Shamsher Is Not A Hero: Glamorizing The Misogny And Abuse

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September 26, 2022

There has been a wave of Pakistani dramas with problematic male leads for a few years now. Through romantic dialogues and compelling visuals, they disguise toxic masculinity as love and possessiveness. It is not uncommon for the male leads of many dramas, which are often deemed as “romances”, to display misogynistic mindsets, socio-economic privilege, and aggressive behaviour. Drama serials of this nature only strengthen our society’s misogynistic tendencies by romanticizing men’s evil acts. Therefore, even though there has always been violence against women in society, justification for this violence through dramas is quite concerning.

Yet another drama ‘Kaisi Teri Khudgarzi’, whose first episode was released on May 2022, very elusively depicts a toxic love story once again making the audience question why the content promotes the same prejudiced mindset and lacks fresh content. You’d be hard-pressed not to think of Danish Taimoor when you consider a negative male lead on screen. This time, you can see his toxic obsession in his drama, ‘Kaisi Teri Khudgarzi’. Scripted by Radain Shah and directed by Ahmed Bhatti, featuring Danish Taimoor and Durefishan Saleem in the lead roles, this drama depicts a toxic love story that so far offers nothing but the mind-numbing glorification of abuse, a show of power disguised as love.

It Continues The Legacy of Toxic Masculinity

The plot revolves around Shamsher (Taimoor) and Mehak (Dur e Fishan Saleem). The series portrays a romanticized image of Shamsher as a love-struck spoiled brat who cannot handle rejection. As a result, he feels entitled to receive it from Mehak (Saleem) since his obsession with a woman surpasses all else. It is evident that Shamsher is a thoroughly obsessed young man. Once he has set his sights on Mehak, the discussion has no meaning – the fact that she is engaged, and her father’s opinion cannot be taken into account. Shamsher can intimidate and threaten his way through anything to get what he wants – and that’s Mehak, even abducting her fiancé on the day of their wedding.

In the last decade, the toxic male trope has become increasingly prevalent in our narratives of love stories and romance. And if this isn’t what toxic masculinity is then what is? Living in a country where cases like harassment, domestic abuse, and forced marriages happen now and then, it seems naïve and vague to show the same type of content. To show that males are dominant and cherry on the top, if they have wealth and power, then they can be as much cohesive as they wish to be, and there is nothing an individual can do about it. Promoting these types of characters and this type of charisma is surely not one will be looking forward to watching and consuming into their mind.

Violence And Abuse

From her very first scene in ‘Kaisi Teri Khudgarzi’, Mehek is portrayed as an innocent young girl, who is unable to defend herself. She is ‘weak’ enough to be manipulated. Additionally to this drama, every other script portrays women as insignificant creatures, who are powerless over their actions and circumstances because they are suppressed by the male power hierarchy. And that gives a fair chance to the team to simultaneously glorify violence and abuse in terms of love. For example upon learning that Mehek is alive; Shamsher attacks a rickshaw driver and puts a gun on a college guard, giving the impression that he is a psychopath. His aggressive behaviour towards Mehek is a result of her trying to flee for him. This portrayed that Shamsher had so much power and as a result of his violent and abusive behaviour and the fear of what could be done more; Mehak was obliged to marry him.

The content audience is grasping from here is that if you be like Shamsher, you can get things done. And this is surely what is not needed at this time of the hour. These dramas glorify abuse and harassment, which gives people more leeway to act like Shamsher if they fall in love, or even throughout any matter of their life.

The Justification

What makes Shamsher’s character more problematic is his change in behaviour. In the last episode, the makers show that after he practically hounds this woman to marry him, suddenly he has so much restraint and ‘honour’, that he won’t touch her without her consent. Even though this may seem absurd and vague, the producers and writers of the drama have used this to justify Shamsher’s actions, giving the audience the impression that Shamsher’s obsession with Mehak was not toxicity but undying love for her, and once he had her by his side, he turned into this loving and gentle soul who would cause any trouble to her or her honour.

