Monthly Archives: April 2009
Meera from Lollywood
__________________________________________________________ Irtiza Rubab, better known as our very own Meera, is one of our top Pakistani actresses in the Lollywood Industry. She first started out her career in 1992 and has won the Best Actress award several times over the past few years. I know that some of us have mentioned Meera & her jokes […]
Aquarium
_____________________________________________________ Ever chased an aquarium? If not, you should definately check one out. I was in Atlanta, Georgia over thanksgiving of ’05 and went to the world’s largest aquarium with my cousins, which is based there. It was simply amazing. Asem Akthar, a friend of mine in Virginia recently went to one as well. It […]
Is Doha the New Dubai?
________________________________________________ Having lived abroad in the States & the United Kingdom for about a decade now, I often think of slowly making my way back closer to home. Although I was born and raised in Bahrain until I was 10 years old, I don’t think I would consider moving back there as a single, twenty-six […]
Got Food?
I just got home from work and logged on to my Gmail account. My cousin and a friend had both sent me “forwards” with these pictures, which I saw one right after the other. I know that we find it annoying and chose to ignore our parents & friends when they tell us to finish […]
Cracking the Whip
___________________________________________________________________ A friend of mine just sent me a link to a video, which is called “World – A Pakistani Underworld”. I was expecting to find out more about the Pakistani Goons & Dons and how they operate in Pakistan. Instead, the video is of two Pakistani brothers who manufacture fetish and bondage wear, earning […]
Home
_________________________________________ I got a message on my Blackberry over the weekend from a friend who lives in Washington DC. The message said – “Are you worried about the situation in Islamabad? What’s going to happen when the Taliban come there? Are your parents thinking of leaving the city and moving elsewhere? Dude, don’t go back […]
Chinese Whispers
____________________________________________________________ Crow – Chinese Whispers Yet another brilliant painting by Bilal Maqsood (member of Strings, the Band) based in Karachi, Pakistan. Although Crow – Rockstar (http://omarulhaq.wordpress.com/2009/04/06/picture-of-the-day-ouh/) is my favorite of the bunch; this one is great too! It’s about 6.5 x 4.5 and if you’re interested, you can send me a message and I can […]
Chitrali Cafe
__________________________________________________________________________ Hindukush Heights is owned by the Ulmulk family in Chitral and is one of my most favorite hotels. I won’t get into too much detail right now as I will be dedicating a post on it in the future but it’s one of the most amazing places I have been to in my entire […]
Would a big Tattoo help?
_____________________________________________________________ I have had some of my best & some of my strangest experiences while I was studying in the United States. Being a Pakistani Muslim in Worcester, a city outside of Boston, it was only natural to be questioned and followed by strangers every now and then. Although I was never personally questioned by […]
Talent
A _____________________________________________________________________________________ As you can tell by now … I’m all about promoting new talent. Once I believe in someone and their talent, I try to encourage and promote them as much as I can especially because word of mouth seems to be the best strategy to push one forward these days. “You may recognize […]
Blackberry or the iPhone?
________________________________________________________ I must admit – I’m addicted to my Blackberry Curve and am proud of it. Next stop – Blackberry Bold. I know this BB vs iPhone debate has been going on ages but for some reason… it just doesn’t come to an end! I’m not a fan of touch-screen phones so I haven’t personally […]
What about Gillette?
____________________________________________________________ In Pakistan’s Buner district on Thursday, a barber looked at the “Shave is strictly forbidden” warning that the Taliban wrote on the window of his shop. The Taliban now control the region. Picture by – Tariq Mahmood/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images published in the NY Times.
