Names That Can Be Easily Recognized In Every Household Without Using Google
The year 2022 has proven to be the best year since a long time for Pakistanis. If we take a quick recap of the stars we follow, the names we celebrate and the people who broke fresh ground in 2022, we just have to take a fleeting glance at our social media feeds and surprise, surprise, we will notice instantly how new names have become a part of our households, as if we knew them all along, although, it’s hardly been a year! Be it sports or entertainment, Pakistan made it to the top in almost every field in 2022! From The Legend Of Maula Jatt’s success at home and abroad to Naseem Shah’s debut in ODIs, our people are making our country proud. From no one to someone, these people have worked hard to be recognized by the masses.
Take a look at these super achievers!
1. Our Very Own Pasoori Girl A.K.A Shae Gill:
“Charm strikes the sight, but merit wins the soul” – Alexander Pope
In this case, both parts of the quote mentioned above are impeccably accurate. The charm of her melodious voice and the variations in her pitch have brought her into the limelight and made Shae Gill a household name in Pakistan. Starting as a cover artist on social media, Shae Gill is now recognized globally because of her debut song ‘Pasoori’, which she sang along with yet another melodious and soulful singer, songwriter and composer Ali Sethi.
Anushae Babar Gill a.k.a Shae Gill was born and raised in Lahore. It all began in 2019 when her cover songs on Instagram caught Xulfi’s attention. Zulfiqar Jabbar Khan also known as Xulfi is a singer, music composer and producer of Coke Studio 14. In her interview with BBC Urdu, Shae said;
“When Xulfi sir called me to sing in the Coke Studio, I just thanked him but didn’t freak out at that time because I couldn’t believe it and took some time to process”.
Shae further added that when they were making the song, she knew that it will be liked by everyone but never anticipated this much appreciation from all around the world. She is now focusing on her music career and seriously pursuing it by learning classical singing. She has collaborated with Atif Aslam for a public awareness song on COVID-19 called Manzil and her recent collaboration is with Hassan and Roshaan for the song “Sukoon” and due to her rapidly rising fandom and popularity, she has also appeared in TVCs.
2. Fast Bowler Naseem Shah
The 19-year-old fast-bowler Naseem Shah has made Pakistan proud since he was chosen to play in the Pakistan National Team. He is the third fastest bowler after Shaheen Shah and Haris Rauf. In 2019, Naseem Shah was named as one of the six players to watch ahead of the 2019-2020 National T20 Cup by PCB and later he became a part of the Test Squad against Australia. His bowling skills were appreciated by Waqar Younis and former England captain Micheal Vaughan. The same year he played in the test series against Sri Lanka and took his first five-wicket haul in test cricket which made him the youngest fast bowler and second youngest among all bowlers.
In 2020, the almost 17-year-old Naseem scored a Test Hat-trick against Bangladesh and was awarded a central contract ahead of 2020-2021 by PCB. He made his ODI debut against the Netherlands in August 2022. His T20I debut was against India in Asia Cup on August 28th, 2022.
Naseem Shah was one fast bowler every batsman feared to face in T20I Asia Cup in UAE. Naseem Shah made history in the semi-final match, where he hit 2 consecutive sixes against Afghanistan and Pakistan qualified for the finals against Sri Lanka. Although Pakistan lost the cup to Sri Lanka but Naseem Shah won our hearts forever. He also represents Quetta Gladiators in PSL.
3. Alina Khan
Pakistan’s transgender actor Alina Khan is now known for her brilliant performances in Joyland and Darling. She started off as a dancer and after she got a role in Darling, there’s no looking back for her. Alina Khan had a tough life, from emerging as a trans woman to making a living for herself, she has faced it all. In an interview with Vogue India, she said
“My family always thought I would bring shame to them, only Ammi would speak to me for a few minutes while the others cut me off. Now they’re actually proud of my success and that makes me the happiest” Tribune
‘Joyland’ won two awards at the Cannes Film Festival and Alina Khan has the privilege to walk the Cannes Red Carpet. Alina played the role of a trans dancer in the movie. She has not only made her family and community proud but has also made the whole country proud. Thanks to social media who is spreading awareness about the struggles of the trans community. Globally, people are lauding her performance and we are looking forward to her next projects.
4. Saim Sadiq
Awarding-winning film director of Pakistan, Saim Sadiq won the Jury Prize of the Un Certain Regard section at the 75th Cannes Fim Festival 2022 for directing the first ever film ‘Joyland’ to be selected for ‘Cannes”. Raised in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, Saim did his BSc with honors in anthropology from LUMS and graduated from Columbia University School of The Arts with an MFA.
His first short film “Nice To Meet You” was a BAFTA shortlisted Best Student Film. The short film ‘Darling” was his Columbia thesis, for which he explored the world of trans dancers. ‘Darling’ won the “Orizonnti” for the Best Short Film at the 76th Venice International Film Festival, it was the first Pakistani film to be screened and won at the Venice International Film Festival.
According to Saim, his filmmaking has been inspired by his upbringing and discovery of the transgender community in Lahore. Saim’s “Joyland” has been shortlisted for the 2023 Oscar nomination. This young director has changed the way people looked at Pakistani Cinema. Looking forward to his next film and which story he will choose to showcase.
5. Arooj Aftaab
The Grammy award winner Arooj Aftab is a Brooklyn-based Pakistani musician, singer and composer. She works with various music styles like neo-Sufi, jazz and minimalism. Arooj’s rendition of ” Mohabbat” won her the “Best Global performance” award at the Grammy’s, making her the first ever Pakistani woman to have won and been nominated for such a distinguished award. Arooj Aftab’s “Mohabbat” made it to the summer playlist of former POTUS, Barack Obama.
‘Mohabbat’ is not her first nomination for Grammy Awards, she has been nominated and won for Latin Grammy and also won a student Oscar award for the music she wrote for a short film named “Bittu”. She has performed at notable music venues such as the Barbican, the Lincoln Centre, the Kitchen and the Museum Of Modern Art, etc. Her performances at International music festivals include Coachella, Big Ears Festival, Metropolitan Museum of Arts Temple of Dandur and many more.
On the 75th Diamond Jubilee of Pakistan, president Arif Alvi awarded Arooj, the pride of performance award for showing excellence in the field of art and music. She also performed her song “Mehram” on Coke Studio 14. Once again Arooj announced her nomination for the song “Udhero Na” for Grammy’s Best Global Music performance for 2023 on her social media account.
These are just the names who have made it to our social media feeds but there are many more who are yet to be discovered. Let us know in comments if you think we have missed anyone.
7 Onscreen Drama Couples & Our Song Dedications To Help You Immortalize Or (Ahem), Forget Their Love Story?
Watch as we host the cast of Joyland for an exclusive interview with Rabia Mughni
