Gaza and Instagram make an explosive mix in Hollywood
Hollywood celebrities are paying the price for taking sides in the Gaza war — plastering their social media accounts with slogans such as “Free Palestine” or “I stand with Israel”.…
Instagram departures add to woes for Facebook
The departure of Instagram co-founders Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger adds to the woes of parent firm Facebook as it tries to repair its image hurt by privacy scandals and…
India-Pakistan conflict hits shared love of film, music
While conflict raged between the powerful militaries of India and Pakistan, a battle was also fought on the cultural front lines despite years of shared love for films and music.…
Misogyny is the muscle of patriarchy
Seventeen-year-old Sana Yousaf was shot dead in her Islamabad home. Murdered, allegedly, by a male person who felt entitled to her attention, her affection, and ultimately, her life. Sana was…
Leveraging the hope renewal
Doomed. Lost cause. Over and gone. Done and dusted. Hopeless. This was the state of sentiments in the country till 10th of May 2025. Business confidence had nosedived. Consumer confidence…
The pageantry of pretence
I came of age in a world where influence hides behind humility. Decision-makers whose signatures alter the lives of millions routinely wheel luggage through airport terminals without demanding a floral…
About face
SINCE returning to Pakistan in 2017, with each passing year, I have noted how folks are beginning to look the same. Nowhere is this more visible than the salon, a…
Humour on the battlefield
IF there was very one obvious lesson from the tumultuous week of conflict we have just left behind, it is that different nations deal with war in remarkably different ways.…
The new age of darkness
In Pakistan, 65 per cent of the population is currently aged under 30 years. Sixty-three per cent of this population is aged between 15 and 30 years. In other words,…
The freedom to fly solo
“FEMINISM convinced women they could have it all. Now they’re 40, independent and crying in a very nice empty apartment.” So wrote Nandi on X. The response was swift as the ‘feminists’…
