتے تھے۔ وہ ذاتی طور سے ایک family person تھے ۔ ان کے نزدیک فیملی سب سے بڑھ کر تھی اور ہم سب ان کی فیملی ہیں۔میرے والد کو اس دنیا سے رخصت ہوئے دس سال ہو گئے ہیں۔ انصار بھائی کے جانے پر اتنی ہی تکلیف ہورہی ہے جتنی ابو کے جانے پر ہوئی تھی۔کہتے ہیں وقت بہترین مرہم ہے، آہستہ آہستہ شاہد یہ درد کم ہوجوئے، آنسو بھی خشک ہو جائیں لیکن انصار بھائی میرے دل اور سوچوں کے اس حصے میں ہمیشہ رہیں گے جہاں میرے ابو رہتے ہیں۔ -

An inconsolable tragedy
As we struggle to deal with a global pandemic that has claimed over 1,100 lives in Pakistan alone, an inconsolable tragedy has hit us hard.
A PIA flight from Lahore to Karachi met a tragic fate yesterday. The ill-fated plane’s landing gear reportedly stopped working and when the pilot pulled it up for another round to try and resolve the issue, both its engines failed. The pilot tried to land again — this time in an area near the Jinnah International Airport, but due to the streets being narrow, it hit a mobile tower and crashed.
There were 91 passengers on board and eight crew members. Two passengers miraculously survived while the crew and the rest of the passengers did not make it. All bodies have been recovered and are now being identified through DNA samples, which may take some time. An investigation team has been constituted to probe the accident.
A total of 97 lives have been lost. Both young and old, men and women. Friday’s tragedy of PK8303 crash is something that shook everyone. Messages from around the world poured in — from Canadian PM Justin Trudeau to Indian PM Narendra Modi, world leaders paid their condolences. Our hearts go out to the families, friends and loved ones of those who lost their lives. Eid is usually a happy occasion but with coronavirus and this tragedy, it will be a somber affair in Pakistan this time around.
Pakistan does not have a good record of investigating plane accidents. We hope that there will be a thorough investigation to determine whether the health of the aircraft was satisfactory as well as its maintenance. Aircraft experts are perturbed that so many issues surfaced at the same time — from landing gear malfunctioning to engines that stopped working.
Those 97 lives cannot be brought back, but the least the state can do is honour those who lost their lives, by getting to the bottom of what exactly happened.
We understand that nothing will console the grieving families who lost their loved ones just days before Eid. We cannot even begin to imagine the pain they must be going through. But now it is the state’s responsibility to bring some closure. The Sindh government acted in a responsible manner by not giving out names or numbers of the deceased until they could verify and are still in the process of verifying.
Regular updates from the Sindh Health Department about the rescue and relief operations were also commendable under the face of such a huge tragedy, but a thorough investigation is needed into the response of the district administration as eyewitnesses allege that most people lost their lives to the fire that broke out and rescue teams failed to deal with at the earliest.
The media — by and large — also acted in a responsible manner despite some editorial lapses. On the other hand, social media and Whatsapp groups went rife with rumours, some even giving false hope to families.
Here we must pay tribute to the unsung heroes — those who were at the forefront of the rescue and relief efforts, including the law enforcement agencies and humanitarian organisations like the Edhi Foundation. We cannot thank them enough for working tirelessly.
Life is unpredictable but nothing prepares anyone for a sudden and tragic loss. We pray for the families of those who died in yesterday’s crash.
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‘Pyar Ke Sadkay’ goes from ‘aik tarfa pyaar’ to a love triangle
I’m pretty sure that this is the umpteenth review on Pyar Ke Sadkay you’re reading because this romantic comedy has been trending all around. The drama has received rave reviews from audiences and critics alike and has gone onto become one of the most popular dramas currently on-air. When the drama first aired, it didn’t really seem like my cup of tea so I skipped watching it and caught a few glimpses here and there, enough for me to understand what the story was about. However, after reading glowing reviews, I decided to jump the bandwagon and give it a watch. And let’s just say two episodes in, I figured out why.
Read more – Bushra Ansari says she is done with ‘saas-bahu’ dramas
Pyar Ke Sadkay is about two simpletons Abdullah and Mahjabeen who, due to a twist of fate, end up getting married to each other. Abdullah — played by Bilal Abbas Khan — is a shy, under-confident young man who lives in the shadow of his stepfather, Sarwar (Omair Rana). He does anything and everything to win his stepfather’s approval, who uses his simplicity to manipulate him. He is in love with his classmate Shanze (Yashma Gill) who isn’t interested in him (until now) and belittles him when he asks for her hand in marriage. Hence, the ‘aik tarfa pyaar‘. It’s obviously not as intense as the one we saw in Ae Dil Hai Mushkil, but just for reference.

