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  • HSY shares how Lady Diana inspired him

    Princess of Wales Lady Diana was loved by millions across the world. She touched hearts wherever she went and inspired an entire generation.

    Renowned fashion designer, Hassan Sheheryar Yasin (HSY) recently shared how the late princess inspired him. Sharing a picture of himself with Prince William and Kate Middleton from their recent visit to Pakistan, HSY wrote, “Life is unpredictable and magical. Let me take you back.”

    Throwing it back to the day of Prince Charles and Lady Diana’s wedding, HSY said “I was a little boy who she [his mother] took along with her to stand way back in line to get a glimpse of the procession. She held me up on her shoulders the entire time so I could see beyond the sea of people in front of us. I was lucky to catch a glimpse of the Royal Carriage with the beautiful Queen of Hearts waving to the jubilant crowd as it passed us by.”

    “It was a magical moment. I was captivated. I would think about her and her regal posture, that stunning gown and her elegance and kindness for decades to come,” he said further. “She inspired me like she inspired countless others.”

    Read more – What did Mehwish Hayat & Prince William talk about and other inside details from the grand royal reception

    Coming back to the present day, HSY shared how honoured he was to have met the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.

    “I was celebrating my 25 years in fashion, it felt like I had come full circle,” said the designer while talking about his meeting with the royal couple. “This recognition of being invited from a handful from Pakistan to be introduced to them for your contributions in your field. I was overcome with gratitude. The son and daughter-in-law of the very same person who sparked my desire to be who I am were standing right in front of me and acknowledging my work,” he added.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/CBiIK8phuh6/

    Meanwhile, HSY is gearing up for his official film debut. The designer will be making an appearance in Muhib Mirza’s Ishrat Made in China with a role that has been specially written for him. According to reports, the film is an action flick which revolves around gang rivalries and that HSY will be playing a negative role in it.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/CA5ZCUvBR5K/
  • Sushant Singh Rajput’s suicide elicits three deaths

    Sushant Singh Rajput’s suicide elicits three deaths

    The untimely and tragic death of Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput has elicited three more deaths, including two suicides. According to reports, Sushant’s sister-in-law passed away from shock when she heard of his death, while two young fans committed suicide.

    Sushant’s sister-in-law, Sudha Devi, the wife of his cousin, couldn’t bear the loss and breathed her last in Purnea district of Bihar while the actor’s last rites were being performed on Monday, in Mumbai, reported the Times of India.

    A liver cancer patient, Sudha had reportedly stopped eating when she was informed about Rajput’s death by suicide. Family sources revealed that she kept weeping and recalling Sushant’s visit to his ancestral home last year.

    “Sushant’s untimely demise virtually shook her from within. She could not bear the loss,” said a family member.

    Meanwhile, a young fan of Sushant, who was suffering from depression, committed suicide a day after the actor’s death. According to reports, the 17-year-old girl allegedly hanged herself at her home in Patna after continuously watching the news of the actor’s suicide on TV.

    The victim’s mother told the police that her daughter was in depression because she was not performing well in her examinations. She had been watching and reading about the actor’s suicide and death on TV and social media, despite her mother’s warnings and insistence to not watch it.

    When her mother went to the terrace for a stroll, the girl hanged herself inside the bedroom.

    “She tied her mother’s sari to the ceiling fan to commit suicide,” said a police officer, adding that though her mother and neighbours rushed her to the hospital, she was declared dead upon arrival.

    Similarly, another fan of the actor committed suicide after he learnt of his demise.

    Did not know of son’s depression, says Sushant’s father

    While reports have stated that the Sushant was suffering from depression and was on medication, his father K K Singh told the police that his son would often feel “low” but he did not know that he was suffering from the illness.

    A senior Mumbai Police official revealed that “the family informed us that they do not know why Sushant was depressed and also did not mention if they had any suspicion on anyone.”

    The police are investigating Sushant’s suicide to ascertain what might have driven the young actor to end his life.

  • Father’s Day gifts within Rs 3,000

    Father’s Day gifts within Rs 3,000

    In these testing times, we all need something to lift our spirits and with Father’s Day (June 21) around the corner, why not take this day to celebrate him and do something special with the family?

