Portugese born football superstar Cristiano Ronaldo has moved to Saudi Arabia with his family to join the Al-Nasr football club. Details about his deal have revealed that Ronaldo’s two year contract will earn him over $200 million a year, making him the world’s highest paid soccer player. During his stay in Riyadh, the football player and his family have been treated with immense respect and hospitality by the Saudi people. Recently, report emerged that Saudi officials shut down an amusement park for over two hours, in order for Ronaldo and his family to enjoy a day out there. Ronaldi’s partner, Gina Rodriguez, shared pictures of their outing on her Instagram page.
A strong misconception about celebrities is that they lead a life laced with glitz and glamour so they are always happy and in high spirits, which isn’t true. It is important to realize that mental illnesses do not have any fixed causes or reasons behind them. The manifestations of them, likewise, take various forms. Lately, with an increased awareness surrounding mental health in Pakistan, a number of celebrities, both national and international, have come out with their struggle with depression.
Hina Altaf
When Hina Altaf talked about her fight with depression, she was one of the first celebrities to talk about this issue in detail. She shared the symptoms she had and everything she did which helped her on Samina Pirzada’s show. She also talked about how the environment in her house affected her mental condition. Hina also gave credit to the doctor who totally turned her life around. Hina Altaf also talked about schizophrenia, another mental disorder that people do not know much about. She made it a point that she talked about her fight with depression in every talk show because according to her that is what her therapist recommended. Hina’s interviews definitely helped people understand depression and they went viral. She used her fame for this constructive purpose and while doing so, Altaf also healed herself.
Mawra Hocane
Mawra Hocane along with her sister Urwa talked about depression rather casually when they were invited as guests in Nida Yasir’s morning show. They were criticized and made fun of after they remarked that the kind of food they eat causes depression and food can also cure depression. They were criticized for their ill-informed opinions and that is when both sisters decided to talk about their own struggles with depression and anxiety. While replying to someone on Instagram, Mawra Hocane shared that she had been battling with anxiety and she also showed her support for all those people who were fighting with the disorder. This was Mawra’s way of telling the world that she was not ill-informed but she too was going through the same turmoil. She also cited different sources which supported her claim that processed food adds to depression. People however continued to mock her. Mawra did not let the criticism stop her from sharing how she fought with anxiety and once again through social media shared her journey and hoped to spread awareness about anxiety.
Mahira Khan
Superstar Mahira Khan spoke with Sara-Jane Mee about the importance of mental health awareness and her new role as an ambassador for the British and Asian Trust. The Bin Roye star Two years back when a fan asked her on Twitter whether there is any cure for depression, the Raees diva shared a piece of advice to those who are suffering from mental illnesses, urging them not to be afraid to speak up about depression. “Don’t be afraid of getting help. Talk about it. Ask questions. Read. Reach out to people,” she responded. “There is no shame in reaching out for help. Sometimes talking therapy helps. Other times meds do. But it’s important to go to the right people who can guide you through it,” added Mahira.
Momina Mustehsan
In 2018 when model Anam Tanoli took her own life after fighting depression, Momina Mustehsan spoke about her own struggle with depression through an Instagram post. She posted her picture and wrote, “I was going through turmoil not very long ago. It happens to the best of us. Mental health is just as important as physical health, and we all hit points in our lives sometimes when all seems to be falling out of our control.” This was not the first time that Momina talked about her struggle with depression. She made several videos in which she talked about her struggles in detail and she also had a special message for the trolls. Momina’s struggle basically showed that celebrities too sometimes find it really hard to cope with the demands of their work and they of course are under severe scrutiny continuously which adds to the deterioration of their mental health. Momina Mustehsan came under severe criticism for ‘photographing’ herself while she was depressed. Earlier in a video post, Momina talked about her struggle with depression and tried to make people understand the disorder.
Usman Mukhtar
Usman Mukhtar talked about the impact childhood experiences have on a person’s mental health. He talked about being an overly anxious adult to the extent that it impacted his eating habits and as a result of that he gained a lot of weight. He shared that he was sent to a boarding school when he was really young and the bullying there coupled with the pressure of coping on his own impacted his mental health. He stayed in the boarding school for 5 years and feels that it shaped his personality in such a way that he finds it difficult to cope with many situations.
