Javeria Saud is a popular and versatile actress in the glamorous world of Pakistani showbiz. She is not just an actress but also a beloved host and producer, earning immense appreciation for her outstanding acting skills throughout her many years in the industry. Javeria is happily married to Saud Qasmi, a renowned producer and actor, and the two are currently making headlines with their latest project, Green TV’s Mohabbat Satrangi, which Javeria proudly produces.

Recently, the couple decided to take a fancy vacation to Dubai, giving their fans a glimpse into their luxurious lifestyle. Javeria excitedly shared a stunning Instagram reel that showcased the stunning ambiance of a high-end restaurant in the city. Alongside the luxurious setting, the actress also flaunted a chic new haircut, adding a touch of grace to her already glamorous image.

Fans couldn’t help but shower Javeria with compliments for her stylish appearance and the adorable chemistry between her and Saud Qasmi. The photos from the Instagram reel captured sweet and intimate moments, reflecting the couple’s strong bond and deep love for each other. Javeria’s infectious smile and trendy look echoed well with her admirers, leaving them eager to see more snippets from her Dubai getaway.

Known for her memorable roles in hit dramas like Baby Baji, Nand, and Paristan, Javeria Saud’s success isn’t just limited to the screen. Her prowess extends to her role as a producer, as evident in the current success of Mohabbat Satrangi. As Javeria continues to share glimpses of her glamorous life, fans remain captivated by her charm, talent, and the panoramic moments she generously shares on social media.

Fashion designer and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) supporter Khadija Shah has resumed her professional responsibilities after being detained for months.

An anti-terrorism court in Quetta last month granted her bail in a case pertaining to the May 9 riots. She surrendered herself before Punjab police in Lahore on May 23 last year. The designer remained behind bars for months following allegations of her alleged complicity in fuelling the violent May 9 protests in the wake of PTI founder Imran Khan's arrest in a corruption case.

The prominent creative designer, in an Instagram post on Wednesday, announced that she has formally rejoined her work with a poster that said: "Our creative Director Khadijah Shah is back: Elan Reignites."

The post has a long welcome note from her as the caption. She says: "I am eternally grateful to our Pakistani followers for their unmitigated support and love. I believe it was the power of your collective prayers that brought me home, and I am certain of that."

"Now, I am back with more zeal, passion, and creativity than ever before. I am thrilled to assume my position at the helm of Elan and Zaha. Together, we are poised to write a new chapter of rejuvenation, creativity, and cutting-edge ideas and design."

"Pakistan has always been, and always will be, my first and foremost love. I am committed to continuing to serve and strive for my country and its people. My goal has always been to make Pakistan proud through my endeavours, and I am determined to carry on that journey. With your ongoing support and blessings, inshallah, we will achieve great things and produce our best work yet," she remarked.

She is the daughter of former federal and Punjab cabinet member Salman Shah.

The May 9 protests led to the arrests of thousands of PTI workers and supporters across the country, with several leaders also parting ways with the party over the May 9 events.

fter severe backlash following a covert video of Rahat Fateh Ali Khan physically abusing someone he later claimed was his student, and a failed apology video that has since been deleted from his Instagram, the qawwal has come forth with another “apology” video.

The singer is alone in the video, which was posted to the account of radio station owner Rehan Siddiq, in contrast to the now deleted ‘apology’ videos where he was accompanied by the victim and his father.

In the “special message”, the ‘Afreen Afreen’ singer first sought forgiveness from God, who “made everyone equal”.

“Being a human, I should not have behaved this way with another person, especially as an artist,” he said.

He then apologised to his family who “have been involved in the qawwali business for 600 years” and gave messages of “love, peace and brotherhood” through their art. Khan also apologised to his “family friends” and “especially” his fans who were hurt because of his behaviour.

Vowing not to repeat his actions, he alleged that the viral video was nine months old and that his old management company — PME Entertainment — which he recently left, had been making these videos without his “permission” for “who knows how long”.

Khan claimed the company had “planned other” videos and began releasing them after his press conference announcing that he would be parting ways with them.

“If they were such advocates of humanity, why didn’t they release the video earlier?” he questioned. He alleged that there were more videos that the company would release in an effort to “defame” him, and that some were “planted” while others were “fabricated”. Khan, however, hoped that their “efforts would be unsuccessful” and his singing career would continue.

