Charged Advice

One of the reasons for the Pakistani cinema industry’s crisis in terms of insignificant footfall is the exorbitant ticket prices. What can anyone do about it? Well, actor Javed Sheikh has provided a solution. He says that if the government can bring down electricity bills for cinema houses up to 75 percent, then the situation will improve. Also, following that measure, he believes cinemas can have 10 to 15 daily shows and the morning shows could be as low as Rs100. While the motivation for Javed S’s suggestion is good — making cinema affordable for the masses — it seems a bit fanciful and we’re not sure how electricity bills can be brought down by 75 percent. If the government could offer such subsidies, wouldn’t households want them first?

Khan Release Delayed

One of the eagerly awaited Pakistani films slated to be released on Eidul Azha was Khan Tumhara, starring Bilal Ashraf and Maya Ali. Sadly, the movie, directed by Mohammed Ehteshamuddin, is not going to see the light of day on the festive occasion. Why? Answer: the producers, Hum Films, have said in a message that “due to the evolving situation of unrest in the region, we have made the decision to defer the release of… Khan Tumhara.” Interesting! Aag Lagay Basti Mein was released on Eidul Fitr when there was a full-fledged war raging in the region, and it did pretty well at the box office. We wonder if there’s more to the delay than meets the Khan’s eye.

Date Bait

Actor Katie Holmes became famous from the 1998 TV series Dawson’s Creek in which Canadian-American actor Joshua Jackson played the character she loves. They were romantically involved in real life briefly too. Then things moved on, she got married to Tom Cruise, got divorced, went out with a chef and a musician for short periods, and now leads a single life. So, when her picture with Joshua J appeared during the promotion of their upcoming film Happy Hours, which Katie H has also written and directed, netizens started oohing and aahing, suggesting they look good together and… should date. The comments were liked with a heart emoji by Katie H. Our suggestion: keep the publicity stunt going for a while…

Anne’s Wish

At this juncture of human history, where Islamophobia is high in the US, Hollywood’s Oscar-winning actress Anne Hathaway has done something that has (further) endeared her to the world in general, and to the Muslim world in particular. The star of The Devil Wears Prada said during an interview that she wants to live a long and healthy life, casually adding to her wish, “InshaAllah.” Well, Anne H, inshaAllah!

Nephew Jackson

The Michael Jackson biopic, Michael, directed by Antoine Fuqua is generating quite a buzz. Despite the fact that reviewers don’t like it, the film is doing record-breaking business. Also, the star of the movie, Jaafar Jackson, a nephew of the king of pop who has essayed the role of Michael Jackson, is receiving a lot of praise from fans across the world for his pitch-perfect performance. It would be interesting to note that Jaafar J came to Karachi in February 2020 to take part in an event hosted by Sceptre College in Clifton. There, he sang and danced with some of the students of the institution and some of the pics from that time are again doing the rounds on social media. Dawn covered that event with the headline ‘Like uncle, like nephew… a bit’. Now we’d have to say, a lot!

20 Years On…

It’s been 19 years since actor Abhishek Bachchan (son of Jaya and Amitabh Bachchan) got married to actor and former Miss World Aishwarya Rai (they tied the knot on April 20, 2007 and have a daughter). Everyone knows that, in between those years, rumours about their imminent separation spread all over like wildfire. Some even thought that they’d divorced. Apparently, that’s not the case. Now that the two have entered into the 20th year of their wedded life, Abhishek B has looked back fondly on his journey with Ash baby while talking on a podcast, claiming that she is his “soulmate.” Hmmm… from checkmate to soulmate… maybe the 20th year’s the charm.

Published in Dawn, ICON, May 3rd, 2026