Jaws
__________________________________________________________ I took this picture with my Blackberry while I was at the Atlantis Hotel in Dubai a few days ago. Although I didn’t like the hotel much … the aquarium was amazing and brunch @ Saffron was great too! Check out the Shark and the 3 Baby Sharks that were following behind in the […]
Children of Taliban
______________________________________________________ I have been meaning to watch “Children of Taliban” for quite some time but just haven’t had the time to do so until now. Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy has done a brilliant job with this documentary and I’m truly impressed with her courage & confidence. “As her country slips further into political instability, becoming perhaps […]
Reshma
_________________________________________________ Familiar with Reshma? Well, you should be. As some of you may already know, Reshma is a brilliant folk singer in Pakistan. Along with Pakistanis sprawled all over the world, she has managed to win the hearts of many Indians and has made her mark in Bollywood as well. Although Reshma is extremely simple […]
Blunder of the day
____________________________________________________________ I am still recovering from my holiday and it’s been an exhausting second day back at work today. Around lunch time, I was busy catching up with all my e-mails and didn’t have time to go and grab a sandwich. Instead, I thought I should step out for a quick smoke as the sun […]
Media Madness
________________________________________________ Qasim Tareen, a friend of mine, posted a note on Facebook a few days ago in which he expressed his sentiments towards the Pakistani media. I have also been speaking to a few of my friends and family members in the past two years who can’t stop complaining about the media and how they […]
Alone
_______________________________________________________________________ This picture was taken from the same trip to Balakot – after the Earthquake in October of ’05. Danish & I had stopped at one of the street corners to hand out some sweaters, shoes, and food and while everyone was pushing and shoving to get to our car .. this girl was standing […]
Chitrali Fairy
_________________________________________________________________________ In September of ’08, I went up to Chitral with a few friends, which is in the Northern part of Pakistan. I usually don’t believe in magic & fairies but this is a true story, which needs to be shared with you guys. One fine afternoon, we went on a Trek, which was near the […]
Judgemental?
_______________________________________________________ Am in the middle of chasing Emirates Airline right now but just wanted quickly post this for you guys … I just logged on to Facebook and saw a friend’s status, which she had recently updated. It was of a youtube link and said “Fantastic” next to it. I clicked on the link and […]
Sex Sells
I had written a Post in the discussion thread on Smallworld.net about a year and a half ago regarding a “sex worker” in my building. Well, as you know, sex sells… and I ended up having 30,000 hits and the maximum number of comments. The story was out of control and smallworld just published a […]
Picture of the day
I went to Oxford to see my cousin a few weeks ago. Loved the city, the people, and the atmosphere. I arrived in the afternoon after taking the train from Paddington and acted like a full tourist while I was there! I took this picture a few minutes after arriving in Oxford …
Counterpoint
_________________________________________________ Andrew, a friend of mine just sent this article as a counterpoint to the “Dark side of Dubai” – an article that I had pasted in an earlier post. Check it out – If you think Dubai is Bad.. just look at your own country! -http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/sultan-sooud-al-qassemi-if-you-think-dubai-is-bad-just-look-at-your-own-country-1666748.html
Coke Studio
__________________________________________________________ In my opinion, Coke Studio is one of the most brilliant projects that has taken place in Pakistan. For those who are not familiar with it; many of our most talented artists such as Strings, Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, Ali Zafar, Ali Azmat, Ustad Hussain Baksh Gullo, Zeb & Haniya, and Sajid & Zeeshan […]
Picture of the day
——————————————————————————————— Verbier, Switzerland ’07 - A random couple had used special bricks in their Verbier home, which would never get wet! Trust me, they stayed dry even through the awful Swiss blizzard that we witnessed while we were over there and I had to take this picture just so I could prove it.
Good deed of the day
__________________________________________________________ …. or should I say good day of the week as I haven’t been updating this as often as I should be? As I was standing in line at Heathrow and right about to board my Emirates flight a few days ago, I decided to get a soda to take along on the flight. […]
High Alert
_________________________________________________________________ The western media usually tends to exaggerate and play up all that is going on in Pakistan. Unfortunately, that’s not the case this time. I have been back in the homeland for about 40 hours now and am finally experiencing it myself. Although I am in holiday mode and am enjoying the spring weather, […]
Burqa Barbie?
_______________________________________________________________ A friend of mine’s mother sent a message today. She attached a picture to the message and said “I would usually laugh at something like this …. but I didn’t even crack a smile this time as it’s the sad truth now and turning into reality in our country; Pakistan”. The picture was of […]
Good deed of the day
__________________________________________________________________________ A few hours ago, I got a call from a few friends who were near my apartment. They asked me to come down and join them for some sheesha & coffee as I’m leaving on holiday and won’t be in the city for some time. As I took the lift downstairs, I remembered that […]
Picture of the day
_______________________________ Shameful - Published in Daily Times ’09
Greece
__________________________________________________________ Although I haven’t traveled around the world as much as I would have liked to, I can confidently say that London is one of my most favorite cities in the world. We used to come as a family during the summer time all through my childhood and I would spend my time feeding the […]
Picture of the day
________________________________________________________ Crow – Rockstar One of the many brilliant paintings by Bilal Maqsood (member of Strings, the Band) based in Karachi, Pakistan. It’s about 6.5 x 4.5 and if you’re interested, you can send me a message and I can put you in touch with the appropriate contact.