The singer continued that he took the experience “positively” because he got to learn from it, and added that he “respected” those who boycotted him because they wanted to “advise” him. He further said that those critiquing his actions “loved” him and did not want to see “their artist” behaving negatively.

He concluded the video by apologising to his fellow artists and music directors. He did not, however, apologise to his victim, Naveed Hasnain, the student whom he physically lashed out at for misplacing a ‘bottle’.

Khan also appeared on Adeel Asif’s podcast where he purported that people were making fun of the ‘bottle’, however, it was “true” that his pir (spiritual guide) had blessed the water and it was in Hasnain’s possession.

“People are not understanding the depth [of the situation]. It’s a spiritual matter between me and my pir and it was a very big thing for me,” he said.

The podcast also included gems from the host such as him saying it would be an “honour” to be hit by Khan, and that people should not interfere in artists’ personal lives and let them hone their crafts.

Let’s be real — physical violence, regardless of who it’s coming from, is NEVER something to look up to and glorify. No one deserves to be humiliated the way Hasnain was; there is a proper way to handle such a situation and even severe consequences for someone’s actions should not include beating someone up. Secondly, anyone who infringes on someone else’s physical autonomy, especially so violently, should face some repercussions, regardless of who they are.

The host should not have placed Khan on a pedestal given the controversy surrounding him, nor should he have been so casual with his comments.

Prior to his recent apology video, a series of videos were posted and then deleted from Khan’s official Instagram page in which he claimed the bottle contained blessed water.

Addressing the video, Khan said it was a private issue between a teacher and a student. Identifying the student and his father, he said, “The relationship between a teacher and student is such that when he does well, we give him that much love and when he does wrong, we punish him”.

Hasnain said the bottle contained water blessed by a spiritual leader and that he had forgotten where he put it at the time. “God only knows how much love he [Khan] shows us,” he said, calling the video an attempt to blackmail and defame his teacher.

He denied that the incident was an incident of abuse. Khan claimed that he asked for Hasnain’s forgiveness then and there after beating him up.

Once again, he did not once publicly apologise to Hasnain but has released several irrelevant, half-hearted videos.

Videos of two influential Pakistani singers committing acts of violence have emerged in the past week — Rahat Fateh Ali Khan and Bilal Saeed. If you ask us, that’s two too many.

Here’s a quick recap: Saeed was performing at a Punjab Group of Colleges’ school for their Youth Musical Festival when he hurled a microphone into the crowd presumably of young students for undisclosed reasons. A few days later, a secretly recorded video of Khan emerged where he was violently beating a person in his employ over a missing “bottle”.

Their acts of what can only be described as assault occurred because both men were in positions of power, even if you don’t take into account how esteemed they are as artists — Khan is one of the most eminent singers in the subcontinent and Saeed has over a million followers on social media. The ‘Ghalti Hogayi’ singer was surrounded by college students, while Khan was with his “shagird” (student).

Violence cannot be justified by the status you hold and this applies to everyone, including celebrities. Sadly, however, that is exactly what both singers assumed as they swiftly dismissed their respective situations with no proper apology and an abhorrent lack of remorse.

Saeed posted an Instagram story (which disappear within a day), claiming that he “should have never left the stage”. Meanwhile, Khan said it was a “private issue” between a teacher and a student, and claimed that he asked for his student Naveed Hasnain’s forgiveness then and there after beating him up (but failed to apologise on camera, of course).

The singers’ actions are a reflection of how they believe they can act when the cameras aren’t rolling. Clearly, the violence was not the problem, getting caught was. What’s worse is that despite the outrage and backlash across social media, they were not repentant. Rather, the shred of regret they portrayed may have been because of the virality of the videos that they weren’t expecting to be filmed.

The icing on top of the detestable cake is that neither man — much like most men in positions of power — is facing adequate repercussions, apart from critical comments on social media. Saeed performed on Sunday night at a festival in Lahore and we can only assume that Khan’s fame will not be impacted by one viral video.

People — once again, including celebrities — need to be held accountable for their actions so that they can understand the importance of a sincere apology. However, it is not our responsibility to hold them responsible for their wrongdoings.

