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  • PSL6 opening ceremony to be filmed in a specially designed studio in Turkey

    PSL6 opening ceremony to be filmed in a specially designed studio in Turkey

    The sixth edition of the Pakistan Super League 6 (PSL6) will commence with a glittering opening ceremony on February 20. The star-studded entertainment-packed event will feature Atif Aslam, Imran Khan, Humaima Malick and the PSL 6 Anthem artists: Naseebo Lal, Aima Baig and Young Stunners. The event will also mark Atif and Khan’s first-ever PSL appearance.

    According to a statement issued by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), parts of the opening ceremony will be filmed offshore in a specially designed studio space in Turkey. Some artists including Baig have already arrived in Istanbul for the event.

    Speaking about the opening ceremony, Director Commercial PCB Babar Hamid said: “This year promises to be really exciting especially the state-of-the-art technology being used to create this experience for Pakistani fans.”

    Later, Khan shared his picture on Instagram with a caption, “Aj wekhe ga crowed mera groove tv te,” following the tags #hblpsl, #pakistan and #turkey.

    Read more – Shoaib Akhtar receives flak from celebrities for his comments on ‘Groove Mera’

    The first four opening ceremonies of the PSL were held at the Dubai International Stadium while the 2020 opening ceremony was staged at the National Stadium Karachi, and the same venue will play host to the 2021 ceremony. As has been the tradition in earlier editions, the opening ceremony will be followed by the first match of the season – defending champions Karachi Kings will play Quetta Gladiators in the night match.

    The ceremony is expected to be aired on PTV Sports and Geo Super. The time for the event has not yet been announced.

    Meanwhile, overseas players have started arriving in Karachi, where the first half of the tournament will take place. Because of COVID-19 SOPs, the PCB has limited the event to Karachi and Lahore only. The former will host 20 matches from February 20 to March 7 while the latter will host the remaining 14 matches from March 10 to 22.

    As announced by the PCB, around 7,500 ticketed spectators will be allowed access inside the stadium per match day, while around 5,500 will be able to attend each match day at Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium.

  • Rawalpindi police foil jailbreak bid, suspect detained

    Rawalpindi police foil jailbreak bid, suspect detained

    Rawalpindi police have foiled a bid to break Adiala Central Jail and registered a case against the suspect who tried to smuggle in a hacksaw for the purpose.

    According to reports, stepson of a prisoner, Khalid Khan, came to visit his father in jail. The son, named Amaan Abbasi, had also brought food and other stuff for his father, but when the police official inspected his luggage before the meeting, they found a hacksaw and other such stuff in his box.

    Subsequently, the police officials took the visitors in the custody and also confiscated the hacksaw. A case has also been registered against Abbasi by the SHO of Saddar police station, Rawalpindi.

    According to Assistant Superintendent Jail Saqib Amin, the police have averted a major untoward incident by seizing the hacksaw before it could reach the hands of the prisoner.

  • Minal Khan, Ahsan Mohsin Ikram make it official

    Minal Khan, Ahsan Mohsin Ikram make it official

    Minal Khan and beau Ahsan Mohsin Ikram have made it official. The couple, on Valentine’s Day, subtly announced that they have gotten engaged!

    Ahsan revealed the news in an Instagram post, sharing a picture of Minal showing off her engagement ring.

    “Happy Valentine’s Day,” wrote Ikram in caption along with a heart emoji.

    Earlier in the day, Khan shared a photo from their intimate Valentine’s Day celebration as she posed alongside Ikram in front of a pink wall with a heart-shaped balloon.

    “Love is in the air. Simple and sweet,” wrote the actor in the caption.

    Commenting on Minal’s post, Ahsan wrote: “I love you.” However, Minal later closed the comments section of her post.

    Soon after, congratulatory messages poured in for the newly engaged couple from fans and colleagues.

    The news of Minal and Ahsan’s engagement comes just days after Minal was spotted at Ahsan’s grandmother’s (Dadi) birthday celebrations.

    The couple had officially confirmed their relationship on Minal’s birthday in November 2020 with a picture that received immense backlash on social media.

  • Aamir Liaquat trolls Vawda over award of Senate ticket

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Aamir Liaquat has taken a dig at Faisal Vawda, who is also an MNA from Karachi, after he was named by the party as its Senate nominee from Sindh.

    Vawda, who is facing a case in the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) for allegedly lying about his dual nationality, might get disqualified from holding the NA seat. And many observers see his candidature as an attempt to circumvent the potential disqualification.

    In a jibe at the Senate ticket for Vawda, Aamir Liaquat in a series of tweet ranted about the former getting a nomination for the upper house even though he didn’t deserve it.

