Weekly News Update (10 July-16 July’21)
Ahh…this week’s news certainly kept us on our toes! We saw the finals of two great events: Wimbledon and UEFA Euro 2020. In addition to this, our favourite BTS was on the news for their new song release, ‘Permission to Dance’ and for being part of a philanthropic concert, ‘Global Live’. Our own stars weren’t far behind either as they blessed us with multiple teasers of their upcoming dramas. Want to know more? Catch up below!
Mahira Khan & Zahid Ahmed To Star In A Telefilm?
There are rumours circulating that we might see Mahira Khan and Zahid Ahmed as leads in a telefilm directed by Shehryar Munawar! Though, as of yet, this is just speculation and nothing is officially confirmed. Though some people’s Insta stories are doing the talking. For more, check out the tweet below.
BTS & Others To Be A Part Of ‘Global Citizen’
‘Global Citizen’ which is co-founded by Hugh Evans, aims to eliminate poverty and provide food for 41 million people who suffer from starvation and to plant one billion trees around the globe to reduce the effects of climate change. Back in May, they organized a concert, Vax Live, which was a concert aiming to provide vaccines for low and middle-income countries and also to put pressure on world leaders of the developed world to help ensure a more equitable distribution of vaccines.
Now they are organizing a 24-hour concert on 25th September which will be covering 6 continents and the live event will take place in New York City, Paris, London and Los Angeles. On the other hand the performances and hosted segments will come from Sydney; Rio de Janeiro; Seoul, South Korea; and Lagos, Nigeria.
(Credits: Dawn)
Many reputable and famous singers and bands around the globe will be a part of the concert including BTS, The Weekend, Demi Lovato, Shawn Mendes, Camila Cabello, and Coldplay. We are exhilarated to hear this and have high hopes that ‘Global Citizens’ will be able to achieve its goal to eliminate poverty.
Rafta Rafta Trailer Release
Rafta Rafta has been in the news for quite a while and still, if you haven’t heard about it then don’t worry we have got you! It is Atif Aslam’s new music video which will star Sajal Aly, directed by Hassam Baloch, and written by Raj Ranjodh. Rafta Rafta has trended a number of times on Twitter by now, thanks to the star power of Atif Aslam and Sajal Aly. Though the date of release still remains unknown, today the fans were teased with the trailer. Take a look:
Read more on the teaser drop here
Whispers Of Raqs-e-Bismil 2 Around The Block?
A statement that remains unchallenged by many is that Raqs-e-Bismil was a great success. It captivated the audience’s interest from the onset thanks to the ensemble cast, great direction by Wajahat Rauf and incisive writing by Hashim Nadeem. It is the tale of Zohra and Musa who are divided by the differences in their background. However, they undergo many challenges and realize that a person’s identity and regard in society should not be dependent on where they are born and they should not be subjected to any kind of judgement based on their family background. As Musa and Zohra embark on a path of self-discovery, they realize their love for one another and, what follows is a narrative of self-awakening, lessons in humility, spiritual awakening, and yes, spoiler alert – marriage.
After Raqs-e-Bismil came to an end last Friday, Imran Ashraf went on to Twitter and proposed the idea of a second season. Fans were wholly supportive of such an idea and demanded to once again see Imran Ashraf and Sarah Khan as the leads. Whether this idea turns into a reality or not, that still remains to be seen; but we wish the team all the luck!
