Happily Ever After

Congratulations to our very own Nobel laureate Malala Yousafzai on getting married to Asser Malik, a PCB employee, in Birmingham.

The announcement was made on November 9 and the couple celebrated the wedding by cutting a cake. Pictures of the event went viral both on social and mainstream media. Immediately, congratulatory mes­sages came pouring in from people belonging to all spheres of life. We, too, wish the pair a happy, peaceful and successful married life.

Sohail Asghar, no more

Eminent television and stage actor Sohail Asghar passed away in Karachi on November 13. He was 67 and had been unwell for the last one-and-a-half years. Starting off his career as a radio jockey for Radio Pakistan, it was his performances as an actor that cemented his place as one of the finest artists produced by Pakistan. He was widely acclaimed in TV serials largely produced from Lahore, such as Piyaas, Manchaley Ka Sauda and Kajal Ghar, but it was a serial presented from Karachi in the early 1990s, Chand Grehan, that first brought him into the limelight as an actor of unusual power. May he rest in peace.

90 and Not Counting

Actor Arjun Kapoor must be commended (or not) for being gutsy. The guy is yet to have a huge blockbuster under his belt, and yet the kind of (over)confidence that he exudes is pretty befuddling. Talking to a journo he has said that he wants to be a part of the Indian film industry for “another 90 years” because this [his ongoing period in Bollywood] is “just the starting point”. What? We think that you’re taking way too much time to get off the blocks, mate.

Well Played, Pakistan

Although Pakistan lost the semifinal game against Australia in the T20 World Cup held in the UAE, our team’s overall on-field performance and off-the-field behaviour has won hearts of the entire nation. After the loss to the Aussies, celebs took to Twitter and Instagram with comments appreciating the national cricket team’s effort and egging them on to do well in the future. They included, among others, Ali Zafar, Ushna Shah, Fakhre Alam and Asim Azhar. Why not… humein tum se pyaar hai!

Kangana and Bheek

It’s not sarcasm: Kangana Ranaut seriously needs to consult a therapist. She has once again given a statement which reflects her bigoted and insular mindset — by the way, artists and bigotry are pretty oxymoronic. At a public event last week, the actress remarked that 1947 (when her country gained independence) was a bheek (alms) and the real freedom came to her nation in 2014, meaning when Narendra Modi became prime minister. Well, girl it’s time for you to break mental shackles.

The Humanising Effect

Adele has just released a new album. But that’s not the only thing that she’s lately come out with. The singer, during a profile interview for a magazine, has revealed that, while living in Los Angeles, she’s made two best celebrity friends — Nicole Richie and Jennifer Lawrence. Reason: “They humanised me because I had avoided talking to anyone that was ever famous in any capacity, because I was like, ‘Well, I’m not famous.’ I’m very British like that… We never spoke about work, which was amazing, because most of the time when I catch up with someone, they want to know all about my work, and I’m like, ‘I don’t want to talk about that. Can we talk about something else’?” Hmmm… happens to the best of us, Adele.

Published in Dawn, ICON, November 21st, 2021