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  • Court dismisses petition against ‘Meray Paas Tum Ho’

    Court dismisses petition against ‘Meray Paas Tum Ho’

    Blockbuster drama serial Meray Pass Tum Ho continues to create a buzz nationwide. While some viewers anxiously are waiting for the last episode, others hate what the drama portrays.

    Recently, a petition was filed in Lahore’s civil court to stop the last episode of the drama from being aired. The petitioner, Maham, had filed a plea to stop the release of the last episode because it has had a negative impact and continues to degrade the status of women in our society.

    The civil court, after hearing the arguments of the petitioner had issued a notice to the makers and producers of the show to present their arguments in court on January 24, 2020.

    However, the court on Friday after examining statements and documents from representatives of the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Auhtority (PEMRA) and ARY Digtal, Civil Judge Naila Ayub dismissed the petition and said that show had received clearance from the censor board of Punjab to screen in cinemas so there was nothing inappropriate in it.

    The last episode of Meray Pass Tum Ho, which starres Humayun Saeed, Adnan Siddiqui, Ayeza Khan and Hira Mani  is set to air in cinemas and on TV screens at 8pm on January 25, 2020.

  • VIDEO: PML-N’s Azma Bokhari hits back, tries to find atta at stores; PTI files lawsuit

    VIDEO: PML-N’s Azma Bokhari hits back, tries to find atta at stores; PTI files lawsuit

    The PML-N Azma Bokhari vs. Punjab Food Authority Chairman Umar Tanveer continues as Azma searches stores for the atta promised by PTI. The two had a big argument on a talk show which led to Umar dropping off bags of atta outside Azma’s house. Azma and Umar sparred once more on talk shows after the event, with Azma saying that PTI was trying to harass her and Umar saying that Azma lied and tried to malign PTI by saying atta was not available in stores.

    Umar Tanveer filed a defamation suit against Azma, saying that she had made false allegations against him in a talk show, alleging that he had given and taken bribes for political gains. He has filed a 10 crore law suit against her.

    The legal notice to Azma
    Umar Tanveer is askign for 100 million rupees in damages

    Meanwhile Azma visited stores, asking shopkeepers if they had any atta.

    WATCH THE VIDEO HERE:

    Azma Bokhari at stores asking for atta
  • Damning bans

    Damning bans

    “Creativity takes courage” – Henri Matisse

    Matisse wasn’t wrong. When filmmaker Sarmad Khoosat released the first trailer of his upcoming movie, ‘Zindagi Tamasha’, it created quite a buzz. The movie was supposed to release today (January 24) across Pakistan. It has already won the Kim Ji Seok Award at Busan International Film Festival. Film critics and the public at large were waiting for its release as Sarmad is known to be quite creative and the movie looked promising enough. Just like other governments, this government too promised the revival of Pakistani cinema. Sarmad Khoosat’s ‘Zindagi Tamasha’ seemed like a step in the right direction.

    But what happened when religious hardliner Tehreeke Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) threatened to hold protests against the movie just because the protagonist was a bearded man who is shunned by society after a video of him dancing at a wedding goes viral? The Pakistani state caved in to pressure, again.

    A film that was passed by three censor boards cannot be released now because the state fears the religious pressure group. The federal government has decided to block its release and has asked the Council of Islamic Ideology (CII) to critically review it. The Punjab government will review it on February 3 and a TLP representative will be in the review committee. The Sindh Censor Board halted its release citing the reason that it “may create unrest within religious quarters and may deteriorate and be detrimental to the peaceful circumstances in the country”.

    There is nothing outrageous or anti-Islam in the movie. Busting the myths about the movie, Mohammed Hanif writes for Samaa, “The only taboo the film breaks is showing a man with a beard doing house chores. It humanises a religious man.”

    Sarmad wrote two beautiful and heartfelt open letters – one was addressed to the president, prime minister, chief justice, army chief and information minister, while the other was for Pakistan and Pakistanis. He ended his first letter with these poignant words, “The space for rational and artistic thinking and expression must not be annexed by a few troublemakers for their political ends, but I fear this is what will happen if we buckle under this time.”

    We are barring the release of a movie that promises to be creative and critical while being sensitive and responsible at the same time. Why do we then complain about misogyny on our television screens if we will not allow films like ‘Zindagi Tamasha’ to be screened in our cinemas? Films that make us think, films that break stereotypes, films that make us question the dark side of our society; films that celebrate the beauty of our nation.