Read the complete article about fan’s reactions to Raqs e Bismil 2 here
Arrival Of The Monsoon Rains
As this year’s monsoon season has hit with full force in different cities of Pakistan, many areas are stripped of electrical supply. There are power breakdowns in all cities, especially in Karachi. However, our nation decided to take the situation in a lighter tone and regaled us with many memes. Here are a few:
BTS New Song Release: ‘Permission To Dance’
On 8 July BTS gifted the fans with a new music video, ‘Permission to Dance’. It was released by HYBE labels and by now has reached 150 million views (plus counting). Watch the official music video here:
Once again the fans are drooling over the new song and showing their support to the band. Here are some tweets to look at:
Malala Once Again In The News
It was reported on Monday that a grade 7 social studies book was being confiscated by the Punjab Curriculum and Textbook Board (PCTB) for including Malala’s image beside that of Major Aziz Bhatti Shaheed in the list of important personalities in Pakistan. The list includes Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah, philanthropist Abdul Sattar Edhi, Begum Raana Liaquat Ali Khan, etc. Moreover, it is allegedly being reported that the book’s publisher, OUP, published the book without being issued the NOC and that is another reason for the crackdown. People had a lot to say about this on Twitter; some thought it was ludicrous, many were outraged to see Malala being portrayed as a national hero while others thought she was a good role model to look up to. Nonetheless, we hope the issue gets resolved as we speculate what was inside the textbook!
Nida Dar Faces Sexism On National TV
Sexism still prevails in all areas of our society and women have to go through mansplaining and misogyny which knows no end. We need to look no further to find men taking jabs at women. Recently, in a talk show hosted by Nauman Ijaz we saw Nida Dar being ridiculed by Abdul Razzaq and the entourage present on set, sadly, one of them was a woman and it’s really upsetting to see that no one paused for a moment to realise the irresponsibility of the conversation streamed online – Sexism at its finest.
Nida Dar is the first Pakistani cricketer to cross 100 wickets in the T20I format and that according to the ICC, she is only the sixth cricketer overall to achieve this. Moreover, she was also the first Pakistani woman cricketer to feature in a foreign league after she was selected by Sydney Thunder as their overseas professional player in Australia’s Women’s Big Bash League. However, instead of discussing her achievements on the field, she was ridiculed more than once in a number of ways.
Firstly, Abdul Razzaq made fun of her hands to which she remained unfazed and replied calmly that she works out, as is the need for her profession. However, that was not all. Further comments were made about her hairstyle, clothing of choice and on all accounts, it looked like Nida Dar was being cornered.
It’s unfortunate that in this day and age women’s achievements are overlooked and despite working hard on their skills they have to prove time and again that they are capable of much more than is expected of them. A salute to Nida for handling the situation with such grace and dignity.
For further details read the full article here
Shaniera Akram Upset With Minal Khan
Minal Khan and her fiance, Ahsan Mohsin Ikram, were seen enjoying the Karachi weather in a video. Minal later sang a nursery rhyme in it after being requested by Ahsan.
The fan’s adored the couple however, Shaniera Akram, wife of the former cricketer, Waseem Akram wasn’t pleased with Minal’s negligence towards traffic rules.
“Come on guys, you’re famous, and have millions of followers, is it too hard to be a little bit more responsible? Put your seatbelt on and eyes on the road! I’m sorry to say but that won’t be as cute if she’s singing it in the hospital”
Shaniera Akram on her Instagram Story.
News like this isn’t uncommon in Pakistan where many disregard traffic rules. Do let us know your take on this!
Wimbledon 2021 Comes To An End
This year’s Wimbledon took place from 28 June to 11 July in the UK. The high profile tennis event was watched all over the world and many celebrities joined as spectators to watch the matches. This year we saw the Duchess of Cambridge, Prince William, Tom Cruise and David Beckham, Priyanka Chopra among others.
After a series of matches-which were as great as ever-we got our winners for this year. Novak Djokovic won the men’s singles, claiming his 20th Grand Slam tournament title while equaling Federer and Nadal’s all-time Grand Slam record and Ashleigh Barty won the ladies singles title. On the other hand, Neal Skupski and Desirae Krawczyk claimed the mixed doubles title. Congratulations to all the winners. They were exciting matches indeed! To catch up on the results check Wimbledon’s website.
Euro 2020 Finals – Racial Abuse Subjected At Players
The UEFA EURO 2020 final took place at Wembley Stadium in London on Sunday 11 July and news of the aftermath made headlines. It was originally scheduled for 12 July 2020 but was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The event had a live audience including Wayne Rooney, Tom Cruise, David Beckham, Duke and Duchess of Cambridge along with their son Prince George and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson. The finals were played between England and Italy which Italy won by beating England on penalties.