    Though it’s a little difficult to arrange things, given the lockdown, it’s not entirely impossible. Here are a few things that you can arrange for your father from home and that too within 3,000.

    Cologne/Perfumes

    J. has some very nice colognes wihtin Rs 3,000.

    Website: https://www.junaidjamshed.com/fragrances.html

    Shirts

    For casual shirts, t-shirts and polo shirts you can go to:

    Monark

    Charcoal

    Engine

    Accessories

    Uniworth

    Charcoal

    Mugs

    Inappropriate Gifts have some very fun ideas to make mugs more exciting for the receiver.

    Website: https://inappropriategifting.com/pages/about-us

    Food Baskets

    FoodGrab for Lahoris

    The Sweet Creations for Lahoris

    Sugaries Bakery for Karachiites

  • 1997: When Tariq Aziz defeated Imran Khan by a margin of over 45,000 votes

    1997: When Tariq Aziz defeated Imran Khan by a margin of over 45,000 votes

    Veteran actor and television host Tariq Aziz passed away in Lahore on Wednesday.

    He was 84 years old and was admitted to a private hospital last night after he fell critically ill. The cause of his death, however, has not yet been ascertained.

    Born in 1936 in British India, Aziz received his early education in Jalandhar (now in India) before starting his career at Radio Pakistan in Lahore. When state-owned Pakistan Television (PTV) started its broadcast in 1964 from Lahore, he became the first male news announcer of the country.

    In 1974, Aziz started the first-of-its-type game show, Neelam Ghar, from PTV. The show went on to register unprecedented heights. It was later rebranded as Tariq Aziz Show in 1996 before finally renamed Bazm-e-Tariq Aziz in 2006.

    Aziz also tried his luck in movies. He starred in Insaniyat (1967) alongside Waheed Murad and Zeba, following which he played a leading role in Haar Gaya Insaan.

    He received the Pride of Performance award in 1992 for his services.

    TARIQ AZIZ VS IMRAN KHAN:

    Unprecedented fame as a radio and television personality was, however, not it for Aziz who also went on to contest general elections in the 90s.

    He was active in student politics during his college days and had joined the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) in 1970. In those days, Aziz was called a “firebrand socialist” known for charging up crowds with revolutionary slogans at Zulfikar Ali Bhutto’s rallies. However, later he parted his ways and went back to the entertainment world. In 1996, he joined the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and was later elected member of the National Assembly from Lahore.

    Imran Khan, after founding Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) in 1996 fielded himself from multiple seats in the 1997 general elections.

    Only from Lahore, Imran contested from NA-94 and NA-95 seats where he suffered defeats at the hands of Tariq Aziz and then PML-N president Nawaz Sharif, respectively.

    He received 4,595 votes against Aziz’s 50,227, paving way for Aziz’s election to the Lower House.

    Aziz was also one of the political activists who were charged with attacking the Supreme Court of Pakistan building in 1997.

  • PTI caught off-guard as allied BNP-M quits coalition govt

    PTI caught off-guard as allied BNP-M quits coalition govt

    The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government appeared to be caught off-guard as the Balochistan National Party-Mengal (BNP-M), one of the eight political parties who either support the federal government or are a part of the ruling coalition, on Wednesday announced to end its alliance with the Imran Khan government.

    Speaking on the floor of the National Assembly (NA) during a session, party President Sardar Akhtar Mengal officially announced that his party was separating itself from the government. “We will stay in parliament and will keep talking about issues,” he said.

    The two parties had signed a six-point memorandum of understanding (MoU) in August 2018 for an alliance in centre. The six points included recovery of missing persons, implementation of the National Action Plan (NAP), implementation of six per cent quota for Balochistan in the federal government, immediate repatriation of Afghan refugees and the construction of dams in the province to resolve the acute water crisis.

    Mengal reminded the House that his party had two agreements with the ruling party, adding that it was the Imran Khan-led party which had come to him for an alliance, not the BNP-M which went to Bani Gala — the personal residence of PM Imran.