Abdullah On the other hand, Mahjabeen (Yumna Zaidi) is the daughter of an accountant who works in Sarwar’s office. She doesn’t want to study and hopes to get married so she that can avoid giving her matric exams. Mahjabeen is all set to marry Dr Hammad (Khalid Malik) but when he ditches her, a heartbroken Abdullah steps in to marry her and save her izzat. As the two begin their wedded life and start developing feelings for each other, Shanze also gets married to a narcissist and when her marriage doesn’t turn out to be the way she imagined, she is impressed by Abdullah’s attitude towards his wife and sets her sights on him — giving birth to a love triangle.

Mahjabeen As they say, ‘jorian asmano main banti hain’, Mahjabeen and Abdullah are perfect for one another and their compatibility has been perfectly encapsulated with Bilal and Yumna’s chemistry which is lit. Atiqa Odho, who plays Bilal’s mother in the drama has even compared their chemistry to Mahira Khan and Fawad Khan’s in Humsafar and I have to say that I do agree with her to an extent. Playing simple and comic characters is never easy but both the actors have outdone themselves with their performances. The romance between the two leads is perhaps the main reason why this drama has made it into the hearts of the audiences. It is so innocent, yet so endearing that you can’t help but sigh. Add to that, a strong performance by Rana as the devilish Sarwar and you have a winning team.

Sarwar Meanwhile, the writing and direction is also brilliant. The dialogues are fun and witty and each scene has been well thought out and director Farooq Rind has made sure that everyone puts forward their best fronts. Another thing I’d like to point out here that the drama is not without a message. The writer and director have neatly weaved the concept of harassment into the storyline making the drama a perfect example of how to use entertainment to create awareness without making it sound like a sermon.
Pyar Ke Sadkay is a delightful watch and one you should definitely watch while in isolation because it is bound to put a smile on your face and make you forget about ‘corona times’ for a while.

The drama also features Khalid Anam, Gul e Rana, Shermeen Ali, Danish Aqeel, Ashan Mohsin among others and airs every Thursday at 8 pm on Hum TV.
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Living with corona
Last week when we wrote our editorial, there were a little more than 30,000 confirmed COVID-19 cases. At the time of writing this today, Pakistan’s confirmed coronavirus cases are more than 41,000. Deaths, too, have increased — last Sunday, they were more than 600… this Sunday, they are almost 900.
A spike of around 11,000 new cases and almost 300 deaths in just one week. This is the reality of coronavirus even though we will have to live with it. At least for a year or more.
And since we have to live with corona now, we should at least have some rules: face masks should be mandatory and for those who can’t afford them, the government should provide them. Qatar has made the wearing of face masks compulsory and anyone defying the order can face a jail term of up to three years. A fine of up to $55,000 has also bee announced for those who repeatedly fail to cover up.
We need to make and implement rules like these. If malls and shopping centres are open, proper protocols like social distancing must be followed and implemented by the local administration. Businesses and factories that have opened up or will be opening up soon should also follow strict SOPs. Anyone who fails to follow these rules should face imprisonment or heavy fines for endangering people’s lives. If there are no strict penalties, there will be no deterrent. And if there is no deterrent, then it is open season for coronavirus.
Just look at what happened at retail shops earlier this week. People thronged clothes shops and other markets. It was sheer madness. Some say it is because of the timings (shops are not allowed to open past 5 pm or over the weekend). But there is another view that says how many people still think of COVID-19 as flu and are not really bothered unless and until they or their loved ones get it. This is downright dangerous. Coronavirus is not flu. It has already taken more lives in just a few months than flu takes in an entire year. The damage coronavirus causes to vital organs of even those who survive it is way more dangerous than anything else.
Pakistan will see a peak at the end of this month and we can only hope that our health sector is able to deal with it.
We understand the economic implications of stricter measures but we should also realise that the global pandemic is leading the world to recession in the first place. Pakistan will be no different. The post-corona world is one that we may not even recognise. It will cause a lot of misery around the world, both in terms of being deadly and when it comes to financial hardships.
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Bushra Ansari says she is done with ‘saas-bahu’ dramas
As the teasers of Bushra Ansari’s latest drama, Zebaish, hit the screens and are doing the rounds on social media, the veteran actor says she is done with “saas-bahu” dramas which is why she decided to work on something different. Ansari remarked that drama makers need to move away from the traditional storylines which depict a mazloom larki and focus on something with more substance. And from the look of the teasers, it appears that she has succeeded in achieving that because the teasers of Zebaish promise a story which is dark yet intriguing.
Without giving away the theme or plot of the drama, Ansari said that her upcoming drama Zebaish, which she has also written, aims to step away from the typical storylines that build on a woman’s distress. She said as drama makers, it is their responsibility to upgrade the audiences.

