Jemima Goldsmith with Yasmin Whittaker-Khan at the film’s press screening, Vue, Leicester Square, 12 January 2023. Photo: ​​Sanam Hasan

What’s Love Got to Do With It? A feel-good South Asian rom-com with a sturdy message

Released in the UK on February 24 and in Pakistan on March 3, the film is a refreshing masterclass on how to adhere to the classic romantic-comedy structure, delivering a delightfully fair representation of multi-heritage families in cosmopolitan London and Lahore.

When the magic of Faiz got overshadowed by the Javed Akhtar controversy

But it was Akhtar’s few brief comments about the Mumbai attacks that spread rapidly on social media, picked up by mainstream media in Pakistan and India. Back home Akhtar had to defend his visit to Pakistan but his hosts. Faiz Festival organisers, have refused to comment on the controversy.

Zia Mohyeddin: Mourning the passing away of a progressive Pakistani poet and theatre artiste

Pakistan’s progressive movement revolved largely around the great poet Faiz Ahmed Faiz, whose work Zia Mohyeddin so eloquently recited in his signature style, his distinctive, gravelly voice set him apart from others. 

A legendary Indian songwriter, a daughter married in Pakistan - and a family torn apart

Before moving to Pakistan, Kishwar often accompanied her father to recordings after school hours in Mumbai. After marriage, with relations between the two countries deteriorating, she found herself progressively isolated from her family and the world. 

More on Medley

The amazing adventures of a Lithuanian scholar in the Indian subcontinent

The re-connection with Poska, in many ways, underlines the deep-rooted connectivity between the Indian sub-continent and Eurasia along with the eastern and central parts of Europe, much of which remains forgotten or ignored.

Humorous ghost stories in Bengali literature: Connecting oral literature tradition to the modern digital age

Over the years, these relate to representations of various regions of eastern India and, at times, the extended and larger region of erstwhile Bengal, including the present country of Bangladesh. Many of these stories also help to understand how identities are constructed across time and space in folklore and in written literature.

Bollywood’s first faltering steps abroad: The challenges of shooting of Africa mein Hind(1939-1940)

Seth Govind Das invited Basu to direct a movie based on Indian connectivity with Africa.

A light-hearted film with pan-South Asian resonance

Though these themes are presented to us in an Indian setting, they resonate with the larger South Asian context where middle-class women often find themselves similarly weighed down within domesticity, doing unacknowledged and unpaid physical and emotional work in their homes.

Rare cross-border bonding: Indian, Pakistani journalists in Nepal break misinformation barriers

“The most important legacy of the gathering is the lifelong relationships formed by journalists from Pakistan and India. Those relationships will translate into fact-based reporting on issues important to the future of both countries.”

Indian cricket star Virat Kohli makes a specially-abled Pakistani fan's day in Dubai

Noor’s patience paid off as Kohli, after he got to know about her, came to see her after India’s training session got over. Kohil met Noor and her family and clicked pictures with them

Nepal’s honey hunters find traditional livelihood under threat from 'development'

Overharvesting is not the only threat to the Himalayan giant honeybee. Across the Nepal Himalayas, earth-blasting and the construction of roads and dams is impacting the fragile mountain ecosystem

Tiger, tiger burning bright in Nepal; tiger numbers tripled as PM Deuba commends human-tiger coexistence

"The latest tiger population in Nepal is nearly three times compared to figures we had in 2009-2010, which is nothing short of historical," said Chiranjibi P. Pokharel, a tiger expert at the National Trust for Nature Conservation (NTNC)

Scientists in Pakistan develop low-cost anti-bacterial fabric with multiple uses

Speaking on the motivation behind the development, Majeed said the pandemic disrupted many imports, including medical supplies; so his team started exploring medical fabric with a focus on anti-bacterial material which could be sourced locally

In a first for Bangladesh, women outnumber men; literacy rate jumps

Significantly, the literacy rate jumped to 74.66 per cent— 81.28 per cent in the urban areas and 71.56 per cent in the rural areas—against 51.77 per cent recorded in the 2011 census

Scaling the world’s 14 highest peak twice, Nepali sherpa sets a new record

Sanu Sherpa came to Kathmandu, Nepal’s capital, in 2015 to make a simple living. Little did he know at the time that seventeen years later he would break a world record, scaling the world’s 14 highest peaks twice

Cheetahs to make a comeback to India after seven decades

The cheetahs will be relocated to Kuno, a wildlife sanctuary in the central state of Madhya Pradesh, spread across 133 sq miles. Forests in the sanctuary had earlier been home to hundreds of these Asiatic cheetahs before their extinction in India

Taliban’s new insidious plan to replace female government employees

However, replacement by men isn’t possible for every job, especially in cases where women hold higher professional skills and qualifications

Bangladesh cracks down on health officials who conducted fake Covid tests

A district court in Bangladesh has sentenced eight health officials to eleven years of rigorous imprisonment for issuing fake Covid-19 test reports

Courageous Afghan girls defy Taliban’s ban to study in secret schools

One of these secret schools is operated by a 21-year-old girl Nazanin from a house on the outskirts of Kabul. Her students, around ten in number, are almost of the same age as her.

Photo

Newsletter Subscription

The subscriber's email address.
Stay informed - subscribe to our newsletter.
Tweets about SAMonitor
SAM Facebook