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A Lahori in Perth
Moving is hard - we all know it. Packing, unpacking, settling down in a new place, adjusting to the new neighbourhood and surroundings is all exhausting and takes a significant toll. However all of...
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What? Why? How?! Saeed Ajmal…
As I sit here, I type this in disbelief. Saeed Ajmal has been banned. Read that statement. Allow it to sink in. Have you managed to wrap your head around it? Does it hurt? If you’re a cricket lover...
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In defence of the ‘fat person’ sitting next to you on a plane
The hardest thing to do is to empathise with a person who is causing you inconvenience; to contain your righteous anger, with a self-reminder that the person doesn’t intend to bother you, and is...
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This is for Hobart
The morning of November 22, 1999 was nippy and blustery, typical Karachi winter weather. I woke up early with an air of expectation. Christmas was coming early this year and Eid was going to follow....
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Steven Smith – Much more than just an ‘accidental hero’
Australia needed someone to take a stand for them, and once again, Steven Smith came to the rescue. There is nothing more to be said to praise this young lad who became the first batsman in cricketing...
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The miracle of 1992: When all hope was lost…
“At the rock bottom in morale.” Imran Khan said this about his team two weeks before Pakistan lifted the World Cup at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) in 1992. If the 1992 World Cup taught...
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It is time we stop glorifying Shahid Afridi
On Monday, during the Pakistan versus UAE game, Shahid Afridi became the fourth Pakistani and the 27th cricketer overall to score 8000 runs in ODIs. [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="600"] Photo:...
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How I came to own the sweater Wasim Akram wore at the 1992 World Cup final
Neatly folded away in a box at the back of my study is a short-sleeved sweater. It is fluorescent lime-green, with red, blue and white stripes across the shoulders. It is undeniably hideous. Whoever...
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The sheila from Pakistan
There was not a single person in sight. Not a single one. My father asked me to describe the first thing I saw when I went out on the street early in the morning. Perhaps I could make up something. “I...
View ArticleWith Zidane back on the sidelines, will Real Madrid make the most of the...
For much of the 2018-19 season, Real Madrid’s campaign has been driven by pessimism and trepidation. From mediocre performances on the field to a lack of purpose off it, the Los Blancos found...
View ArticleWhy is the US making a mountain out of the Masood Azhar molehill?
The United States has introduced a United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolution to blacklist Masood Azhar as an international terrorist. Azhar is the leader of Jaish-e-Mohammed (banned in Pakistan...
View ArticleKnock knock! Annabelle is coming home and things are about to get real scary
Following the Marvel path, The Conjuring universe has grown steadily over the last six years through both, the increasing returns that most films in the franchise have delivered and in stature through...
View ArticleIndia’s ‘Operation Isolation’ and the soft power of sports
“Our message is stronger than ever. Please stop the fighting. Please stop the killing. Please drop your guns.” Juan Antonio Samaranch, President International Olympic Committee speaking at the Winter...
View ArticleWhen khudkushi became her only freedom
The sky was a pool of black ink, dusted with stars at midnight. Arsh looked out from the window — she saw many little streets sprawled out below. She had only known these streets from inside the walls...
View ArticleIran and Iraq may not be tourist hot spots, but they offer a spiritual...
I was recently invited to a trip to Iran and Iraq by a group of close friends from Lahore, and as I had never been to these states before, I decided to take the opportunity to visit the shrines...
View ArticleRawalpindi: A chaotic labyrinth, caught between heritage and heresy
In the post-modern world, the topography of the city has undergone a drastic shift. Rapid urbanisation and growing job opportunities have resulted in many cities in the developing world being swamped...
View ArticleRaw and poignant, A Place for Us beautifully sheds light on familial love
It had been some time since I cried while reading a book. And A Place for Us changed that. Fatima Farheen Mirza’s dazzling debut novel tells the story of a South Asian Muslim family living in America....
View ArticleSea Prayer by Khaled Hosseini: A father’s lament of the barbarity we call...
“My dear Marwan, I look at your profile, In the glow of this three-quarter moon, my boy, Your eyelashes like calligraphy, Closed in guileless sleep. I said to you, ‘Hold my hand. Nothing bad will...
View ArticleIs Pakistan’s N-CPEC+ vision finally beginning to take shape?
Pakistan’s unique geostrategic location at the crossroads of East, South, West, and Central Asia enables it to function as the “Zipper of Eurasia”, as I wrote over half a decade ago in September 2015...
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