Imran Abbas
Following model Anam Tanoli’s tragic incident, Imran Abbas shared a post on his Instagram explaining how mental illnesses are not a joke and how there is a collective need for introspection, as a society.
To put it in Abbas’ words, “Please don’t look down to people suffering from depression, mental ailment, stress, and anxiety. Before judging anyone or making fun of someone (specially who is deceased and who can’t explain/ clarify her/himself) we must look around and try to be nice to people who are suffering from the circumstances which can lead a person to suicide (which certainly is one of the most forbidden acts in our religion).”
Further down in his post, he said, “In our society, it’s so convenient to slut-shame an actress and model, scoff at anyone for any rhyme or reason. Making jokes about people who’ve committed suicide does not make you a comedian. It is not dark humor, it is condemnable humor.”
Imran had previously also opened up his depression, in an interview with Times of India. He mentioned how not being able to do Aashiqui 2 put him in a depressive phase. Even hearing somebody sing “Tum Hi Ho” triggered him.
Hira Mani
Hira Mani’s interview with Samina Peerzada has been a memorable one for many reasons. The Kashf star talked about depression and that she was going to a therapist to cure her depression. She stated that when she entered showbiz, she became too competitive and materialistic. Because of this, she went into depression, she was constantly trying to own things that other popular actresses had. Then a moment of realization changed everything for her. She realized that the reason for her depression was that she was trying to find happiness where there was none. Hira cried while talking about this phase of her life and had an important message for her listeners as well.
Nausheen Shah
Nausheen Shah revealed on Ahsan Khan’s show that she was struggling with depression and anxiety when she was shooting for Deewar-e-Shab been fighting depression for almost 7 years and although she went to see the doctor, she did not get the kind of help she was expecting to get. The doctor gave her a relaxant and Nausheen Shah started abusing the drug because it brought short-term relief. One day she completely broke down in front of her co-actor Shahroz Sabzwari and he pointed her in the right direction. Shah is still fighting depression but with the help of medicine and experts to guide her. Nausheen talked about her struggle with depression in Ahsan Khan’s talk show. She has also been part of seminars that help spread awareness about depression.
Juggan Kazim
Juggan Kazim often talks about mental health because she has gone through a really difficult period of her life when she was in an abusive marriage. Juggan got really depressed and had low self-esteem. When her son was born, her life got meaning but the abusive marriage left her broken. She often talks about the importance of therapy and how important it is to seek help in such situations.
Other Artists
Yashma Gill
Actor Yashma Gill shared in multiple interviews that she came from a broken family which impacted her mental health. She was depressed and anxious. She started avoiding her family and was over-dependent on friends. At the age of 19, she was diagnosed with clinical depression. She worked hard in order to come out of this mental state and eventually found solace in the family. She also moved to Australia for further studies and the change in environment helped.
Senior actor Salma Hassan opened up about how therapy helped her over the years. She is also one of those few celebrities who talked openly about post-partum depression; a topic that is often considered taboo even in this day and age. She discussed the issue in detail and talked about the stigma attached to therapy. She shared how she was on medication for depression and later on turned to therapy when she felt that her daughter was getting affected due to her mental condition.
Actor Babar Khan also talked about the extreme depression he went through after his beloved wife Sana Khan passed away in a tragic incident. Babar Khan made a television appearance after many years and talked about how depressed he got and also attempted to take his own life. Babar Khan’s struggle with depression has been a long fight that finally ended when he had his first daughter and he felt that his life had meaning now. Even now Babar Khan hardly ever gives interviews and struggles with staying happy.
Singer Nouman Javaid was so depressed that he tried to kill himself. His suicide attempt was initially termed as an accident but later on, Nouman talked openly about how difficult it was for him to fight depression. While talking about the tough times he had been going through Nouman said in an interview, “I was in depression for quite some time before finally attempting suicide. I was facing issues in life but I wish to make it clear that Fariha was not the only reason behind my depression; there were a number of other things involved.” Nouman Javaid’s marriage with Fariha ended weeks after his suicide attempt. Before attempting suicide, Nouman also posted a status saying “mein chala” (I am going). In a recent interview, Nouman said that he was focusing on namaz and his work to help him deal with heartbreak and now he was content with his life.