Talking about Zebaish, Ansari said that the drama’s story has multiple interconnecting tracks.
“The drama will focus on the complexities of human nature and how one’s behaviour defines their life,” said Bushra while speaking to The Current about it from Toronto where she is currently isolating.
She said that the drama will show raw human emotion and shed light on the human feelings of insecurity and selfishness. The actor further shared that in order to make the serial entertaining for the viewers, they have added a lot of glamour and drama. The teasers also show shrine culture and when asked about this, Ansari said that the spiritual and Sufistic elements have also been weaved into the plot.
Read more – Bushra Ansari opens up about her divorce
Shedding light on her character, Ansari said that her character is of a simple, yet confident woman, and how relationships and loss affect her personality and life. She also revealed that she plays a glamorous star in the drama.

The drama also features Ansari’s sister Asma Abbas, niece Zara Noor Abbas and Zara’s husband Asad Siddiqui. Talking about why she chose her family members, Ansari joked that it was convenient. However, she added that the actors suited the characters she had written and it’s not like she was giving them a big break.
“Asma, Zara and Asad are already well-established actors, so it’s not like I am launching their career. I wanted people who would be willing to listen, learn and not show unnecessary attitude on set which is why I decided to go with people I know,” said Ansari. She added that this was also the reason they managed to wrap up the shoot within four months because there were no unnecessary delays caused by actors and their “tantrums”.
“Asma, being a veteran is a professional, while Asad apna bacha hai,” said Bushra. “He was so involved in the drama that he would sometimes shock me too – the director made him rehearse 25 times for some scenes and he would willingly oblige. And Zara, Allah na karay woh nakhray karay. Uss say pehlay hee hum ussay seedha kardein.”
Other cast members include the legendary Shabbir Jan and Babar Ali, both of who were the director’s call. Both the actors will play Ansari’s husband in the serial.

When asked where she got the inspiration for the drama, Bushra shared that stories are all around us but developing a plot and writing a screenplay is what is tough. She revealed that it took her seven months to pen the screenplay for Zebaish because she was tied up in other commitments. She added that she has several other stories in mind but because the process of doing a drama is so tedious, it takes time for things to come into shape.
The drama has been directed by Iqbal Hussain and Ansari shared that though she had written the screenplay, she gave the director full authority to make any changes he wanted. She praised Ahmed for being a master at his craft and said that no one does dramatic elements and dialogues better than him.

