Hello, Komal!

Let’s hand it to Komal Rizvi for regularly churning out stuff as an artist. It’s been quite a while since she joined showbiz as a singer and actress. The fact that she can still make her presence felt must be commended.

The latest on that count is her song Hello Ji. It’s a nice little peppy number featuring comedian Yasir Hussain (in the video). Listening to it for a second time, though, might give you the idea that the lyrics to the song are a bit Bollywoodish. Nothing wrong with that, at least we could watch the video during the Eid holidays when Bollywood stuff was barred in the cinemas to help Pakistani films do business. Did they?

Anwar Maqsood on stage

After a hiatus of a couple of years, eminent humourist Anwar Maqsood has decided to write a play for stage again. The drama titled Mujhe Kyon Nikala will be directed by Dawar Mahmood with whom Anwar M has worked in theatre all along.

Now, it needs to be mentioned here that Dawar M, who had started his big-time career with the eminent writer many years ago, moved away from Anwar M’s scripts for some time for reasons that only he knows best. The fact that he found it important to return to the humourist suggests he has finally cottoned on to the importance of one-liners that signal sure-shot commercial success.

Smart chap.

The clout of K-Jo

Boy oh boy, Karan Johar enjoys some clout in Bollywood! These days Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt are busy shooting a film titled Brahamastra, produced under K-Jo’s banner.

Rumour has it that the two actors have become pretty close (read romantically) to each other. The clever businessman that he is, K-Jo has stopped Ranbir K and Alia B from appearing together in any advertisement because that would ‘expose their chemistry’, which he doesn’t want before the film hits the cinema screens. And the actors have obliged.

Hmmm … so K-Jo, have you also been dictating the text messages that the two have been exchanging lately?

An actor’s sketch

Actor Fahad Mustafa has been conducting a Ramazan show for the past few years on a local TV channel. While he has a decent fanbase (and it should be accepted), there are some who take his over-frankness as a host with a pinch of salt.

In the last week of the holy month, during that programme, something happened that set social media abuzz with comments. A young girl drew a sketch of the actor, and instead of praising her he ‘made fun of her’. This led to a hard-hitting post against Fahad M on cyberspace, as a result of which, and to shore up the girl’s morale, a reputed educational institution has reportedly offered a scholarship to the sketch artist. You go, girl!

And when you become a big painter, make portraits of only sensitive human beings.

Celebrity stalker

Usually, it’s the other way round — people stalk celebrities — but in this case, singer Chris Brown has been accused by a woman called Cassandra that he’s been stalking and harassing her. As a result, a Los Angeles court has granted the woman a temporary restraining order and asked Chris B to stay 100 yards away from her.

The lawyer of the singer, however, has denied the charges questioning the fan’s mental health, arguing that perhaps the court should consult the mental health department. A few of us might argue that some celebrities need to engage with their mental health department.

The power of being single

Last year, rapper Nicki Minaj broke up with her boyfriend Meek Mill and, ever since, she’s been single. In fact, if she’s to be believed, as she has recently claimed, she’s never felt so strong and powerful. The artist is now 35 years of age and says that her first boyfriend came into her life when she was 15.

“Becoming single was one of the things that made me feel powerful and strong … The fact that I’m a young woman who doesn’t need a man for money … I don’t need a man for a job … I don’t have those pressures. I get up when I want, shop when I want,” are her exact words. More power to you Nicki M. But it took you two decades to realise that! Wonder if she’ll still be saying this two decades on.

Published in Dawn, ICON, June 24th, 2018