Queen of morning shows Nida Yasir celebrated her birthday on a bright Sunday afternoon at The Forest in Karachi.
All of Nida and husband Yasir Nawaz’s friends including Bushra Ansari, Javed Sheikh, Zeba Bakhtiar, Humayun Saeed, Adnan Siddiqui, Iqra Aziz, Yasir Hussain and Faysal Quraishi were present on the occasion.
Check out pictures and videos from the star-studded party below:
Just a few weeks before COVID-19 forced a lockdown across the country, noted actor and producer Yasir Nawaz opened a new restaurant TheForest in the heart of Clifton, Karachi. Though I was unable to visit the place when it first opened its doors, post-lockdown I decided to check it out after hearing some rave reviews about it from friends and colleagues.
The first thing that strikes you when you enter the restaurant is the huge mural of a lion on one wall. The painting instantly brightens up the mood. There are huge trees all around, which give the place a very rustic look and give the impression of a campsite in the middle of a forest. The outdoor and open-air setting of the restaurant is great in these COVID times and I can see myself spending winter nights with my family here. Once the weather is better, it’ll be a fantastic place for a night out or just to simply hang out.
Though Yasir, in one of his interviews said that the menu will mostly focus on desi cuisine, there is something for everybody. From karahis and BBQ to Chinese and burgers, TheForest’s menu has it all. In fact, I have to add here that it is a bit of a task to choose the dishes given the variety.
From the starters, we ordered The Forest Platter and it was simply yum. The platter included stuffed chicken, wings, pakora bites and two dips. Everything in the platter was brilliant and cooked to perfection.
The Forest Platter
For our main course, we decided to go desi and ordered a BBQ Platter, Mutton Handi and Chicken Handi. Out of them, the chicken handi was definitely my favourite. The chicken was very tender and the dish had the perfect blend of spices. The Mutton Handi was also good and spicy but the Chicken Handi won my tastebuds.
On the other hand, the BBQ Platter took my breath away with its size. The platter was huge and was good enough for six to seven people. It included grilled fish, chicken malai boti, seekh kabab, BBQ Prawns as well as rice and naan among other things. Each item on this platter was succulent and well-cooked, with just the right amount of spices and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
BBQ Platter
We ended our meal with a creamy and very satisfying kulfi which hit all the right spots for the perfect sweet ending.
Yasir told me that he took six months to set up the restaurant and I have to say that his hard work shone through. From the ambience to the food, everything was well-thought-out and polished till it was perfect. The hosts were very graceful towards their guests and ensured that no one left dissatisfied, which was probably another reason why I thoroughly enjoyed my visit. If you’re looking to spend a nice, relaxed evening with your family or friends, I’d highly recommend TheForest.
If there is one thing we know about the Khan twins is that they like to go big. And that is exactly what Aiman Khan did on her baby’s first birthday. Aiman and husband Muneeb Butt threw a big, fruity-themed birthday bash for their bundle of joy and the fun, colourful pictures from the event gave us a heavy dose of FOMO.
Check out all the pictures from the birthday party:
We don’t blame Khala Minal Khan for wanting to squish those cheeks
Aiman and Muneeb friends from the industry including Sarah Khan, Falak Shabir, Nida Yasir, Momal Sheikh and Yasir Hussain were also part of the celebrations.
Nida Yasir is without a doubt controversy’s favourite child. Her morning show has sparked more controversies than you can count and the host appears to have found herself in hot water once again after she invited the family of four-year-old Marwah, who was brutally gang-raped and murdered, on her show and questioned them about the mortifying incident. Several viewers thought that Nida was insensitive in her questioning and forced the victim’s family to relive the horror. They then took to social media to express their distaste and outrage over the matter. As the clips from the show began to circulate on social media, users started calling for a boycott of Nida and her show and demanded PEMRA to take notice.
#BanNidaYasirShow this lady is sick totally sick. For the sake of rating she’s asking such dumb and harsh questions first of all they should not be called INSAF IDAR MILNA OR RULANY K LYE BULA LO. https://t.co/QG0jbDfGlL
Following the outrage, Nida posted an apology video in which she responded to the backlash and explained what went on behind the scenes.
“I’ve heard a few people are upset with me over the questions I asked Marwah’s family”, said Nida.
“First of all I’d like to apologise,” said the morning show host. “If I unconsciously hurt anyone’s intentions with my words and the questions I asked Marwah’s parents.”
Nida then went onto say that her shows are planned a week in advance and that her only goal is to make sure that her viewers are entertained with her show.
She then revealed that her team did not approach Marwah’s family, but the victim’s family approached the show because they wanted media coverage and attention. She said that she cancelled whatever she had planned for the day and decided to invite them to her show.
“God is witness”, said Nida. “I did not do this for TRPs. Ours is an entertainment show, not a news show. We get ratings and TRPs on shows which have excitement in them. Such shows are depressing, even I get depressed doing them.”
“But Marwah’s needed my support at this point and I considered it my duty to invite them to my show. And you will not believe it but two days after my show, Marwah’s rapist was caught. Her family is very grateful to me. They are poor people and were in a dire state before they got some financial support because of our show,” shared Nida.
Almost close to tears, Nida further said: “I cannot return Marwah to them, but they only felt relieved once the rapist was caught.”
“In any case, I would like to apologise again if I hurt anyone. I am also a human being. I also got shocked at the revelations,” she continued.