As per a recent list released by the World of Statistics, Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan is the third richest actor in the world with a net worth of $770 million.
The list is led by Seinfeld star Jerry Seinfeld and Tyler Perry with $1 billion. They are followed by Dwayne Johnson, with $800 million. Shah Rukh Khan is the only Indian on the list. SRK, apart from acting, has a sports business, his VFX company, and a host of other business ventures.
Top Gun star Tom Cruise follows Khan on the list with $620 million. The only other non-American, apart from SRK, on this list is Jackie Chan with $520 million. George Clooney and Robert De Niro end the list with $500 million.
Apart from his sea-facing mansion Mannat, Shah Rukh Khan also owns a holiday home in Alibaug. The Alibaug farmhouse is located on the Deja Vu farms and reportedly spans over 20,000 square meters. SRK and his family often host get-togethers and parties at this house. Apart from this, he also reportedly owns a home in Palm Jumeirah, Dubai, named Jannat, and another in Park Lane, London.
Richest actors in the world:
Jerry Seinfeld: $1 Billion Tyler Perry: $1 Billion Dwayne Johnson: $800 million Shah Rukh Khan: $770 million Tom Cruise: $620 million Jackie Chan: $520 million George Clooney: $500 million Robert De Niro: $500 million
Governor of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) Jameel Ahmad expressed hope on Wednesday that the situation of Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves will improve as the country is anticipated to receive capital inflows in the coming days.
“We are expecting inflows from next week onwards, which would reduce pressure on our foreign exchange reserves,” the SBP governor said.
Ahmad reaffirmed his commitment to addressing the concerns of manufacturers and claimed that the nation’s foreign exchange reserves have reached very low levels. But as projects in the pipeline start to take shape, he predicted, “we will see a boom in reserves, which will increase our ability to support businesses.”
According to the most recent SBP data, the central bank’s foreign exchange reserves dropped significantly by $1.23 billion, to a critically low level of $4.34 billion. SBP’s reserves are at their lowest point since February 2014.
The country held $10.19 billion in liquid foreign reserves, and commercial banks kept $5.85 billion in net foreign reserves, according to Brecorder.
To the dismay of many importers and firms in Pakistan, who claimed these limits as the cause for closing or curtailing operations, the SBP restricted imports earlier this year due to the low level of reserves.
According to Ahmad, the SBP facilitated shipments under the headings of necessities, energy, industries focused on exports, agricultural inputs, deferred payment / self-funded imports, and imports for projects focused on exports that were almost finished.
Prior to this, the central bank made the decision to remove import restrictions beginning on January 2, 2023.
“Our capacity to export will build up only after we complete export-oriented projects, thus we have facilitated the timely completion of these projects,” he said.
“We want to facilitate all the industries, however, we can only do so under our given capacity of inflows. We do not produce dollars locally, they come through exports, remittances, and inflows from lenders,” said Ahmed.
“We are focusing on improving our capacity, and are also taking administrative intervention to bring our imports on a reasonable level,” he added.
The SBP chief said evaluating the Letter of Credit (LC) is a time-consuming exercise. “We have cleared 33,000 LC cases,” he said.
He added that steps had been done to control the current account deficit and that the central bank was aware of issues facing the business community.
The governor stated that an action plan in this regard will soon be launched after the SBP carefully evaluates the business community’s ideas.
He assured the business community that the central bank will ensure the approval of 365 days or over LCs from banks. “Similarly, if you have arranged a project loan, and yet the LCs are not being opened, the SBP will ensure it,” he said.
The SBP had recommended banks to compel the retention of 35% of their export receipts in special foreign currency accounts in order to encourage IT companies and independent contractors to bring their foreign exchange earnings into the nation.
“We are hopeful that the problems of the IT sector will be addressed, and as a consequence, our exports from the IT sector will increase,” said Ahmed in his address.
Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah has said that Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) will not contest by-elections on the 35 National Assembly (NA) seats that fell vacant when the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) de-notified Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) lawmakers after Speaker Raja Pervez Ashraf accepted their resignations.