Conclusion

In the patriarchal society in which we live, men already hold power and women are limited to their roles in society. Harassment, abuse, toxic masculinity, the justification of being cohesive when you have wealth, and the power of manipulation are all these attributes that are made more desirable and glamorized by exploiting the concept of love. There is an urgent need to come up with meaningful content and stop representing the ‘hero’ as some man with wealth, power and everything under his control.

Here’s Everything That Happened At The 8th HUM Awards

By

Warshma Chughtai

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September 26, 2022

The celebrities have taken over Toronto and the fans are enjoying the plethora of content on social media. Several fun-filled reels, energetic dance rehearsal videos and controversy later, the 8th HUM Awards took place this weekend in Canada. Many actors, musicians, drama makers and creative names from the Pakistani entertainment industry came together to celebrate and appreciate the dramas of the past few years. The nominations included all the dramas from the previous and current years since it was the first HUM Awards after the pandemic.

From entertaining hosting to iconic performances, the evening was full of our favourite stars. Therefore, we are giving you all the exciting highlights of the Kashmir 8th HUM Awards.

Red Carpet

It began with a star-filled red carpet with masses of fans gathered to see their favourite celebrities and take pictures with them. The red carpet also had a donation drive for Pakistan’s flood-affected areas where attendees could simply donate by scanning a particular QR code on their phones.

Hosting

The evening began with an audience of over 12,000 rising for Pakistani and Canadian national anthems, following a hilarious opening act by actors Ali Rehman Khan and Yasir Hussain. This was followed by the President of HUM TV Network, Sultana Siddiqui and CEO Duraid Qureshi, coming on stage and talking about the network’s consistent efforts towards organizing an event of this scale internationally and how it helps improve Pakistan’s global image.

Actors on the stage during the Nation Anthem

The entertainment continued with the hosting of Ahsan Khan, Hareem Farooq, Ushna Shah, Bilal Ashraf and Aymen Saleem. Also, in between, Ahmed Ali Butt’s hysterical comical segment left the audience in fits.

Performances

This wasn’t all. The event was full of performances from the biggest names in the acting and music industry. Mahira Khan returned to the stage once more with her iconic songs and performed with her ‘Superstar’ co-star Bilal Ashraf.

Everyone’s current favourite on-screen couple, Farhan Saeed and Hania Amir set the stage on fire with an energetic performance on several dancing tracks, including the original ‘Nach Punjaban’ by Abrar-ul-Haq and Hania’s movie ‘Parde Mein Rehne Do’ song ‘Peela Rang’.

Megastar Atif Aslam brought his charismatic energy to the stage in a dapper look. He sang his recent released songs; ‘Rangreza’, ‘Rafta Rafta’ and ‘Ajnabi’ and the OST he sang for his television debut HUM TV drama ‘Sang-e-Mah’. The mellifluous performance got the entire audience grooving.

Another soulful musical act was by Azaan Sami Khan, who sang some of his famous songs while playing guitar and piano. The songs included the OST of his show ‘Ishq-e-Laa’ and one of his last releases ‘Ibadat’.

Urwa Hocane and Zara Noor Abbas Siddiqui added a classical element to the evening with their alluring performance. They both danced to some old songs and the latter’s movie ‘Parey Hut Love’ song ‘Ik Pal Nahi Jana’.

Winners

The winners of the star-studded event were:

Best Actor Male Popular – Ahmed Ali Akbar (Parizaad)
Best Actor Female Popular– Ayeza Khan (Chupke Chupke)
Best Actor Male Jury – Ahmed Ali Akbar (Parizaad)
Best Actor Female Jury – Iqra Aziz (Raqeeb Se)

Best Drama Jury – Parizaad
Best Drama Popular – Parizaad
Best Director – Shahzad Kashmiri (Parizaad)
Best Writer – Hashim Nadeem (Parizaad)

Best Supporting Actor Male – Adeel Afzal (Parizaad)
Best Supporting Actor Female – Saboor Aly (Parizaad)