    “The first agreement was done on August 8, 2018 and signed by Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Jahangir Tareen and Yar Muhammad Rind,” recalled Mengal. 

    He added that his party had demanded that the missing persons issue be resolved and the National Action Plan be implemented in letter and spirit in the agreement.

    “Can someone tell us if there was anything unconstitutional in both these demands? Why were they not implemented?” asked the lawmaker from Balochistan. 

    He regretted that the ruling party’s mindset was “the same one running in the country since 1948”.

    “We waited for two years for the implementation of the agreement; we are ready to [wait] further, but start something,” appealed the nationalist leader. 

    He added that if the government wishes to take his province along, then they should implement their agreements with BNP-M.

    While highlighting his grievances in the assembly, the lawmaker stated that the foundations for the road from Chaman to Karachi were laid in 1973, and it has killed 4,500 in road accidents. He added that instead of giving them a six-lane road, the government gave them only a two-lane road.

    The BNP-M leader also claimed that “no one can find justice in this country” and that “justice is being sold”. 

    While hitting out at the government, he noted that Pakistan Steel Mills were being privatised and thousands were being unemployed.

    “The disappointing thing is that no one here is ready to listen to their [the laid off workers’] demands,” said Mengal. He added that if the demands could not be met, then they should at least be noted.

    “It has become a tradition here that the last government is held responsible for everything,” said Mengal.

    The alliance with the PTI was only in the centre, while the BNP-M’s alliance with the Jamiat Ulemae Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) in Balochis­tan continues at the provincial level.

    The coalition government has been struggling over “broken promises” for quite some time now as the Pakistan Muslim League (PML) and the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) also do not seem much satisfied with the ruling PTI’s performance.

    Wednesday’s development and its consequences could spell trouble for PM Imran who was elected as the leader of the house with a thin majority.

  • Pakistan mourns as Tariq Aziz passes away

    Pakistan mourns as Tariq Aziz passes away

    The passing of Pakistan’s renowned TV/radio host, film actor and politician Tariq Aziz has left an irreplaceable void in the country and Pakistanis, including Prime Minister Imran Khan, mourned his death and remembered him and his work.

    According to Radio Pakistan, Aziz passed away due to cardiac arrest in Lahore on Wednesday. He was 84. ARY reported that the veteran host did not have any underlying ailments or conditions. He had been isolating at home ever since the coronavirus outbreak. Quoting his wife, the reporter said that a while before his death Aziz said he felt cold and put his head on his wife’s shoulder for some relief. He passed away soon after.

    Read more – Legendary Pakistani actress Sabiha Khanum passes away at 85

    In a condolence message, the Prime Minister Imran Khan said that Aziz was “an icon in his time and a pioneer of our TV game shows”.

    President Arif Alvi said that “a chapter closes with the sad demise of Tariq Aziz”.

    Meanwhile, from celebrities and politicians to sportsmen and journalists, everyone fondly remembered the legend and his iconic presence on the screen.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/CBh4hApDDZr/

    Born in 1936 in Jalandhar, Aziz began his professional career from Radio Pakistan Lahore and was one of the most recognisable voices on the radio. Later, he joined PTV, where he not only became the state-owned television’s first announcer, he also became popular for his work on PTV’s Quiz Show Neelam Ghar, first aired in 1974. The show was later renamed the Tariq Aziz Show and also known as Bazm-e-Tariq Aziz.

    Aziz’s unique hosting skills on Neelam Ghar made him a household name in Pakistan over the past four decades in the country.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/CBh5kIDhdoV/

    Other than that, Aziz was also a poet and a film actor – he was part of several films over the course of his career. He also featured in the super hit musical Salgira (1969), which went on to win two Nigar Awards that year.

    Aziz was also a member of the National Assembly of Pakistan between 1997 and 1999.

    He was awarded Pride of Performance Award by the President of Pakistan in 1992 for his services to the nation.

    May his soul rest in peace.

  • Plane makes emergency landing after ‘upset passenger over breakup’ cracks window

    Plane makes emergency landing after ‘upset passenger over breakup’ cracks window

    A plane made an emergency landing after a drunk woman broke a window during the flight. She was reportedly upset because her boyfriend broke up with her. The incident occurred last month during a domestic Loong Airlines flight in China.