    There already are curbs on freedom of expression in Pakistan these days. Copies of the Urdu translation of Hanif’s ‘A Case of Exploding Mangoes’ were confiscated after threats to the publisher. The Punjab Assembly has recommended banning three books on Islam as they critically evaluate historical events. When a country starts banning books and movies, it means its descent into the dark ages is almost complete. Once we complete this downward journey, there’s no coming back.

    It’s better to stop right now and celebrate critical thinking instead of banning art and creativity.

  • After Sindh, Balochistan also bans gutka

    After Sindh, Balochistan also bans gutka

    The Balochistan Food Authority has imposed a ban on gutka (chewing tobacco) consumption in the province.

    Director-General BFA Ibrahim Baloch said the consumption of gutka is a health risk and people who eat it regularly are at risk of getting mouth, tongue or throat cancer.

    “We won’t allow anyone to play with human lives,” said the DG.

    The food authority has delivered a notification to all deputy commissioners, asking them to take action against those who produce and sell gutka, along with the customers. 

    Sindh has already imposed a ban on eating and selling gutka on December 19, 2019. According to the law, chewing of gutka can lead to imprisonment for six years and a fine of Rs500,000 will be imposed on violators.

  • ‘Intimate photos of Jeff Bezos, Laura Sanchez were leaked by her brother’

    ‘Intimate photos of Jeff Bezos, Laura Sanchez were leaked by her brother’

    Intimate photos of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and his girlfriend, American news anchor Lauren Sanchez, were leaked by the latter’s brother, The New York Times (NYT) has reported.

    According to reports, Michael Sanchez released the images to National Enquirer — an American tabloid newspaper — which was reported by NYT after the publication accessed the four unnamed sources and a written contract between Michael and American Media Inc — parent company of The Enquirer.

    The Enquirer had long ago claimed that the source of the picture was Michael Sanchez, but the paradigm shifted when Bezos’ forensic team accused Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman (MBS) for hacking his cellphone. 

    In reaction to The Guardian’s report, the Saudi Embassy in Washington DC and AMI had, however, denied the involvement of the Saudi crown prince.

    Earlier, the pictures in question had also become the reason behind Bezos’ divorce. Things are still not very clear as different media outlets are making varying claims.

  • Satirical headline comes true as PM tells ministers ‘to fix things by not watching news’

    Satirical headline comes true as PM tells ministers ‘to fix things by not watching news’

    A satirical headline from five years ago has come true as Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan has told members of his government to “quit following news in order to fix things”, author of the satirical tweet pointed out on Friday.

    “To avoid getting depressed, [party] workers should shut their cameras, stay away from television screens, turn their mobile phones off and go to sleep after popping some pills,” Broken News — a “parody news channel” — had quoted then opposition member Imran as saying in 2015.

    While it was nothing but a satirical headline back then, the same statement, five years later, has made its way to newspapers after the premier actually said something quite similar.

    Speaking at a breakfast session aimed at showcasing his vision for Pakistan and its economic potential before the global business leaders as well as overseas Pakistanis in Davos, PM Imran said he had stopped reading morning newspapers and watching evening talk-shows due to extreme negativity targeted at him in the media.

    WATCH VIDEO:

    “I’m trying to make my team understand this. The problem is that they watch the chat shows and they come… sitting there shell-shocked in cabinet meetings,” said the premier, who was in the Swiss town to attend the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF).

    The similarity was pointed out by the author of the satirical tweet:

    Meanwhile, PM Imran has returned to the country from Davos where he attended different ceremonies and met key world leaders, including United States (US) President Donald Trump.

  • Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy rubs shoulders with Deepika Padukone at Davos

    Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy rubs shoulders with Deepika Padukone at Davos

    Pakistan’s resident Oscar-winner Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy recently met and had a lovely conversation on artists and their moral responsibility with Deepika Padukone.

    The award-winning filmmaker shared a picture of herself with Deepika from Davos, calling the actor a hero.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/B7sNhGiB3a9/

    While details of their meeting are still unknown, it is likely that the two met at TIME Magazine’s Mental Health Luncheon: A Blueprint for Solving the Youth Mental Health Crisis. Sharmeen had thanked TIME in her caption.

    According to the publication, “The event [luncheon] will convene some of the world’s most prominent experts and leaders. The event will feature a keynote interview with internationally-acclaimed actor and mental health advocate Deepika Padukone, who TIME named to the TIME 100 list of the most influential people in the world in 2018″.

    Deepika also received the esteemed Crystal Award at Davos this year for her work on spreading awareness about mental health.

    Read more – Deepika Padukone delivers heartening speech on mental health at Davos

    Deepika’s Chappak is based on the true story of an acid attack survivor Laxmi Agarwal. The film sheds light on the plight of the survivor and her journey towards her healing and growth. Sharmeen’s documentary Saving Face was also based on the same lines.

