Welcome to Veena land: Kisses, publicity and world records

MUMBAI: Controversial actress Veena Malik got kissed 137 times in one minute by 41 males and broke actor Salman Khan’s world record of 108 kisses on Wednesday.

She admits it is for the sake of her upcoming film “The City That Never Sleeps”.

Forty one men, chosen through a contest, participated in the world record on Veena’s birthday. These men had come for auditions of Veena’s upcoming movie.

“I am a celebrity anyway and if you say that it is for publicity, ok, yeah, we need publicity for ‘The City That Never Sleeps’,” Veena said here Tuesday after breaking the earlier record set by Salman Khan of 108 kisses.

“We have to break 20 records for the film and this is one of the records,” she added.

In 2011, Salman had got 108 kisses in a minute on a TV reality show “Guinness World Record – Ab India Todega”.

“Long back we decided that I will break this record on my birthday and now we have to break 19 more records for ‘The City That Never Sleeps’,” Veena said.

“So if you call it publicity, then yes, it is for publicity. Films are for what? For publicity, right?”

When she was asked which Bollywood actor she wants to kiss on the screen, she said: “I would like to kiss the actor who does not like kissing on-screen and he is our ‘Dabangg’ Khan Salman Khan. I think that would be beautiful if we have a kiss on-screen.”

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Posted in: Fashion,LIfeStyle

For Sharmila, Cupid struck in a cabinet meeting

KARACHI: 

When news channels repeatedly broadcast the news of PPP leader Sharmila Faruqi having found her “jeewan saathi” last week, I immediately rang her up to get an up close and personal account of how it all happened.

Sharmila’s baat pakki ceremony had already taken place on Sunday evening, so when I landed up at her residence on Tuesday afternoon, the marigolds and gladiolas from the event were still sprinkled across the lawn. At the entrance, I was greeted by the lovebirds themselves.

“Meet the groom-to-be,” Sharmila said brightly, as she gazed lovingly at her fiancé, 30-year-old Hashaam Riaz Sheikh. While Sharmila wore a simple shalwar kameez, Sheikh looked more formal in a crisp white shalwar kameez with a waistcoat, explaining that he was headed to the airport. The two murmured softly to each other as we went inside the house; the chemistry between them was electric. They sat close together and even exchanged a quick peck. They also shared that they have the mutual nickname ‘Beezw’ for each other.

“She is the love of my life,” Sheikh confessed, but then corrected himself. “The president is the first love of my life! Sharmila is the second and she has to compromise on that,” he laughed, adding that he has been trying to make her “a little more romantic”.

Sheikh explained that he used to be an investment banker on Wall Street, but that he currently lives in Islamabad and works as an adviser to President Asif Ali Zardari. The two met for the first time at a cabinet meeting in October 2010. Two months later, Sharmila was given a Human Rights Award by the president for which she had to fly out to Islamabad, and the two met again. They decided to go out for dinner, and even recalled how they had played Rahat Fateh Ali Khan’s Main Tenu Samjhawan Ki in the car on their way to dinner and back. The die-hard Rahat fans are so addicted to the song, they invited Rahat to their baat pakki ceremony and requested that he sing it three times.

“What makes us click is that we are so alike,” said Sharmila. “Our families suffered a lot in the times of Nawaz Sharif and Musharraf,” she continued. “That’s how we relate to and understand each other.”

Sharmila is an only child and Hashaam has three other siblings, but she says that he understands the feeling of being alone as he lived in the US for nine years. “He loves me for who I am — my virtues as well as my vices,” she said, as Sheikh left the house to catch his flight. “In the two-and-a-half years that I have known him, Hashaam sahab has stood by me like a solid rock.” She said that he doesn’t refuse her anything, and loves her even if she makes a mistake. “He is an amazing person at heart. For Valentine’s Day, he bought me a red outfit, chocolates and balloons,” she said with a smile, adding that he flew out to Dubai last year when she was there. “I believe that one day, he will buy me the whole world!”