Best Actor In A Negative Role – Ahsan Khan (Qissa Meherbano Ka) and Shahzad Sheikh (Phaans)

Best On-Screen Couple Popular – Osman Khalid Butt and Ayeza Khan (Chupke Chupke)
Best On-Screen Couple Jury – Osman Khalid Butt and Ayeza Khan (Chupke Chupke)

Best OST – Parizaad

Best Soap – Wafa Be Mol
Best 9 PM Slot – Yaar Na Bichray

Best New Sensation Male – Zaviyar Nouman Ijaz, Momin Saqib and Arsalan Naseer
Best New Sensation Female – Aymen Saleem and Hadiqa Kiani

Most Impactful Character – Sania Saeed (Raqeeb Se)

Performance Award Drama 2019 – Ranjha Ranjha Kardi
Performance Award Drama 2020 – Ehd e Wafa

Special Award Kashmir Plate – Bushra Ansari

Atif Aslam Talks About His Experience In India

By

Azmaray Tamim Aulia

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September 24, 2022

Superstar Atif Aslam is applauded for his legendary music by many around the globe. His music is a phenomenon which has created waves in many countries over the years, especially Pakistan and India. Even though he began his career in Pakistan, creating music for India gave him a different hype. He is widely recognised for his several hit songs such as ‘Pehli Nazar Mein’, ‘Tera Hone Laga Hoon’, ‘Tu Jaane Na’ and many others. He has no doubt taken Pakistani pop music to a completely new level.

Experience in India

The singer spoke about his experience in India in the recent episode of ‘Super Over with Ahmed Ali Butt’. He proclaimed his experience as enjoyable, saying: “I had fun working there and representing my country.”

He further added: “To this day, there is some sort of acknowledgement about my work in India on Twitter or an artist from there puts up a status”, to which the host Ahmed Ali Butt added that Arijit Singh also appreciation Atif’s work in his concert. Atif agreed and said: “He really likes my music and I have heard that he also sings some of my songs on stage.”

Atif also spoke up about Indian singer Palash Sen’s tweet in which he said: “According to me, the one singer-musician who has made the maximum impact on Bollywood’s music and most singers over the last 15 years, is this man. The awesome Atif Aslam. I say this with a lot of humility.”

The host further asked Atif how Bollywood has contributed to making him and Rahat Fateh Ali Khan megastars, to which the singer replied that he would first credit it to Pakistan since his album was first released in Pakistan and became a hit, after which Indian producer Mahesh Butt called him to work in India. He added: “Of course, they have a bigger reach. They marketed it really well. For instance, if someone’s hearing my music in Fiji then it’ll be because of Bollywood because they have a bigger reach.”

Rift with Asha Bhosle

Towards the end of the episode, Ahmed Ali Butt questioned ‘Woh Lamhe’ singer about his dispute with legendary singer Asha Bhosle, to which the artist replied: “I had a rift with her in the start because of the show which we were part of. It was not a very friendly relationship and it went on, for some time. However, her daughter was my fan which is why she called me and told me that my daughter asked me why I have issues with such a handsome man and that if she likes him can’t I like him as well? After that statement, I have forgotten everything and forgive you for everything you said, it was so big of her that it won my heart.”

Replying to the question asked by the host if the rifts were scripted or real, Atif Aslam revealed that all of it was real and that the show had to stop recording in between for four to five hours due to these issues. However, they would continue recording after many requests of the producers and directors.

‘Meri Shehzadi’ Review: Unique Storyline Presents A Princess Diana Rendition

By

Subaiqa Sarfaraz

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September 23, 2022

It can be seen that Pakistani television dramas have been trying to evolve by taking new heights with the type of content which is less generic and vague, and more on the topics that matter other than repetitive stories. The newly released drama, ‘Meri Shehzadi’ is a breath of fresh air amongst these challenging times and is inspired by Diana, Princess of Wales, a member of the Royal family, whose personality was an ideal example of empowerment.