Speaking on the Geo News programme “Capital Talk” with Hamid Mir, Sanaullah asked who would contest elections for a span of “only two or three months”.
He reiterated that the government will complete its constitutional term which will end by August 2023.
In reply to a question, Rana Sanaullah said that the Speaker took the decision as the PTI lawmakers did not appear before him in person despite being invited multiple times for verification of their resignations.
Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) President and Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam–Fazl (JUI-F) Chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman has also said that the ruling alliance will not contest by-polls on the vacant seats.
On the contrary, PTI leaders have announced that their party chief Imran Khan will contest on 33 seats out of 35, leaving aside the two women’s reserved seats.
PTI Secretary General Asad Umar and Senior Vice President Fawad Chaudhry announced the development.
تحریک انصاف تمام نشستوں پر الیکشن لڑے گی اور عمران خان ان تینتیس نشستوں پر تحریک انصاف کے امیدوار ہوں گے
An Australian news outlet posted an unverified and baseless story about Pakistan cricket team skipper Babar Azam. The publication accused the skipper of sexting to his teammate’s girlfriend. However, Fox cricket has now deleted the story after PCB slammed the news outlet for posting baseless stories.
“As our media partner, you might have considered ignoring such unsubstantiated personal allegations which Babar Azam has not deemed worthy of a response,” the board tweeted from its official account.
The story alleged that Babar Azam had sexted one of his teammate’s girlfriends and promised her that her boyfriend won’t be out of the team if she continues in that streak.
However, the Pakistan cricket team captain has not commented on the allegations yet.
Fox Cricket’s report stated “the account, which is a parody page, then removed the original tweet and explicitly apologized to Babar”.
It should be mentioned here that a woman made severe accusations against the batter in November 2020 and requested that he be persecuted on suspicion of fraud and sexual harassment.
A Lahore session court instructed the police to file a complaint against Babar. The Lahore High Court, however, suspended the order of the session court in 2021.
The federal government on Tuesday declared 20 bottled water brands unfit for human consumption, Jamal Shahid reports for Dawn.
The Pakistani government had asked the Pakistan Council for Research in Water Resources (PCRWR) to evaluate bottled and mineral water brands every quarter and to report the findings to raise public health awareness.
Twenty-two cities provided 168 samples of mineral/bottled water brands for the quarter from October to December of the year 2022.
Twenty brands were found to be dangerous for human consumption due to microbiological, chemical, or both types of contamination when test results were compared to the bottled water quality criteria of Pakistan Standards and Quality Control Authority (PSQCA).
Here are the bottled water brands
Best Natural Klear Pinar Neno Ice Drop Premium Safa Orwell Indus Minwa Kashaf Barsay Nayab Pure Life Excellent Natural
Aqua One Alfa Premium Isberg Aqua pack Sip up Ever pure Noble Asha
Actor Yasir Hussain called out Feroze Khan in his Instagram stories for leaking his private number to the public in a now-deleted tweet. Khan had shared a list of celebrities on Twitter, mentioning that he was sending them defamation notices. Hussain shared a screenshot of a man who was consistently spamming his messages with requests to be cast in TV serials. He criticized Feroze Khan for the breach of private data.
“A stupid man had first beat up his wife and then leaked our numbers to the public. Because of this now this child is asking me to cast him in some drama, or otherwise he wants Rs 1 lac. Now tell me what I should do.”
In the next post, he shared the list of messages the person had sent him, but pointed out that he refused to defame him by sharing his number, the way Feroze Khan had.
Hussain also shared a screenshot of Meesha Shafi’s Instagram post where she sent her solidarity and support to the ten actresses sent defamation notices by Feroze Khan, saying that she could empathize having also been in the same place.
“Having suffered the most malifide defamation case…I just want to tell anyone who might be stressing about this stupid case that he’s going to lose in every way in the end. Karma is real. All my solidarity to each and everyone of you, especially Alizeh.”
Hussain put up a screenshot of his messages where the spammer had apologized, stating he was a big fan of actor Falak Shabir and wanted Hussain to help him reach out to him.
‘Moron’, ‘Stupid’, ‘Despicable’; Celebs slam Feroze Khan for phone numbers leak
A growing chorus of disgruntled celebrities slamming Feroze Khan has now been joined by Sarwat Gillani and Mira Sethi. Khan had posted on Twitter the private phone numbers of 10 celebrities including Oscar winner Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy, Osman Khalid Butt and Minal Khan.