At her event on Sunday, Sharmila wore a heavily embellished black outfit by SanaSafinaz while the groom chose a black sherwani by Deepak Perwani. She admits that she has become brand conscious after meeting Sheikh. “I carry a Louis Vuitton bag because of him as he is a totally ‘branded guy’ — it’s Armani, Gucci, Hermes or Louis Vuitton for him,” she smiled, adding that he has changed her wardrobe entirely. “I could be dressed up casually in jeans but Hashaam sahab is always dressed to kill!”

She goes back to showering him with praise, saying “I can’t seem to find any faults in him — he is such a loving and amazing person. Not many people impress me — I couldn’t have fallen in love with anyone else but him.”

When asked about the  stories surrounding her when she was single, she said she “didn’t bother with them”, adding “One trick is to not respond to these mindless rumours — they eventually subside and that’s how I have kept my sanity intact.”

With Hashaam in Islamabad and Sharmila in Karachi, I wondered where they would eventually settle down. Sharmila said that has not yet been decided. “It all depends on where politics takes us — I take things as they come,” she said. As far as the upcoming elections are concerned, she said she does want to participate in them but that the decision ultimately depends on the PPP. “My political life depends on them and they decide for me but with my personal life, I decide for myself,” she said with a smile.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 28^th, 2013.

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Posted in: LIfeStyle

2nd Test: Pakistan dismiss South Africa for 326

CAPE TOWN: South Africa were dismissed for 326 in their first innings in reply to Pakistan’s 338 on the third day of the second test at Newlands on Saturday.

South Africa had continued from 248 for seven at lunch.

Saeed Ajmal had earlier ripped through South Africa’s batting to leave them reeling on 139 for five at the end of a controversial second day in the second test.

Ajmal had grabbed five for 41 but his brilliant first-innings performance was almost overshadowed by three incidents involving umpire Steve Davis.

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Posted in: Sports

Gul Ahmed changes things up with its Eid collection

The G-Pret Eid collection 2012 is available at all Gul Ahmed stores. PHOTO: PUBLICITY

KARACHI: 

After receiving an overwhelming response for their first G-Pret Eid collection last year, textile giant Gul Ahmed has unveiled its second ready-to-wear Eid collection for women this August.

Embellished with Roberto Cavalli-inspired brooches and diamante, this prêt a porter collection contains outfits with sleek cuts and sophisticated flairs.

“G-Pret is a formal line dictated and influenced by various fashion trends and styles — both traditional and modern,” said Assistant Manager Local Markets at Gul Ahmed Textiles, Sheeza Arif. Suitable for Eid and other festive occasions, this collection is priced between Rs6,000 and Rs15,000.

As the trend of ready-to-wear apparel takes retail stores by storm, Gul Ahmed has decided to keep with its prêt wear. The concept is rather new to the brand as it launched its prêt line last year, which focused primarily on traditional cuts and styles. But 2012 has been different; their design team has produced more formal attire with contemporary cuts and creative designs. They have moved away from the traditional fitted kameezes to silhouettes and embellished motifs instead of the regular kaam.

“Things are certainly different this year,” said Arif, clearly excited about the collection. “The response was great last year so we went ahead with the idea this year as well but on a different scale.” She says this line is “a fusion of ethnic designs with Western styles — adding flairs and loose cuts.”

The collection encompasses a wide array of fabrics such as pure chiffon, chiffon silk and raw silk — all tailored to appeal to young women. Including subtle colours such as beige, off-white and baby pink, a total of 14 designs have been created for Eid, whereas the entire G-Pret line includes 25 designs with single colour variations. “We are targeting women who largely want to buy stuff that is high-end and exclusive — it is meant specifically for them,” Arif added further.

When asked why Gul Ahmed felt the need to venture into the ready-to-wear clothing market when it’s already known as one of the best quality lawn providers across the country, Arif responded, “We felt that women today don’t want to go to tailors, because of the issues related to the tailoring business.”