This Gandhi is no Mahatma
___________________________________________________________________ Have you heard of Varun Gandhi, a 28 year old educated politician, grandson of Indira Gandhi, abusing Muslims in India? I hadn’t heard much about him in the past but have seen his name floating about articles for quite some time now. I personally know a lot of Indians and am sure that […]
The dark side of Dubai
_____________________________________________ As shocking as it may be to some of you who have only been hearing about the elite expat lifestyle in Dubai… there is a dark side as well. (On a side note, although it’s necessary to read this and be aware of the situation… I completely agree with Shujah’s opinion in the “comment” […]
Honeymooning with Saddam
_____________________________________________________________ I’m not sure who would want to go to Iraq for their honeymoon but I’m just going to let it slide and move on to the my next question. WHO will want to sleep in Saddam’s bed let alone have their honeymoon in his bedroom? Saddam’s Bed awaits Daring Honeymooners Matthew Campbell – Times […]
Good deed of the day
_____________________________________________________________ I’m still getting used to this blog so please be patient with me & my random thoughts for now. I have been away from Pakistan for about a decade now and have missed out on all sorts of different occasions. Whether it was my parents 25th wedding anniversary, the birth of my cousin, or […]
Chasing thoughts
_____________________________________________ Thanks for taking out the time to come to this website. I have been meaning to start a Blog for quite some time now but just haven’t had the time or motivation to do so. Well, until now. A friend of mine just BB messaged me and said “Oms.. so what’s the purpose of […]
Mush is back
__________________________________________________ An audience at a conclave in New Delhi cornered former President Pervez Musharraf on several issues a few weeks ago. I’m not sure if you have had a chance to see this yet but I just came across this thanks to Hammad & Tooba and would encourage you to see this as well. Unfortunately, […]
Promoting Prostitution
______________________________________________ Promoting Prostitution? July – ’07 A friend of mine was visiting for a few days so I’ve had a hectic weekend but enjoyed catching up with him as well. I dropped him at his cousin’s place on Sunday evening and decided to walk it home as the weather was nice, which is rare for […]
Interview with SmallWorld
__________________________________________________ Interview with ASW – http://www.asmallworld.net February, ’08 Charlie Wilson’s War (2007) is a film based on the novel of the same name, written by George Criles in 2003. Based on a true story, the film follows the story of a determined Democratic Texas Congressman Charlie Wilson (played by Tom Hanks), who, with significant effort […]
Nihari Crunch
___________________________________________ Financial Crisis – Explanation, Desi style iPhajja is a famous seller of siri paya and nihari in old, walled city of Lahore. Phajja is the proprietor of a Siri-Paya and Nehari Shop in Lahore . Sales are low and, in order to increase them, he comes up with a plan to allow his customers […]
Mumbai Madness
_____________________________________________ November ’08 A few of my friends have moved back to Mumbai after completing their studies and many of them live around the affected areas. Luckily, all of them are safe and sound but the past few days have been extremely depressing, to say the least. Unfortunately, it’s only been a few months […]
Sex Worker
SEX-WORKER As some of you may remember from last year… I had moved into a new flat, a refurbished hotel in London, and ended up staying across the hall from a high-class sex worker (I still think it sounds more appropriate than saying she was a prostitute). Keep in mind that since it was previously a hotel..it […]
How to take a Holiday in Pakistan
By Hugh Sykes BBC News, Pakistan ’08 Suicide bombs, battles in tribal areas, and states of emergency tend to put off casual tourists. But the impression such events convey can often be misleading and unrepresentative of a country as a whole. A few days ago I was sitting in a cafe sipping best Italian espresso […]
Third time is Never the Charm
THIRD TIME IS NEVER THE CHARM Omar Ul Haq December ’07 I spent the first ten years of my life in Bahrain, and grew up remarkably unaware of my family’s status in Pakistan. My parents made a concerted effort to keep my brother and I out of the political spotlight, which was probably a good […]
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