Meanwhile, Zara Noor Abbas, on the other hand, had earlier shared that the project was very close to her heart as it was shot during a very difficult phase of her life.
Zebaish is scheduled to air on Hum TV after Eid.
Watch the teasers below:
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Not-so-‘smart lockdown’
More than 30,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus have been reported in Pakistan with over 600 deaths. The government has opted for a “smart lockdown” as both the number of cases and fatalities continue to increase on a daily basis, but nationwide lockdowns are also being eased with each passing day.
Some government officials allude to the theory of herd immunity while others say that since the mortality rate of coronavirus is low in Pakistan, we must reopen the economy as the country cannot survive without it. We are left to our own devices now. You can choose to stay at home and in isolation if your work allows you to do it. Otherwise, go out but take precautions and hope that you don’t get coronavirus.
We understand that the decision must not have been easy for the government but are we really preferring death over struggle?
The world is also facing the brunt of easing lockdowns: South Korea warned of a ‘second wave’ of the coronavirus as infections rebounded to a one-month high on Sunday while coronavirus infections are rising in Germany days after the country eased its lockdown restrictions. These were two countries that had actually flattened the curve and had controlled the coronavirus cases to quite an extent.
Imagine if the said countries — with the capacity of aggressive testing and better healthcare facilities — are struggling once again due to the second wave of the virus, what can happen in the near future in Pakistan — a country where a proper lockdown was hardly imposed for two weeks. Where the prime minister was against locking down from day one and where the ‘elite’ were blamed by the premier for somehow enforcing lockdown. Where the lockdown restrictions were eased but it led to everyone thinking that things were back to normal.
Punjab is now allowing gyms, hair salons and barbershops to reopen again. If the administrations could not ensure that proper SOPs were followed in mosques during Ramzan, how will the local administrations ensure the same at barbershops or gyms or salons? While KP and Balochistan seem to be taking the pandemic lightly, hard-hit Sindh is also mulling opening markets.
We talk of a ‘smart lockdown’ but we are not too smart, are we? People follow rules when they are enforced and properly implemented. They follow government instructions when the government is not giving out mixed messages or confusing messages. First, we tell them that only old people die of coronavirus, then we tell them that coronavirus doesn’t kill too many people and then we say well, even if it kills people, we must not give up hope and we need to go back to work because… economy.
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‘Diriliş: Ertuğrul is a gift to Pakistan from Erdoğan’
Turkish historic drama series Diriliş: Ertuğrul has been trending ever since its first episode aired on PTV Home. Pakistanis are loving the drama series and it has become a sensation in the country to the point that PTV is now aiming to set a new record with the series.
In an exclusive interview with The Current, Senator and Senior Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf leader Faisal Javed Khan revealed that the President of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdoğan gifted the drama series to Pakistan as a goodwill gesture.
“When President Erdogan met PM Imran Khan, he gifted the series to him as a goodwill gesture,” said Khan, adding: “PTV did not have to purchase the drama or its rights. TRT gave the drama free of cost to PTV.”
It is pertinent to mention here that President Erdoğan himself is a huge fan of the series and has often visited the sets of the drama series and hosted the drama’s creators and cast.


Senator Faisal Javed further remarked that the youth nowadays have stopped reading books and enjoy watching videos more, which is why the best way to impart knowledge on history to the youth is through dramas, films and music. He said this was the aim of PM Imran Khan when he requested the state-owned channel to air Diriliş: Ertuğrul.
Meanwhile, addressing Shaan’s concerns, Faisal said that he has worked extensively with Shaan and discussed in detail the situation of the Pakistani entertainment industry. He said that like other industries, the previous governments have not paid much heed to the entertainment industry as well, which is why it is still underdeveloped. He also revealed that the government is working on a policy for the film and entertainment industry and that he hopes that it will be implemented soon. Khan also said that Bollywood films will not be returning to Pakistani screens anytime soon.
Khan further said that Islamic history has been extensively explored by different cinemas across the world including Turkey and Iran, which is why it doesn’t make any sense to spend further resources on the subject.
Read more – PM Khan calls out Bollywood for spreading vulgarity
Watch the complete interview here:
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Faisal Qureshi, Adnan Siddiqui, Nadeem Baig team up for a skit on coronavirus awareness
After releasing a short film – featuring major celebrities – on coronavirus awareness, Faisal Qureshi is back with a new mini-drama on the same topic. Titled Dastak Na Do, the drama has been directed by Nadeem Baig and features Adnan Siddiqui, Saba Hameed, Sami Khan, Arjumand Rahim and Emaan Khan.
Speaking exclusively to The Current over the phone, producer Faisal Qureshi shared that the three-episode drama series aims to use light comedy and realistic situations to create awareness on the pandemic. He said that through the drama they hope to use entertainment to educate the masses on the topic.
Sharing details, Qureshi said that he had conceived the idea before the lockdown and had discussed it with director Nadeem Baig.
“Much of the pre-production work had been completed before the lockdown,” Qureshi said, adding that the rest of the work on it was done over the phone and internet, except the shoot that took place under strict precautionary measures.
Qureshi said that the production team went through great lengths to ensure everyone’s safety.
“Our team followed all the SOPs very strictly. Everyone’s temperature was checked and they were sanitised when they entered and exited the set,” said Qureshi. He said that the team and people working on the set were given proper protective gear and that the sets were also disinfected.
A BTS video, which has been shared, also shows that precautions were in place.
The first episode of the drama has been released. It shows Adnan and Arjumand as a couple with two children. While they are trying to protect themselves from COVID-19 by following the advice of the government and health experts, their Khala (Saba Hameed) unexpectedly shows up and dismisses the virus and the government’s warnings. The episode is well-written and boasts of great production value.
Apart from being shared on social media, Dastak na Do, which has been produced by Qureshi’s Game Over Productions, will also be aired on various TV channels.
Watch it online here:
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‘Sabaat’ will have you hooked
Six episodes in, Sabaat has managed to capture the audiences with its compelling and entertaining storyline and strong performances. The drama had intrigued viewers before it even aired thanks to one of the main leads Mawra Hocane, who is an ace at the social media game – but a few episodes in, it has everyone, myself included, hooked.
Sabaat is centred on two families: Hasan Fareed (Ameer Gillani) and Anaya Aziz’s (Mawra). Anaya belongs to an average middle-class family. She has big dreams and wants to make a difference in society. She actively campaigns for harassment against women in workplaces and is a class topper. Hasan, on the other hand, is from an affluent and well-off family. He and Anaya are class fellows and start off as fierce competitors but an incident changes that and the two become acquaintances following which Hasan develops feelings for Anaya and wants to marry her. Though Hasan’s character development is a little weak, given how the swiftly the drama is progressing and how sparkling the chemistry is between him and Anaya, we are willing to overlook this.