Present at the exhibition launch event was Ziad Bashir, Executive Director at Gul Ahmed, who said: “We are now crossing into the realm of evening and formal wear including occasions like Eid. What we are offering the customers is value for their money.” When asked whether they faced any hardships expanding into this line, Bashir responded strongly, stating that they didn’t. “It’s been a natural progression for us — starting from lawn to semi-formal lawn then formal lawn and now this venture,” he remarked, proud of the advancement. “We built the team together and I think we did it at the right time.”

The team has its fingers crossed with the launch of their second Eid collection, hoping for an optimistic response from consumers.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 11^th, 2012.

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Posted in: Entertainment

US trying to improve Af-Pak border coordination: Panetta

WASHINGTON: US Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta said that while there was no doubt that militants were crossing the Afghanistan-Pakistan border, they were trying to improve border coordination with Pakistan.

Addressing a joint press conference at the Pentagon with the US Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff General Martin Dempsey, Panetta said that cross border cooperation with Pakistan had been increasing, and that International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) commander General Allen had been meeting with Pakistan Army chief General Parvez Kayani in this regard.

He added that that Dempsey and US Central Command head General Mattis would also be meeting with Kayani.

“Pakistan has taken a positive, visible step in advancing the shared objective of a peaceful Afghanistan. Their decision to open Nato supply lines means a great deal to us,” said the Secretary of Defense.

He added that General Allen hoped Pakistan and the US would work together in identifying militants crossing the border.

India, Pakistan and Afghanistan need to cooperate

“We have always stressed on the importance of India and Pakistan working together to confront issues they face,” Panetta said.

He said that he believed there would not be stability in the region unless India, Pakistan and Afghanistan work together against common threats, adding that he has stressed upon Pakistan that terrorism represents a threat to the US and Pakistan, highlighting that many in Pakistan had died as a result of terrorist attacks.

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Posted in: Pakistan,World

Malik Riaz to depart for Pakistan shortly: Bukhari

ISLAMABAD: Malik Riaz, the Chairman of Bahria Town, will be leaving London for Pakistan shortly to record his testimony before the Supreme Court in Dr. Arsalan Iftikhar's case, said his counsel Zahid Bukhari on Sunday.
Zahid Bukhari said although Malik Riaz's doctors had advised him not to travel, the business tycoon has decided against it and will be heading back home shortly.
"He is returning to Pakistan in respect for the country's apex court," he said.
However, the sources close to Malik Riaz have said that the Bahria Town chief has already embarked on a journey back home.

source

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Posted in: Pakistan

Removing Facebook Timeline is easy if you don’t like it!

Washinton: If new Timeline feature doesn’t appeal you  and want to view old profiles, then app of TimelineRemove is the perfect extension for you.
Simple but handy tool disables the new Facebook timeline feature and restores the classic look, without changing the timeline behavior for other visitors of your Facebook profile.
The extension basically works by hiding the timeline, so you can view your own and others’ profiles in the old style.
TimelineRemove works automatically once installed, and a button is added to the toolbar that lets you toggle the timeline on and off, whenever you want. If you don’t like the new Timeline feature on Facebook and want to view profiles in the old style, then TimelineRemove is the perfect extension for you.
But the present, it is working on Google Chrome and working for FireFox and InternetExploer is undergoing.

This tiny, but handy tool disables the new Facebook timeline feature and restores the classic look, without changing the timeline behavior for other visitors of your Facebook profile.

The extension basically works by hiding the timeline, so you can view your own and others’ profiles in the old style.

TimelineRemove works automatically once installed, and a button is added to the toolbar that lets you toggle the timeline on and off, whenever you want.

The URL of the application is here.

There are TWO ways to get timeline work back ASAP on your browser:

1. Go on App’s site and download the extension again

OR

2. Click on the RemoveTimeline Logo on upper right of Chrome→ Click on Status Timeline Remove and the application will be off.

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Posted in: Business,Education,Entertainment,Health,Metropolitan,Opinion,Pakistan,Reviews,Sports,Technology,World