As adults, they should be aware that violence is never the answer, regardless of the circumstances. With Saeed, there was speculation that students in the audience were making rude gestures at the singer, however, if he was so offended at the situation, he should have walked off the stage instead of flinging a mic. With Khan, he later claimed that the ‘bottle’ in question was “blessed” by a spiritual guide, but even if his student lost the ‘bottle,’ repeatedly hitting him was not the answer.

As consumers of content created by celebrities, we should not idolise artists and be mindful of what we consume. Celebrity worship can lead to unrealistic expectations and (continuous) disappointment. We need to stop idolising celebrities who treat others with such little respect.

Pakistan is a land with a rich music history producing music icons such as Noor Jehan, Mehdi Hassan, Ahmed Rushdi, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan and others, and it seems that the younger generation is no different as it is making its mark in the ever-changing music industry.

One such emerging artist is Annural Khalid who has been named Pakistan's first woman RADAR Artist for the year 2024 by the renowned music streaming platform Spotify with the platform's mini-documentary shedding light on the singer's journey as a musician.

RADAR Pakistan, a part of Spotify’s global emerging artist programme, is dedicated to identifying and elevating promising musical talents from across Pakistan and provides them with a platform to connect with audiences worldwide.

Khalid's accomplishment comes as she celebrates the launch of her debut album, showcasing her unique blend of chill pop and rhythm and blues (R&B).

"Spotify RADAR is a huge deal to me for sure. I feel like I get to share my story with an even bigger audience and it feels so good to know that people can associate who I really am as a person with the perception they have of me as an artist," the elated singer said while reacting to the news.

"I think that’s something I have been trying to do for a while and with RADAR [...] I get insights on what my listeners are vibing with, what sound resonates more with people, just helps me know my audience better," she added.

The development is a testament to Khalid's talent and dedication as she was also previously named Spotify’s EQUAL Pakistan Ambassador in July 2023.

The singer who started her career back in 2020, has succeeded in producing hit tracks such as Kehdena, Mujhe Leh Chal, Dil de Bol, Pretty Lies and Sohneya Ve.

As the nation is all set to host one of the most anticipated cricketing events, the Pakistan Super League (PSL) which is just a month away fans eagerly wait for the exciting anthem for its season 9.

When it comes to PSL songs, the first name that comes to mind is Pakistani singing sensation Ali Zafar, who has given anthems for the first three seasons of the tournament.

In 2016, Ali Zafar sang and produced Ab Khel Ke Dikha. The following year, the anthem Ab Khel Jamay Ga broke records of cricket anthems, becoming the most popular song following its release in 2018. Next year, Dil Se Jaan Laga De by Zafar came out as the anthem for season 3.

Fawad Khan and Young Desi also joined forces for the 2019 anthem titled Khel Deewano Ka, written by Shuja Haider, which also gained some prominence, while Tayyar Hain in 2020 featured the collective talents of Ali Azmat, Haroon, Asim Azhar, and Arif Lohar.

The 2021 anthem, Groove Mera, brought together Aima Baig, Naseebo Lal, and Young Stunners, capturing the essence of the game.

Agay Dekh in 2022 showcased Atif Aslam and Aima Baig's musical prowess, with lyrics by Abdullah Siddiqui and Natasha Noorani.

The 2023 anthem, Sab Sitaray Humaray, features Asim Azhar, Shae Gill, and Faris Shafi, who took the honours.

However, fans always compared Ab Khel Jamay Ga with all of the songs.

This time around, Zafar posted on X (formerly Twitter) and openly questioned the potential impact of his involvement in creating the anthem for the PSL this year and asked people to vote.

He sought honest opinions from the public, pondering whether such a contribution would bolster the image of both the PSL and the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), strengthen the connection with the audience, and generate increased financial benefits for all stakeholders.

Zafar expressed a lack of ego and emphasised his genuine interest in understanding the sentiments and preferences of the people of Pakistan, contrasting them with the perspectives of a select few individuals holding influential or authoritative positions.

In another post, he stressed that he would give an explanation of this post later and urge people to vote only.

Earlier, the PCB released the schedule of PSL 9, to be commenced on February 17, at the PCB’s headquarters in Lahore. The opening match will feature the two-time champions and current titleholders, Lahore Qalandars, facing off against Islamabad United, winners of the 2016 and 2018 editions.