However, the tournament was marred by the breakout of hooliganism post-match considering this was one of the first mega tournaments that happened post-Covid with a live audience, it was such a shame. The racist slurs added an ugly twist to the win. Three of the players; Bukayo Saka, Jadon Sancho, and Marcus Rashford were targeted. Many spoke up in their defense including the British Prime Minister and Prince William. We stand united with these three heroes and wish them luck for their future matches!
Barack Obama’s Summer Playlist 2021
Barack Obama shared his summer playlist for 2021 with all his fans on Instagram & Broooklyn based Pakistani singer Arooj Aftab featured on it.
With so many folks getting together with family and friends, there’s a lot to celebrate this summer. I put together a playlist of some of the songs I’ve been listening to lately — it’s a mix of old and new, household names and emerging artists, and a whole lot in between.
Barack obama on Instagram
The list includes the names of many prominent singers including Rihanna, Jay Z and among them is Arooj Aftab who is a Brooklyn based Pakistani singer. A proud moment for the nation indeed!
Pakistani Drama Fans Treated With A String Of Teasers
Good news for all Pakistani drama fans because there are a handful of new dramas that will be hitting your television screens soon. The teasers have been released on YouTube. These include ‘Laapata’ which will be starring Sarah Khan, Ayeza Khan, Gohar Rasheed and Ali Rehman Khan. From what we can see is that it will be a tale about romance, money, greed and battling one’s inner desires. Then we have ‘Pari Zaad’ which has an ensemble cast including Yumna Zaidi, Ahmed Ali Akbar, Urwa Hussain, Saboor Aly and others. Do we even need to say more? Don’t think so!
In addition to both of these, we will be seeing Sajal Aly and Yumna Zaidi in a new drama, ‘Ishq-e-laa’. ‘Hum Kahan Ke Sachey Thay’ is another drama that we will be seeing on HUM TV. Written by Umera Ahmed and directed by Farooq Rind, the drama will mark the return of Mahira Khan back on television. Along with her, we will be seeing Kubra Khan and Usman Mukhtar.
Zara Shahjahan Calls Out Racist Comments On Instagram
Yes, it’s another post about racism in one week! It’s depressing to see that even in 2021 we haven’t eliminated the ‘gora’ complex and news like this still continues to make headlines. This time Zara Shahjahan shared her experience on Instagram that how for a shoot in Turkey she had to hire Mexican models and after their pictures were posted on Instagram they were bashed with negative comments due to their skin colour. Some had the audacity to call them massis, which didn’t settle well with Zara. She called out these negative comments and showed her disdain. Kudos to her for using her voice!
Caring For The Animals Around Us
Recently, an unfortunate incident occurred in Karachi where two guard dogs mauled a man unprovoked. The victim retained serious injuries and it was found that the dogs had previously been involved in a similar attack. As a result of an out of court settlement with the dog’s owner, it was decided that the dogs would be euthanised so that no further incidents would take place and that a donation of PKR 1 million would be made to a charity of their choice.
However, this news resulted in heated debates online where many criticised both parties for reaching such an inhumane decision. Animal rights activists and animal lovers are protesting that’s unfair but what is the solution really? It is necessary that we are more humane towards them and firstly ensure Five Basic Freedoms For Animals, then have the lawmakers responsible etc. For more details check our article on this.
Though very upsetting, this wretched news has highlighted the need for comprehensive laws regulating the ownership and training of dogs in Pakistan. As of yet, we have no definitive and authorized dog training centres in the city, let alone the country. Moreover, special breeds need to be registered and taken care of otherwise owners shouldn’t be allowed to keep them in their houses as pets.
Emmy Nominations Announced
Lastly, the news that had us all on our toes! This Tuesday Nominations for the 73rd annual Primetime Emmy Awards were announced with HBO scoring the most nominations. ‘The Mandalorian’ and ‘The Crown‘ scored the most nominations followed by ‘WandaVision’. The ceremony will take place on 19th September in Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles. It will air on CBS and will be available for live streaming on Paramount+. We wish the nominees all the luck!