Actor Sarwat Gilani has slammed Feroze Khan in an Instagram post by sharing a screenshot of the numerous spam calls she had received since the leak, and in the caption she warned Khan that his illegal actions will now severely backfire on him
“It is bizarre and despicable that private information, including phone numbers, of various famous individuals has been publicly shared on the absurd pretext of issuing legal notice to them by @ferozekhan Not only are such actions clearly illegal but also demonstrates the total lack of maturity to handle matters in a civilized way.
Two days ago @ferozekhan had one ex wife and her lawyer now he will have to face 10 celebrities and their lawyers after him. Good luck!”
Oscar winning filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy had responded in the comment section, by writing that she had faced the same issue of numerous spam calls.
‘Wait till you see mine,” she wrote.
Actress and writer Mira Sethi has also responded to the leak by sharing Gilani’s post in her Instagram stories, and clarifying that she will continue to stand behind survivors of domestic violence despite the threat
“Echoing what Sarwat says here about leaked numbers. Unbelievable. My lawyer will respond to the notice, and I will continue standing with Alizeh Sultan.”
Actor Minal Khan has uploaded a post on her Instagram page, where she critcized Feroze Khan’s ‘shameful act” for breaching her privacy and putting her family’s life in danger.
“Yesterday my private information including my personal phone number was leaked on social media. it was an utterly shameful act which was carried out intentionally by Feroze Khan on the absurd pretext of a legal notice.
This action of his has has caused me severe mental distress as I have been receiving hundreds of calls and messages. My personal security has been breached & out at risk as I have been mentally harassed, tortured & threatened by multiple numbers. Me and my family’s life has been put in danger.
Such actions are illegal- This being said I will be taking very strict legal action against Feroze Khan for leaking my private information on social media along with multiple other famous individuals.”
Swedish climate change activist Greta Thunberg was detained by the German police on Tuesday for participating in a coal mine protest in a village in Lutzerath. Thunberg was participating in the protest to stop authorities from demolishing the village for the coal mine’s expansion. Police representative Christof Huls while speaking to CNN, said that Thunberg was part of a large group of protesters who had broken through the police barrier and had settled around a coal pit. Huls further elaborated that police were concerned that the mass of protesters could set the ground in motion after it had been softened by rainfall in the last few days, leading to the detention of the protestors.
‘We knew who she was, but she did not get VIP treatment,’ Huls said.
Police also said that the activists detained would be released later in the day.
Thunberg had joined thousands of climate activists in Germany against the demolishing of a village in order to make way for the Garzweiler lignite coal mine, which is owned by the European multi-national corporation RWE. Climate activists had argued that the expansion of the coal mine will increase planet-warming emissions and violate the Paris Climate Agreement’s promise to bring the global temperature to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. Thunberg had addressed the activists on Saturday, saying that their fight to save the planet was not over as long as people keep prioritizing short term economic growth and corporate greed. “We need to stop the current destruction of our planet and sacrificing people to benefit the short-term economic growth and corporate greed,” she said.
Climate strike week 230. We are currently in Lützerath, a German village threatened to be demolished for an expansion of a coal mine. People have been resisting for years. Join us here at 12 or a local protest tomorrow to demand that #LützerathBleibt !#ClimateStrikepic.twitter.com/hGrCK6ZQew
Korean actor Park Hyung Sik has shared a teaser of his upcoming fantasy drama ‘Our Blooming Youth’ on his Instagram page. According to details, Sik plays a prince who suffers from a mysterious curse and encounters a genius woman (played by Min Jae Yi) who is being accused of murdering her family members. Both of them agree to help each other and soon develop a closer bond.
Other prominent Korean actors like Choi Woo Shik (Our Beloved Summer) and Lee Young-Joon reached out to congratulate the actor in the comments
K-drama fans would remember Hyung Sik from the popular comedy drama “Strong Girl Bong-Soon” where stars as the CEO of a video game company who hires a woman with incredible strength Bong Soon (played by Park Bo-Young) to become his bodyguard.
