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The 2007 Celeb Calendar
As the year 2006 comes to a close, we bring to you the 2007 celebrity calendar jam-packed with 12 glamorous showbiz entities who will give the year an edge in terms of glitz and glamour, fun and excitement and the hottest happenings in music, fashion, TV, radio, film and all that’s entertainment.
Life is incredible and getting even more exciting for pop’s favourite boy-next-door. Atif Aslam is not only the hottest musical sensation in Pakistan but in India (read Bollywood) as well. Woh Lamhe for Zeher, Aadat for Kalyug, Teray Bin for Bas Ek Pal have all been super-hits on Pakistani and Indian music charts of 2006. Three of his songs — Aadat, Ehsaas and Yakeen — were also included in Man Push Cart, a Hollywood art-movie that received tremendous response in international film festivals and won the Fepriski award in Europe. With his new album Doorie just out in both countries, Atif is one lad who’s certainly making it big in 2007.
Strings made a huge comeback with one of the biggest records Pakistan has heard of in the last 10 years, almost erasing from memory their period of hibernation with a string of jangling, synthesised hits and snappy videos.
Bilal Maqsood and Faisal Kapadia came out with their album Duur and then Dhaani. In 2005, Strings won MTV Asia’s best artiste award. Having sang various numbers and soundtracks for cinemas all over the world, Strings have now been appointed by the United Nations as Unicef Pakistan’s National Ambassadors for HIV and Aids. In 2006, the band released Beirut, touching the hearts and minds of thousands around the world. Easily and by far the best band around, there’s no doubt Strings will make their mark next year as well.
One of Pakistan’s most prolific guitar players, Zaki released his long-awaited debut album Signature in 1995. To date, it is his only full length studio recording release. His music is enchanting because it has never been commercial, and it was in 2006 that he finally appeared to have carved a niche for himself by setting up a recording company called Manhattan West Productions in Santa Monica, California, with a partner. He is back in the country with the intention of roping in talented musicians here. Meanwhile, Zaki has also turned producer and has three albums up his sleeve. He is also doing an English album with Hadiqa Kiyani. He is the best guitarist this country can boast of and his music, which includes quite a few instrumental numbers, will definitely scale its way to the top of the charts.
Play TV is the up and coming music channel which is currently taking the music world by storm. In fact, it is for the very first time that a music channel has become so popular so fast with the younger lot (sorry, MTV Pakistan). With an amazing runtime, great shows, awesome choice of songs and a sleek layout, Play TV is heading towards becoming one of the top-most music channels of the country. The year 2006 witnessed a steep rise in its popularity and the same is expected for the coming year.
When CityFM89 was first established in 2004, it broke away from conventional radio broadcasting by playing a blend of tunes ranging from classic songs from the subcontinent to the latest hits on the Billboard Charts. Informative, intelligent and issue-conscious, this FM channel has been making tracks in radio broadcasting with the promise of doing still better.
Meanwhile, on the tube, with a whole new generation of local and international news channels popping up on our TV screens, the Herald Broadcasting Network’s first channel, DawnNews TV, is expected to launch sometime early in 2007. Competing with the big-guns of international news in terms of content, research and quality, there’s little doubt that DawnNews TV will pack a solid punch once it goes on air.
Pakistan’s First Man of Design became internationally recognised for dressing up the late Diana, Princess of Wales. The undisputed king of the Pakistani ramp has been there and done that as far as fashion is concerned. Rizwan is one of those fashion revolutionaries who broke all the rules.
Apart from media networks such as the BBC and CNN, acclaimed magazines such as Harpers & Queen, Newsweek and several other fashion periodicals have carried his designs. Very open to change, he has dressed some of the biggest names in the fashion industry today. At the Lux Carnivalle de Couture this year, he won hearts all over again with the promise of becoming even bigger in 2007.
Reema ‘Khan’, arguably the most glamourous and well-spoken diva in the Pakistani film fraternity today, has recently put her best foot forward. She was out and about all of 2006, and is expected to emerge even more beautiful, more poised, more enchanting and definitely more refined than ever in the coming year. With many more movies, international tours and award ceremonies soon to come, this Lollywood goddess will be rolling up her sleeves to welcome the new year before long with more directorial ventures and event appearances.
Fashion photography is much more than just an art of mechanically capturing images on a light-sensitive plate. It has a lot to do with creativity, concentration and fashion sense. Some names have made it big in recent years and are destined to do even better in future as fashion photographers, and Rizwan-ul-Haq and Mickey & Momey are two of them. They have taken shots for some of the most renowned designers, fashion models, make-up artistes and jewellery designers in Pakistan’s fashion industry and are fast becoming lensmen of credible repute with the promise of doing even better in ’07.
With a commitment to beauty and glamour, the very first Lux Style Awards were hosted in 2002 to celebrate style in Pakistan and pay tribute to the fashion, film, TV and entertainment industries. From there on, the subsequent LSA ceremonies have constantly gotten bigger and better with the passing of each year. Lux Carnival De Couture, on the other hand, brings together some of the biggest names in fashion designing from Pakistan and India together to showcase couture creations on the ramp. So here’s to yet another major event to look forward to in 2007.
A fresh new addition to the world of fashion, Tatmain is fast becoming the most promising name in fashion modelling by gradually making a place for herself in the industry with her refreshing attitude, fresh looks and a positive outlook. With the FnkAsia Model Hunt as her launching pad, she signed her first contract with a modelling agency after winning the contest, and since then, there has been no looking back for her. One can’t help but envy this wonderful, beautiful young woman who is destined to become one of the most successful, young models to rock Pakistan’s fashion scene.
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