“Please forgive me, I am a human being after all. And I hope that I will be me more careful in the future,” pleaded the host.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CFO5ilJBruU/
Later, when a social media user commented that Nida did not let “the poor mother grief for her child properly”, Nida said the lady on the show was not Marwah’s mother and urged everyone to watch the complete show before passing any judgement. It is pertinent to mention here that the lady in question was Marwah’s grandmother.
Four-year-old Marwah, a resident of Karachi, had gone to a shop on the morning of September 4 when she went missing. Two days later, her body was found from a garbage collection point in the locality. As per the latest reports, an anti-terrorism court in Karachi has remanded three suspects in police custody. The investigating officer told the court that during the course of the investigation and as per statements of witnesses, it was discovered that the minor girl was subjected to sexual assault. One of the suspects has also reportedly confessed to his crime and revealed that the minor girl died after being gang-raped.
There is never a dull day with Pakistani celebrities around because someone ends up passing a problematic statement. And the irony is that most of these statements are passed on Nida Yasir’s morning show Good Morning Pakistan.
The latest to come in the line of fire is newlyweds Hina Altaf and Agha Ali. In a video clip going viral on social media, Hina and Agha shared that at the time of their marriage, the only promise that Agha took from Hina was that she will never get fat or gain weight. The clip is from an Eid Special Show (1:15:07 onwards) of Yasir’s Good Morning Pakistan in which Hina and Altaf appeared for the first time as a married couple.
While talking to the host, Agha and Hina were sharing snippets about their married life, when the topic moved towards food and gymming. When the two shared that they are both foodies, Nida asked if they have a tendency to gain weight.
In response, Agha said: “At the time of our wedding, I only took one promise from Hina.”
“Please moti mat hona (Don’t gain weight),” chimed in Hina while laughing. She added that whenever she is eating and Agha walks by, he remarks, “Bas eik hee wada liya tha (I only took one promise).”
Hina joked that she took the same promise because it is a difficult one to fulfill. The trio then discussed how Agha is looking slimmer and that Hina will soon work on losing weight.
Soon after the clip went viral, social media users called out the couple for promoting fatphobia and unrealistic beauty standards. They also criticised the actors of being “tone-deaf” and passing problematic statements.
Agha Ali needs to shut up and learn that body shaming is disgusting. Also Hina needs to stop laughing at this sickness https://t.co/dwjiT5P0u0
HAHAHAHAHA soooo funny!! such a shweeetooos look how fatphobic we are allah ji KUCH nahi chahiye sawai total dictatorial control over your size & appearance babyyyy wah https://t.co/q0vXDul6GY
of course men would find nothing wrong with this.. because deep down they all want women to adhere to unrealistic beauty standards https://t.co/GAVaAmojiU
I feel disgusted that even to this date, there are men telling women to reduce their waistline is what will make them perfect and the women not dumping them THAT exact moment? Imagine spending your life under constant scrutiny of your body and what you eat?That’s emotional abuse
Mehwish Hayat has become the latest celebrity to fall victim to COVID-19 misinformation after an entertainment portal reported that the actor has tested positive for COVID-19.
Mehwish was quick to deny the report and slammed the outlet for spreading fake news for “likes” and “followers”.
“This has caused a great deal of distress to family and friends,” remarked the actor.
She also asked the media outlet to take down the “fake news” immediately.
Meanwhile, celebrities who tested positive for COVID-19 include Rubina Ashraf, Nida Yasir, Yasir Nawaz, Alizeh Shah, Sakina Samo, Abrar ul Haq and Naveed Raza.
The couple shared that they are doing well and are overwhelmed with the love and good wishes they have received in the past few days.
“Thanks to Allah, we are doing well,” said Yasir.
“We will always remember our 18th wedding anniversary because at this point we have spent thirteen full days together and have not had a single fight during this period,” laughed Yasir.
Nida also shared that in these twelve to thirteen days of quarantine, she has been binge-watching Diriliş: Ertuğrul and thoroughly enjoyed the series.
“My quarantine partner was actually Ertuğrul,” shared Nida.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CA7s-CgA3_P/
Nida and Yasir also shared a video from their quarantine anniversary celebrations.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CA7vMREB92B/
Meanwhile, Nida also requested their fans to pray for their good health.
Pakistan’s number one morning show host Nida Yasir is anything but shy. She is full of energy, spunk and sass and is loved by millions of viewers across the world.
While Nida loves her audiences and is always willing to interact with them, in an exclusive interview with The Current revealed that she doesn’t allow male fans to take selfies with her.
When asked what is the worst thing about hosting a morning show, Nida, “You’re not left with any privacy. No matter where you go, to the bazaar or anywhere – I like to meet them [my fans] – but when I’m out with my guests and they have to stop and wait while I click pictures with my fans, I don’t like that,” adding that she can’t even say no.
Nida then shared that she never gets photographed by her male fans.
“It’s a rule,” she said. “The reason is because I have seen photographs of a lot of actresses on random pages with captions. They [other actresses] must’ve posed considering them their fans but the captions on Facebook etc say ‘Meet my friend, [XYZ].’”
“I don’t judge anyone ever since, but I’ll get photographed with families, with female friends, but not with male fans,” she remarked.
Looks like launching your own clothing brand is the new fad in town.
Following the Hocane sisters, Urwa and Mawra, and the Khan twins, Aiman and Minal, popular morning show host Nida Yasir is launching her own clothing line.
Nida teased her fans with a short video of her latest venture Nida Yasir Collection. Though the collection can be anything, the threads at the beginning of the video hint towards a clothing collection.