    As per reports, 29-year-old Li “lost control of her emotions” on the flight on May 25.

    Photos doing rounds on social media show Li crying on her seat and striking the glass window even as squad members and other passengers tried to restrain and calm her. She cracked the first layer of the plane window by hitting it repeatedly.

    After the woman broke the window, the pilot was forced to make an emergency landing. The plane was supposed to travel from Xining to the coastal city of Yancheng. However, the pilot was forced to make an emergency stop in Zhengzhou.

    Image credit: Weibo.com

    Zhengzhou police said that Li’s boyfriend had ended the relationship which resulted in the outburst of emotions. They said that Li had consumed half a liter of the Chinese grain alcohol known as ‘baijiu‘ before boarding the flight. The beverage has an alcohol volume of between 35 to 60 percent.

    Luckily, nobody was hurt during the mid-air scare. Crew passengers managed to confine the woman before the plane touched down in Zhengzhou, where she was detained by police.

    Her blood alcohol content was measured at 160mg/100ml. Police have not revealed how long the woman was remanded in custody for, or whether she will be fined for damaging the aircraft.

  • China kills 20 Indian soldiers in border clash

    China kills 20 Indian soldiers in border clash

    In an armed conflict between two nuclear-armed neighbours, at least 20 Indian soldiers were killed in the Galwan Valley in Ladakh after a “violent face-off” with Chinese troops ensued.

    According to Indian media reports, both sides “have disengaged” after 17 Indian troops were injured.

    The injured troops “exposed to sub-zero temperatures in the high altitude terrain have succumbed to their injuries”, ANI reported, adding this had brought the death toll, from the earlier reported three to 20.

    According to earlier reports by Indian media, three troops, including an officer and two soldiers were among those killed near the Line of Actual Control (LAC).

    “During the de-escalation process underway in the Galwan Valley, a violent face-off took place yesterday night with casualties. The loss of lives on the Indian side includes an officer and two soldiers. Senior military officials of the two sides are currently meeting at the venue to defuse the situation,” an official statement said.

    Meanwhile, British news outlet The Telegraph, quoting Indian army sources, reported that four soldiers are currently missing and a further 32 “were handed back after being captured”.

    Indian media also reported that 40 Chinese soldiers were killed in the clash, however, the news was soon retracted.

    India and China have been locked in a standoff in the western Himalayas for weeks, though there had been no casualties on either side.

    In Beijing, Zhao Lijian, a spokesman for the Foreign Ministry, said that Indian forces had twice crossed the border illegally on Monday and attacked Chinese personnel. He said the Chinese side had “lodged strong protests” but continued to work toward resolving the tensions between the two countries.

    According to the Hindustan Times, Beijing accused the Indian army of provoking and attacking Chinese soldiers after a border meeting to de-escalate the ongoing tension led to a “physical conflict” between the two sides. Reuters’ report suggested that Beijing warned New Delhi not to take unilateral action or stir up trouble.

    The Asian giants have rival claims to vast swathes of territory along their 3,500 kilometers Himalayan border, but the disputes have remained largely peaceful since a border war in 1962.

  • Justice Qazi Faez Isa strikes back with ‘Imran, others’ properties in UK’

    Justice Qazi Faez Isa strikes back with ‘Imran, others’ properties in UK’

    Supreme Court’s (SC) Justice Qazi Faez Isa, who is facing a presidential reference for not disclosing his family’s assets, on Tuesday put the federal government in a tight spot before a full bench of the apex court by pointing out key leaders of the ruling party who also owned properties in the United Kingdom (UK), including Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan and his special assistant on accountability, Shahzad Akbar.

    As a 10-judge full court, headed by Justice Umar Ata Bandial, continued hearing the petitions against the reference, Justice Isa in a written statement informed the bench that PM Imran owned six properties, Akbar (five), Special Assistant to the PM on Overseas Pakistanis Zulfiqar Bukhari (seven) and Special Assistant to Prime Minister (SAPM) on Youth Affairs Usman Dar have three to his name.