While these two are in their own little university bubble, Hasan’s elder sister Miraal (Sarah Khan) is the real devil of the show. She is a spoilt brat who cannot take no for an answer. Miraal is rude, arrogant and selfish and thinks she can get away with anything because she is rich to the point that she goes to her brother’s university and slaps Anaya for no reason. She generously uses the dialogue “Tumhari aukaat kya hai” and is enabled by her father who is also a snob.
While Mawra’s character, for now, is one-dimensional, it is Sarah who steals the show with her bratty act. Her facial expressions, body language and moods are on point and she delivers a convincing performance making you hate Miraal. Nonetheless, it is refreshing to see both women essay strong and confident characters. At this point, I’d like to add here that Sarah’s wardrobe, hair and makeup are brilliantly done and she looks super chic in all of her scenes.

Usman Mukhtar is yet to make an entry and fans are waiting with bated breath for it. While the theme of the drama is still unclear, Mawra in an interview had shared it is primarily a love story which is meant to entertain audiences and not deliver sermons or lessons. However, she added that the drama will highlight several issues including classism in our society.
Read more – We take it back; ‘Ghalti’ is ARY’s best running drama
Sabaat has been penned by Kashif Anwar and directed by Shehzad Kashmiri of Anaa fame. Apart from the four leads, the drama also starres Simi Raheel, Laila Zuberi and Mohammad Ahmed.
It aires every Sunday at 8 pm on Hum TV.
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Mixed signals in the time of corona
The total number of coronavirus cases in Pakistan, by the time this was written, stood at 19,854 and the same is likely to reach the 20,000 mark some time today or by tomorrow morning.
Every ten days, the number of COVID-19 cases in Pakistan double. Just look at the month of April and how many cases increased, especially after easing down the lockdown. The government, however, thinks that coronavirus has not been “as fatal in Pakistan as it has been in many other countries”, especially the west.
Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Asad Umar recently said, “Coronavirus has caused 58 per cent more deaths in the United States (US), 207 per cent more in Spain and 124 per cent more in the United Kingdom (UK) as compared to Pakistan in the same period.” Even if we think the mortality rate is lower when compared to other countries, it does not mean we have to be lax about it. Official projections predict 150,000 cases by the end of this month.
What was even more surprising was how, in a recent speech, Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan shifted the blame of the lockdown to the “elite”. He said the decision to impose a lockdown was taken by the elite and the rich, without thinking of the poor. PM Imran tweeted to that effect also while felicitating Muslims for Ramzan.
The premier blames the elite and rich for taking this decision when it was indeed he and his government that imposed the lockdown. Granted that Imran himself was against the lockdown and finally gave in due to the health emergency but blaming the elite, in this case, is quite misplaced. The World Health Organization (WHO) and others who are dealing with the coronavirus pandemic have recommended lockdowns and aggressive testing apart from social distancing and other measures that we have to take in order to avoid falling prey to this pandemic.
China went for a lockdown and PM Imran doesn’t tire of giving China’s example so why blame the rich and the elite for a lockdown in Pakistan — a lockdown that is now not much of a lockdown either. Traffic has increased, more shops are open, and except for Sindh, mosques are open as well during Ramzan.
While we acknowledge that self-isolation is a privilege that isn’t afforded by many, especially the poor, we do not have the answer to how we will cope with an outbreak if cases start to rise exponentially. Doctors have recently warned that Pakistan’s healthcare system will collapse if this happens. So where will the poor go if lockdown is relaxed and they get coronavirus?
The rich and elite and privileged will go to private hospitals but what about the poor? We have to choose between struggle and death, and can only hope that the cases in Pakistan remain low.