‘Meri Shehzadi’ is penned by Zanjabeel Asim Shah, whose well-known dramas ‘Pyaar ke Sadqay’ and ‘Cheekh’ were a social sensation amongst the audience. Under the banner of Momina Duraid Production, the serial is directed by ‘Mere Humsafar’’s director, Qasim Ali Mureed. According to HUM TV’s YouTube description, “‘Meri Shehzadi’ is the story of Dania raised by her grandfather – a dedicated admirer of monarchies, who treats his granddaughter like a princess. Will Dania also face the same trials, tribulations and difficulties that come with a life of royalty?”

The Story And The Cast

The serial is said to have all the glimpses of love, anguish and tragedy. The drama beautifully captures the reminiscence of Lady Diana in of the main characters, Dania (Urwa Hocane) from her growing years to when the tragedy struck in the house of royalty. And this seems effortlessly portrayed by ‘Udaari’ actress Urwa Hocane. It also features Ali Rehman Khan as Shahroze, Muhammad Qavi Khan, Atiqa Odho, Shamim Hilaly, Shabbir Jan, Nauman Masood and Najiba Faiz.

An Emotional Start

The first episode gives us a little background on the character of Dania ad her surroundings. The scene begins with Qavi Khan who has played the role of Dania’s grandfather, depicting the first-person narration to the audience about the day he lost his daughter, Dania’s mother, he was blessed with Dania. She is treated as a “shehzadi” by her grandparents because of the love and adoration they both hold for her. While talking about the drama during its pre-release phase Urwa said in an interview: “It’s about time that we need to portray strong female figures and ‘Meri Shehzadi‘ is filled with these messages, where the viewers will learn along the way.”

The Conflict

The episode was short, crisp instead of being dragged and gives a quite clear idea of what is going around, for instance, the conflict between Diana and her father and the tension and clash in the two sides of the family. Towards the end, the character of Shehroze (Ali Rahman), the other lead cast, was also introduced as the situation turns to worsen for Dania, which really upsets her grandparents. He seems more of an antagonist but we have to wait for more episodes to see that. In a nutshell, the whole episode throughout was not messed up but rather a constructive one taking the storyline in a single loop, and establishing the main gist of the serial.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the serial has set high hopes. The audience will get to view some meaningful and different storylines than the traditional content. It’ll be interesting to see how Dania’s life is to change and how she will face the trials that come along her way.

Here’s Why Audiences Bashing HUM Awards Isn’t Really Justified

By

Kasim Bilal

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September 23, 2022

Misinformation on the internet might be one of the biggest setbacks of this new age of social media. People never seem to fact-check anything they put out, and those on the receiving end don’t bother either. Speaking from a showbiz point of view, misinformation has been a huge issue even in the entertainment industry.

Celebrity scandals always come with a wave of misinformation to the public that, in many cases, is already inclined to believe the worst. A new scandal taking the rounds currently is the 8^th HUM Awards taking place in Toronto this weekend. Let’s discuss what went down and why a lot of it makes no sense.

Why The Backlash

As we all know Pakistan at the moment is suffering from one of the worst floods in its history. With thousands having lost their lives and millions losing their homes and being relegated to relief camps, it is a devastating time for the country.

In the midst of this, we saw many stories come out of the entertainment industry as well like movie star Meera doing a dance performance in New York to raise funds for those affected by the floods. One other such story sees HUM Awards at the centre of it.

HUM TV is no stranger to backlash regarding one of their events. Back in 2018, they received similar backlash for their 6^th HUM Awards that year which coincided with the General Elections of Pakistan. The masses were quick to bash them and all the celebrities that participated in the event rather than staying in the country to cast their vote.

This time it’s the 8^th HUM Awards under fire, being held in Toronto on 24^th September 2022. PPP politician Sharmila Faruqui took to Instagram and criticized the celebrities for not being there for those in need in the country while using international movie star and philanthropist Angelina Jolie as an example.

This led to audiences gunning for a boycott of the event and HUM TV as a whole, calling them insensitive and tone-deaf for having such an extravagant event when millions around the country are suffering.