    Former federal information minister Firdous Ashiq Awan and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) stalwart Jahangir Tareen each owned a property there as well. In addition, the judge submitted before the court that former military ruler Gen (r) Pervez Musharraf owned two properties in the UK.

    Justice Isa submitted the statement in response to SAPM Akbar telling the court that he did not receive any salary or benefit as the head of the Asset Recovery Unit (ARU).

    “Taking a cue from what is stated to have transpired in the case of the petitioner’s family, the search engine 192.com was used to search a few known public figures,” the statement read.

    The judge clarified that he was “not saying or suggesting, let alone allege” that the people he had identified had illegally acquired any property in the UK in violation of the income tax, the foreign exchange and/or money laundering laws.

    “Before an allegation of non-compliance with income tax law is made, the Federal Board of Revenue must check its records [of these individuals] and consider how much taxable income was declared and income-tax paid and whether they had non-taxable income, such as from agricultural land, which the Constitution exempts from payment of income tax.”

    Justice Isa further stated that before making an allegation with regard to the illegal transfer of money abroad, the State Bank “must check to determine whether the said individuals had foreign exchange accounts and whether through these accounts money was remitted abroad, to exclude the possibility of it sent to the UK through Hawala, Hundi or by any other illegal means”.

  • Sushant Singh Rajput’s death exposes the toxic side of Bollywood

    Sushant Singh Rajput’s death exposes the toxic side of Bollywood

    Indian police will probe whether the Bollywood actor who committed suicide the past weekend was depressed in part due to “professional rivalry,” in a film industry that is dominated by big names and has been accused of being insular, Reuters has reported.

    34-year-old Sushant Singh Rajput, who won acclaim and fans for his roles in several top-draw films, hailed from a middle-class family with no Bollywood connections – a relative rarity in the industry.

    He was found dead at his residence in Mumbai on Sunday.

    “There are media reports that he allegedly suffered from clinical depression because of professional rivalry. Mumbai Police will probe this angle too,” the home (interior) minister in Maharashtra, which includes the film capital Mumbai, tweeted late on Monday.

    Several of Rajput’s friends in the industry have written about his struggles to break through, while social media and some cultural commentators have criticised the allegedly closed culture in Bollywood, where some families have dominated for up to four generations.

    Rajput’s family has not commented so far.

    At least half a dozen accounts by Rajput’s industry colleagues suggested Bollywood’s clique-drive culture ostracised him, although none provided concrete details and it was not immediately clear who specifically they were talking about. However, hours after the actor’s death, the actor’s fans pointed fingers at Alia Bhatt and Karan Johar for driving him into depression.

    “I knew the pain you were going through. I knew the story of the people who let you down so bad that you used to weep on my shoulder,” Shekhar Kapur, who was supposed to direct Rajput in a film that was eventually shelved, wrote in a tweet on Monday.

    Legendary actor Dharmendra, while expressing his condolences said: “This beautiful beloved ‘show business’ is very cruel.”

    Raveena Tandon also voiced similar views.

    Meanwhile, actress Swara Bhasker called accusations against Bollywood personalities “the height of idiocy.”

    Sonam Kapoor also had a similar stance.

    Veteran actor Saif Ali Khan too, became part of the conversation as he showed distaste towards the hypocrisy the film industry is indulging in, soon after Singh’s demise.

    “Out of respect for him, for Sushant’s tragedy, maybe a day of silence or introspection would be a little more becoming than this outpouring of love – an outpouring of love from people who obviously didn’t care about him and people who famously don’t care about anybody else,” he stated.

    “We don’t care about anybody. You know, it’s a very cutthroat line of work. But to pretend that you do care is like the ultimate hypocrisy and I think that’s an insult to the dead, you know, it’s an insult to the soul that’s gone.”

    He went on to say, “Nobody really cares in this town. So to pretend they really care is, you know, it’s a little much for me, it’s a little much to digest. They’re really coming across as the most ‘feeling’ people because they want their fans to think that they’re the most, feeling people – but that’s just untrue! Just for Sushant’s memory, there should be some dignity. If nothing else, you should just create some silence. I don’t think this is the time to comment.”