    The Karachi lawmaker also shared a picture of PM Imran Khan and Faisal Vawda that was captioned with a fictional dialogue between the two. “Only a Senate ticket… but you promised me tickets for provincial assemblies, Azad Kashmir Assembly, Gilgit-Baltistan Assembly, and Lok Sabha ticket that Nawaz Sharif didn’t disclose in his documents. Not just these, you also promised to give me Green Line Bus ticket on a priority basis,” the PTI leader mocked his colleague.

    He also criticised PM Imran for giving ticket to Vawda.

    The PTI leadership in Sindh is not happy with Vawda either. According to reports, key party leaders from three zones of rural Sindh approached the Sindh governor on Sunday to express their displeasure over the award of the Senate tickets of Vawda and Saifullah Abro.

    The leaders who signed the letter included Sadaqat Ali Jatoi, brother of former Sindh chief minister Liaquat Jatoi, PTI Sukkur President Mubeen Jatoi, Allah Bux Unnar and Raja Khan Jhakrani, former provincial secretary general Mehfooz Usrani, a former candidate from NA-214 Shaheed Benazirabad Gul Muhammad Rind, former provincial minister Agha Taimoor Khan Pathan, Papu Khan Chachar and other party leaders.

  • IN PICTURES: Shahid Afridi celebrates youngest daughter’s first birthday

    Shahid Afridi had the perfect Valentine’s Day.

    The former captain of the Pakistan Cricket team celebrated his youngest daughter Arwa’s first birthday on February 14 with an adorable pink and red-themed party. Lala shared pictures from the birthday on social media along with a heartfelt note.

    “Happy 1st Birthday to the youngest of my girls, Arwa,” wrote Lala in the caption. “MashaAllah you’ve brought our family so much happiness in such a short time.”

    “I pray Allah gives you and all our children the best of everything,” added the proud father.

    “Love you to the moon and back.”

    Afridi, who will be playing for Multan Sultans in this season’s Pakistan Super League (PSL), welcomed his youngest daughter in February last year.

  • Govt ‘tested tear gas on protesters’: Sheikh Rasheed draws flak over ‘cruel’ statement

    Govt ‘tested tear gas on protesters’: Sheikh Rasheed draws flak over ‘cruel’ statement

    Interior Minister Sheikh Rasheed is under fire for making an insensitive statement regarding the use of tear gas against the government employees who were protesting at D-Chowk, Islamabad, last week for better wages.

    In a comment on the demonstration, while addressing a ceremony in Islamabad, Rasheed said that the government gave a 25 per cent pay raise to the protesters and used some “tear gas” as well because it was “necessary”.

    “We have already tested the teargas during the protest of government employees last week in Islamabad. The test was necessary as these teargas shells had not been used for a long time,” he said in a warning to the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM).

    Last week, one policeman was killed and multiple injuries were reported after the protest organised by the government employees in Red Zone turned violent. The government had used tear gas and baton-charge to disperse the protesters.

    The remarks were criticised by the opposition leaders, civil society, and journalists who termed them “cruel” and “insensitive”.

    Former Sindh governor Mohammad Zubair said that a statement like this “would mean immediate firing of the minister”. However, the current government is “shameless” so the minister will retain his portfolio.

    A Twitter user said that the statement by the minister was “quite shameful”.

    https://twitter.com/AmirChaudhry_/status/1360947901850075141

    Senior journalist Murtaza Solangi pointed out that “many people got injured during the exercise and a cop died too”.

    The current government “keeps stooping lower and lower”, commented activist Tooba Syed.

    The interior of minister of Pakistan says that it was important to use tear gas on the protesting employees, wrote another journalist.

    Another Twitter user called the statement of the minister “criminal”.

  • Prince Harry, Meghan Markle ‘overjoyed to be expecting their second child’

    Prince Harry, Meghan Markle ‘overjoyed to be expecting their second child’

    Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are expecting their second child, their spokesman told British media in a Valentine’s Day announcement on Sunday. The child will be eighth in the line to the British throne.

    The couple released a black and white image of them under a tree, all smiles, with Markle, 39, showing signs of pregnancy. The photo was reportedly taken remotely via iPad by their friend and longtime photographer, Misan Harriman.

    “We can confirm that Archie is going to be a big brother,” the spokesman said, referring to the couple’s son. “The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are overjoyed to be expecting their second child.”

    The couple’s announcement on Valentine’s Day was a nod to Princess Diana, who 37 years ago on the same day, had announced that she was pregnant with Prince Harry.

    Meghan and Harry, 36, who is Queen Elizabeth II’s grandson, quit frontline royal duties in March last year and now live in California.

    The news follows Markle’s disclosure in The New York Times in November that she had suffered a miscarriage in July.

    A Buckingham Palace spokesman said: “Her Majesty, Duke of Edinburgh, Prince of Wales and the entire family are delighted and wish them well.”

    The couple’s departure last year — dubbed ‘Megxit‘ by the British press — was a far cry from 2018 when they married in a ceremony at Windsor Castle watched around the world.