    A few days prior to meeting Deepika, Sharmeen also met George Clooney with whom she discussed film and activism. We’re not sure if the two met at Davos or elsewhere.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/B7csZIlBSmJ/
  • Weekend events in your city

    Weekend events in your city

    Lahore

    Gur Mela

    Date: 26 Jan, Sunday

    Time: 10 AM – 5 PM

    Venue: Meadows Aqua & Safari Resort, 2 KM Khudpur Road , 27 KM Mulatan Road Maraka Stop , Near Behria Town.

    Qawali Night

    Date: 25 Jan, Saturday

    Time: 9 PM – 1:11 AM

    Venue: Pind Restaurant Iqbal Town26 Gulshan Block Dubai Chowk , Allama Iqbal Town.

    Islamabad

    Millennial Food Fest

    Date: 25th Jan, Saturday.

    Time:  9 AM – 4 PM

    Venue: RMS Greenwich Campus, G-13 Islamabad, Road No. 589, Opposite Sector G-13.

    Live Screening of Meray Pass Tum ho

    Date: 25 Jan, Saturday.

    Time: 7 PM – 10:30 PM

    Venue: Am Pm Cafe, Shop.no.20, Zaki Center, I-8 Markaz.

    Karachi

    Soul Fest

    Date and Time: Jan 24 at 1 PM – Jan 26 at 11 PM.

    Venue: Shaheed Benazir Bhutto Park Clifton, Boat Basin.

    Nunhey Wakeel: A Storytelling Session on Child Rights

    Date: 25Jan, Saturday.

    Time: 2 PM – 3 PM

    Venue: British Council Karachi.

  • ‘Enough is enough,’ Chohan tells Fawad over Buzdar criticism

    ‘Enough is enough,’ Chohan tells Fawad over Buzdar criticism

    Training guns at Federal Minister for Science & Technology Fawad Chaudhry, Punjab Information Minister Fayazul Hasan Chohan has questioned the former’s own performance in response to his criticism aimed at Punjab Chief Minister (CM) Usman Buzdar.

    According to Geo, Fayaz has accused Fawad of trying to remain relevant with his stunts and said he had “crossed all limits” when it came to violating the party’s discipline.

    “You should think about how to benefit the ship that you’re on,” said Chohan. “It is not his [Fawad] prerogative to give opinions on whether CM Buzdar should stay or go,” he said when asked to comment on Fawad’s statements, while speaking to a private media outlet.

    The provincial minister said only Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan had the prerogative to decide whether Buzdar should remain as Punjab’s chief executive or not and added that the premier, the entire cabinet and treasury benches were satisfied with Buzdar’s performance “100 per cent”.

    “I can give him befitting, beautiful replies in my style,” said Chohan. “However, I am bound by my disciplined attitude not to do so. I would request him that excess of everything is bad.”

    The information minister expressed disappointment that Fawad had still not learned how to talk about people from his party or government, adding that he was like a brother to him. “However, this has been his problem and he will never change.”

    “It is his habit to try to become a hero. He tries to issue a statement every month or so to become a hero in front of the media,” he added. 

    Chohan advised Fawad to play his part as the federal minister of science and technology to ensure Pakistan became a force to be reckoned with in space. “I request you to prepare a Ghauri II or a Ghauri III for space. Leave the clerics and Usman Buzdar alone,” he added.

  • Cloud kitchen startups make Indian housewives major economic force

    Cloud kitchen startups make Indian housewives major economic force

    At a time when South Asian women long to demand their basic rights in the face of hardships such as a convincing their families for proper access to education and the world for better employment opportunities, it appears that technology has transmuted their dreams into a reality.

    In India, new smartphone apps like Curryful, Homefoodi and Nanighar are tapping the skills of housewives to prepare meals for hungry urbanites and millennials who cannot manage both office and domestic work simultaneously.

    These cloud kitchen restaurants have no physical presence but they deliver delicious home-cooked food right at your doorstep.

    “Housewives were a huge untapped resource and we want to be the Uber of home-cooked food,” said Ben Mathew, who launched Curryful in 2018.

    His company has five people for the app’s daily maintenance and operations, who work with 52 women and three men. This 31-year-old web entrepreneur hopes to get one million women chefs on board by 2022.

    Here is an interesting drill that they do, they usually train employees in processes of sanitisation, cooking, prep time and packaging, and then launch them on the platform.

    With India’s cloud kitchen sector expected to reach $1.05 billion by 2023, according to data platform Inc42, other companies are also keen to get a slice of the action.