Is It Justified?

While the anger is understandable, it is important that we look at the facts amidst all the noise surrounding this drama. Events as high profile as the HUM Awards are planned months in advance, from the venue to the performances and guests, everything is meticulously planned weeks before the event itself.

A similar argument was raised in defence of HUM TV back in 2018 as well. Bookings of venues of that calibre for events that are high profile cannot simply be postponed or cancelled in a matter of days. Celebrities that are set to perform have contracts in place for set performances which cannot be revoked. The date for the General Elections was announced after everything was already in motion regarding the HUM Awards.

The same is the case this time, with the tragedy only hitting a little while ago whereas the event has been planned for months in advance. Let’s also not forget that HUM TV has done a fine job tackling this issue from its own end even before this backlash ramped up.

The show from the get-go was advertised with a disclaimer that HUM will donate a portion of the earnings through ticket sales to the flood victims. HUM has done its part in helping those in need, also hosting a live fundraiser telethon via their foundation ‘HUMdard’ that was held in Karachi in early September. Another such fundraiser event was also held in Canada prior to the Awards which was attended by numerous celebrities.

Celebs Come to The Defense

All this drama and backlash led to several celebrities coming to their own and HUM’s defence. We saw the likes of Ahmed Ali Butt who took to Instagram stories, sarcastically mocking those praising Angelina Jolie and calling out our people’s double standards or lack of fact-checking skills by pointing out how a portion of ticket sales will go to relief funds and that the event is not just some lavish party.

Mahira Khan, Ushna Shah and Haroon Shahid also joined in on this with Haroon taking to Twitter to let people know that they already are and will continue to do their part in raising awareness and doing everything they can to help those in need.

We also however saw Azfar Rehman announce via Instagram post that he has chosen to not attend the event, having withdrawn by choice.

Ushna Shah, who is also in attendance at the fundraiser event in Canada, was seen posting from the event showing millions being raised for the relief funds.

Conclusion

Despite all of HUM’s efforts, the backlash is still nowhere close to dying down. It’s rather unfortunate that in most such cases of online backlash, audiences are proven to assume the worst without any fact-checking done from their end.

That’s exactly what we are seeing here, with #BoycottHumTV still being blasted at them under every post and #BoycottHumAwards trending on Twitter. The internet is a cesspool of misinformation and vicious hate cycles and unfortunately, this is just the next one.

The efforts of celebrities and HUM TV in raising all these funds should be commended rather than condemned. At the end of the day, we pray that these funds reach those in need and we hope this cycle of unwarranted hate ends soon.

Exclusive: Shaan Shahid, Sarmad Khoosat & Khalil ur Rehman Qamar Unite For A Film

By

Warshma Chughtai

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September 22, 2022

Sarmad Khoosat, Shaan Shahid & Khalil ur Rehman

Yup, you read that right.

A collaboration like no other is all set to take place, where titans from the world of acting, writing and direction will be coming together for a film. Superstar Shaan Shahid, director Sarmad Khoosat and writer Khalil ur Rehman Qamar will be uniting forces for an upcoming untitled film.

The movie is in the final stage of scripting after which shooting will begin. Shaan will be playing the main lead, while the rest of the cast is yet to be confirmed.

It will definitely be a treat for Shaan’s fans as they wouldn’t have to wait long to see him on-screen after his upcoming release ‘Zarrar’, which will premiere on 25th November, after several delays.

Moreover, it will be interesting to watch Shaan in the upcoming project since unlike his last two movies; ‘Zarrar’ and ‘Arth’, this one will not see him don the hat of a director and actor at the same time.

Sarmad’s last directorial project ‘Kamli’, and Khalil ur Rehman’s last project ‘London Nai Jaunga’ both were released earlier this year and did well at the box office. Sarmad was also one of the producers of the International award-winning movie ‘Joyland’.

The collaboration of these three talents would create an interesting project people will highly anticipate.