    The mood soured as reports circulated about a rift between Harry and his brother Prince William, second in line to the throne.

    Since leaving, they have launched several legal cases against news outlets alleging invasion of privacy — including one that ended on Thursday with a victory against Associated Newspapers in the UK.

    The cases have attracted criticism from some, as the couple are also launching themselves into the public eye with high-profile commercial projects.

    Last year they launched a non-profit organisation, Archewell, after giving up a “Sussex Royal” brand as part of the terms of their departure from frontline royal duties.

    They have started other ventures, including signing a deal with Spotify to produce podcasts that tell “uplifting and entertaining stories”. The couple also signed a contract, reportedly worth tens of millions of dollars with streaming giant Netflix to produce “impactful” films and series.

    Read more – Archie speaks publicly for the first time on Meghan, Harry’s first podcast

    Harry and Meghan’s announcement came days after Princess Eugenie, a granddaughter of the queen, gave birth to a baby boy.

  • Ali Sadpara, an unsung hero

    On February 5, Mohammad Ali Sadpara from Pakistan, John Snorri from Iceland and Juan Pablo Mohr from Chile went missing while climbing K2, which is said to be the deadliest mountain. Despite special rescue and search efforts, they have not been found yet and are presumed to be dead. It is a huge loss for Pakistan as we have lost our unsung hero, Ali Sadpara. He was a man who was known to be a versatile climber and mountaineer.

    All national and international media outlets that have profiled him have been nothing but full of praise for Sadpara. Anyone who had ever met him speaks highly of him. A man with not enough resources but with a lot of talent, hard work and an adventurous streak, Sadpara went on to become one of Pakistan’s greatest mountaineers. What others say about Ali Sadpara also shows that the man was genuinely a lovely and humble human being.

    Sadpara hailed from Gilgit-Baltistan. Born to a poor family in 1976, he started climbing in 2003 or 2004. He is the only Pakistani mountaineer to have climbed eight of the 14 highest mountains in the world. Sadpara also successfully made the winter summit of Nanga Parbat, which is known as a killer mountain, back in 2016.

    Sadpara’s son Sajid says his father was like a snow leopard, who moved extremely fast in the mountains. K2 winter summit was his dream, which took his life. Sajid says that he did see the three men climb over the bottleneck at the top, so they probably did make the summit but met an accident during the descent. The entire country was praying for Sadpara’s success when he had started K2 winter summit.

    When the news came that he may have succeeded, everyone was overjoyed. When he went missing, the entire country was shocked but we were all waiting for a miracle. That he has not been found for almost 10 days now means he may not have survived, a heartbreaking truth. Sadpara will be remembered for his songs and dances on the mountains, his willpower, his humbleness and his heroic nature — a man who wanted to do so much for Pakistan even though we did not give him the recognition that he deserved.

  • Dilip Kumar’s nephew claims actor wanted to gift property in Peshawar to residents

    Dilip Kumar’s nephew Fuad Ishaque, who is based in Peshawar, has claimed that Dilip Kumar wanted to gift his property in Peshawar to the people of the city, Hindustan Times has reported.

    He further claimed that he has legal and proper power of attorney to the legendary actor’s property in Peshawar, adding that Kumar drafted the proper power of attorney in 2012.

    Ishaque further said that Kumar has great respect for the people of Peshawar and that the love and affection for his ancestral city has never diminished from his heart.

    In September 2020, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government announced its decision to buy and restore Kumar’s house located in Peshawar’s historical Qissa Khwani Bazaar – or Street of Storytellers. This announcement won the actor’s heart who took to social media to express his excitement. He also requested his fans residing in Peshawar to share photos of his ancestral house on Twitter.

    Not only Kumar but his wife, Saira Banu also appreciated the government’s move to conserve the actor’s house.

    Later, Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Mahmood Khan approved Rs 23.56 million to purchase the ancestral homes of Kumar and Raj Kapoor.

  • Akcent hints at making new PSL anthem after controversy

    Akcent hints at making new PSL anthem after controversy

    The official anthem of the sixth edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) Groove Mera has stirred up a storm in the country. While some, including celebrities, have appreciated the song, others have strongly criticised the composition and choice of artists.

    After Shoaib Akhtar claiming he could have done a better job with the anthem, several fans have requested Romanian band Akcent to remake the song, in what appears to have become a tradition before the start of PSL every year.

    Responding to fans’ requests, the official account of Akcent said that the band might remake the PSL 6 song.

    In another comment, the band said that they might make the official anthem for the next edition of the PSL.

    Meanwhile, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Friday defended its decision to hire Naseebo Lal, Aima Baig and Young Stunners to perform the anthem, saying that the three artists were chosen as the board wanted to feature voices that were new and had not sung any PSL anthem before.

    Earlier, Akcent had also tweeted: “PSL 7 or PSL 8?”