Aima Baig, Shahbaz Shigri, Taloulah Mair & Qes Ahmed Fiasco Explained

By

Warshma Chughtai

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September 21, 2022

Aima Baig, Shahbaz Shigri, Taloulah Mair & Qes Ahmed

Singer Aima Baig has been trending in the news lately after British model, Taloulah Mair, accused her of cheating with her ex-boyfriend, photographer Qes Ahmed, while being engaged to actor Shahbaz Shigri.

But what exactly happened and how has she responded? We’re here to clear all your doubts.

After months of rumours, ‘Do Bol’ singer officially announced on her Instagram that she and the ‘Parey Hutt Love’ actor are no longer together, after getting engaged last year in July 2021.

When Galaxy Lollywood shared this post on social media, the model Taloulah Mair commented under the post, calling out Aima for having an affair with her boyfriend.

The Accusation

Taloulah posted on her story that her ex-boyfriend Qes had taken money from her and cheated on her multiple times including with Aima Baig. She said: “It was actually Aima Baig, the girl he was actually cheating on me with. He is actually not a very thoughtful person, but I am. So, one of the first presents I ever bought him was a personalised Zippo. That was really meaningful for me. Fast forward a few years and when he went to Dubai to meet Aima, they were staying together and she flew him out. They were having a great time and you know what was the gift he bought for her? A personalised Zippo.”

She further added: “This will get a lot more attention because this lady is quite famous in Pakistan or as Qes delicately put it while he was gloating about cheating on me, one of the most famous women in Pakistan.”

One of her followers asked her how does she know for sure that Aima was engaged at that time. As a response, she shared a screenshot of her conversation with Shahbaz. The actor had asked for further screenshots as proof.

She also shared a screenshot of Qes and Aima’s conversation as proof of her allegations.

Qes Ahmed’s Response

After Taloulah’s accusation, Qes shared his side of the story. He said: “I’ve been made aware that a woman from my past has been saying some out-of-order things about me. She’s accused me of stealing from her and is reaching out to people I know without context screenshots and false facts.”

He went on to accuse her of doing this in the past as well, blackmailing him for money and stated that she suffers from “severe mental health issues, which is extremely sad.” He concluded by saying: “I won’t stand for it. I won’t take legal action at this point until her mental health is assessed.”

After effect

The allegations had caused a stir on social media and Twitter was trending with people roasting Aima Baig.

Pakistanis to Aima baig when she'll come back from Tajkistan. pic.twitter.com/eDWRjfPuAr
— Afshan Tayyab (@QueenAfshan_) September 20, 2022

British model to aima baig: pic.twitter.com/j39vp1HfFf
— mahnoor (@ffsnoor) September 20, 2022

People also accused Shahbaz of cheating on his wife with Aima, but his ex-wife denied the allegations.

The model’s social media following had increased drastically within hours. However, her account got suspended, for which she also accused Aima Baig of getting it taken down. She later uploaded a video in which Qes and Taloulah are talking to Aima on a call about what happened before and Qes is heard saying “How dare you played the rape card”.

It’s tea time. ☕️ #aima #AimaBaig #qesahmed qes ahmed aima baig pic.twitter.com/SxXBLtK6oW
— 🐝 (@bkhtawargul) September 20, 2022

Aima Baig Speaks Up

The singer broke her silence and called it “straight up bullying and targeting people”. Aima Baig said: “How can people or any sane person believe these accusations.” She denied the allegations and asked people to wait for a day or two. Aima also hinted at a person who is staying quiet because “they know how many more ugly things would come out, not just about them but also their family.”

She said that people should suggest doctors for “someone who badly needs it”. She further explained that in the video “she (Taloulah) knowingly bleep certain words and only posted half the video. I was being told what to say on that video over texts.”

She shared a screenshot of her last conversation with Taloulah.

Shahbaz Shigri has not commented on the situation.

Sohail Ahmed & Diljit Dosanjh Add Their Punjabi Tarka To ‘Babe Bhangra Paunde Ne’

By

Warshma Chughtai

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September 21, 2022

It’s always exhilarating to see our Pakistani artists collaborate with International industries, showcasing their immense talent to others worldwide. Another actor added to the list is ‘Punjabi Nahi Jaungi’ and ‘Dum Mastam’s Sohail Ahmed.

He will be seen in a Punjabi-Indian movie ‘Babe Bhangra Paunde Ne’ along with punjabi superstar Diljit Dosanj and Sargun Mehta. The movie is a comedy, which is Sohail Ahmed’s forte. The trailer shows that Diljit along with his friends has a money-making idea of adopting a father and taking over his business post his death, after getting money from an insurance policy. Sargun Mehta, who works at an old age home, becomes a part of Diljit’s plan by sharing information on the health condition of her clients. The father is played by Sohail Ahmed. They try their best to keep him alive till the policy is active, which would take 25 days, but the twist is that things don’t go as planned as Sohail Ahmed’s health is seen improving.

The movie has been shot in the USA. It is directed by Amarjit Singh Saron and produced by Daljit Thind and Diljit Dosanjh.

The relations between India and Pakistan deteriorated after the 2016 URI attack, after which India banned Pakistani actors from working in India till the situation is normalised. Similarly, Pakistan has banned Indian content, such as movies and dramas to be shown in Pakistan.

We only hope the geopolitical situation can get better so that the audience is able to see the two countries’ artists collaborate more often.

Sohail Ahmed was last seen in the movie ‘London Nahi Jaunga’ and the drama ‘Chaudhry and Sons’. It’ll be exciting to see him perform with other renowned actors.

Coke Studio First Live Concert: Here’s The Lineup

By

Azmaray Tamim Aulia

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September 20, 2022

Following the prodigious success of season 14, Coke Studio has announced its first-ever live performance in Dubai.

‘Thinak Dhin’ singer, Ali Sethi shared a poster of the upcoming live concert on his Instagram.

This created a spark of excitement among fans, which ignited after Coke Studio posted the final line-up of artists performing at that concert, which includes the dynamic duo of the ‘Pasoori‘ stars Ali Sethi and Shae Gill, String’s renowned singer, Faisal Kapadia, Pakistan’s favourite Indie pop singer, Hasan Raheem, the rapper duo Young Stunners, and the talented sisters that went viral for their rendition of Justin Bieber’s song ‘Baby‘, Justin Bibis.

Other talented instrumentalists including Annan Noukhez, Zain Peerzada, Bilawal Lahooti, Omair Farooq, Veeru Shan, Saad ul Hasan, Haider Ali, Haider Ali Tafu, Yusuf Ramay, Melvin Arthur, Awais Kazmi, Action Zain and Aziz Kazi will also be performing.

The majority of the fans were dazzled after seeing the selection of artists. However, some were disheartened, saying that artists such as Atif Aslam, Talal Qureshi, Abdul Wahab Bugti, Kaifa Khalil, Faris Shafi etc. should’ve been part of the event.

The producer of Coke Studio’s season 14, Zulfiqar Jabbar Khan is expecting to make this event an unforgettable one, telling Express Tribune that: “With Coke Studio LIVE in Dubai, we want to give the richly diverse population one more reason to open their hearts and connect through their love for music. An experience not to be missed, we are curating a great line-up of acts drawn from across the musical spectrum and specially selected for the first-ever live show to give the UAE an experience to remember”

Coke Studio LIVE will take place in Dubai on the 14th of October. Tell us if you are excited.

Shazia Wajahat Talks About ‘Pinjra’, ‘Adan’, And ‘Saanwal Yaar Piya’

By

Armaan Shehreyaar

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September 20, 2022

The entertainment industry has evolved over the years in many ways. With the audience becoming more critical about the content being shown, television producers and filmmakers are also now aware of what should be made in these times.

Showcase Productions is one of the leading production houses of recent times. They tend to create content that is diverse and meaningful along with having entertaining and mass appealing elements involved in it. The company is headed by the dynamic husband-wife duo; Wajahat Rauf and Shazia Wajahat.

Notable projects from the production house include blockbuster films like ‘Chhalaawa’ and ‘Karachi say Lahore’, while recently, the audience loved and applauded their drama ‘Raqs e Bismil’ and feature film ‘Parde Mein Rehne Do’.

Post the massive success of their most recent projects, Shazia and Wajahat are set to bring a number of dramas to television screens including ‘Pinjra’ which is the last script of late writer Asma Nabeel.

In an exclusive conversation with Galaxy Lollywood, Shazia Wajahat spoke about her upcoming projects.

About ‘Pinjra’

Shazia Wajahat shared how close is ‘Pinjra’ to her heart. She said: “Three years ago, Wajahat and I told Asma Nabeel that we want to do something about teenagers since content of this sort doesn’t get created on television usually. Asma got very excited as she also wanted to do something like this for a long time.”

Talking about the story she shared: “It’s basically a social topic for which Asma did a lot of research while writing. It is about how we bring up a kid, and where we go wrong in the process of parenting. To understand your children. Every child is different, unintentionally we end up putting a lot of social pressure on the children. We don’t realize what harm we are bringing to them with the comparisons in schools and at home.”

About writer Asma Nabeel’s journey with the project, she said: “She was very passionate about it because Asma thought whoever has kids will relate to it. Even during her illness she continued to write the script, we asked her to take a rest, and told her that the project can wait, but she would say it’s my commitment, what if I go without completing it.”

‘Dil Ke Chor’ producer further added: “The project got delayed for two years, we did ‘Raqs e Bismil and then Asma went (passed away). I still have this in my heart that she wasn’t there when we started shooting for it.”

About The Casting

Shazia revealed that the character of Aashir Wajahat was actually written for him by Asma Nabeel. She said: “Although Aashir was not working for television for so long, his film was in pipeline, but we asked him to do this role as it was Asma’s last wish.”

The project stars Hadiqa Kiani opposite Omair Rana. Talking about the lead actors, Shazia stated: “We were very excited about working with Hadiqa, ‘Raqeeb Se’ was on air and ‘Dobara’ was in pipeline, so she also wanted to do something different as she prefers the quality of work over quantity. Good thing is that Hadiqa had a long chat about her role with Asma and we got her on board while Asma was alive.

She further added: “Also with Omair Rana, when we told him, he was super excited that the story is about an issue that needs to be told to people. Same with Sunita Marshall, she is an air hostess in the drama, although she is not that old as the character, but she loved the character and the story.”

Talking about the expectations that people should have from the drama, Shazia said: “We’re very excited about this that it’s finally coming. When people will watch it, they will see that it is so close to reality that they will be able to identify with the household, the family and the characters.”

About ‘Adan’

Another upcoming project ‘Adan’, which is a mystery and a thriller stars Azfar Rehman, Mansha Pasha, and Junaid Khan. There were rumours that Sanam Jung will also be a part of it. Responding to that Shazia said: “Yes, she was but due to some health issues she had to leave and we got Mansha on board.”

The maker confirmed that the shooting is about to wrap and will air on Aan TV.

About ‘Saanwal Yaar Piya’

An upcoming drama that has been creating a buzz among the viewers because of the exciting casting is ‘Saanwal Yaar Piya’, starring Imran Ashraf, Iqra Aziz and Feroze Khan.

‘Raqs e Bismil’ team returns as Hashim Nadeem has written the script, Wajahat is the director and Shazia is the producer. In terms of casting Imran is also part of the project. Shazia said: “Iqra and Feroze are new members and we are very excited to work with both, as we have not worked with them before. Iqra is just like family and I am really looking forward to working with her, Feroze is a friend too but we never got a chance to work with him so Wajahat and I are very excited about this project.”

She added: “Soon we will be revealing other cast members, as some other big names are also attached to the project”. The drama will be going on floors very soon.

Be it a social message in ‘Pinjra’, a mystery thriller ‘Adan’, or a love story with a stellar cast in ‘Saanwal Yaar Piya’, they all will be a treat to watch for the viewers. Which drama are you most excited about?