Profit Taking Pulls KSE-100 Index 143 Points Down

KARACHI: Profit taking at Karachi Stock Exchange (KSE) on Wednesday took away some gains from previous sessions, as the benchmark KSE 100-share Index slipped 143 points to close at 24,445.
The trade volume stood strong at 200 million shares with scrips of 363 companies exchanging hands. Shares of 147 companies registered gains and 188 dropped while 28 closed at the opening rates.
KSE-30 Index finished the day 102 points down at 18,383.

Punjab University Debars 21 IJT Students For Two Weeks

LAHORE: The administration of Punjab University (PU) has debarred 21 students associated with Islami Jamiat Talaba (IJT) from entering classes for two weeks on charges of manhandling teachers and causing riots.
According to PU sources, the disciplinary committee handed down the above punishment to the students after receiving a letter of complaint from teachers.
The teachers had listed seven charges against the 21 students including sparking riots and manhandling teachers.
Most of these students are from the Law College and belong to IJT.

Supreme Court To Announce Decision On Raja Pervez Ashraf Uplift Schemes

 ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court of Pakistan will announce decision about the cases pertaining to uplift schemes initiated by former prime minister Raja Pervez Ashraf on Thursday.
The Pervez Ashraf government had approved Rs52 billion uplift schemes in his last days of government.

Fast and Furious Star Died from Trauma, Thermal Injuries

LOS ANGELES: "Fast and Furious" star Paul Walker died of "traumatic and thermal injuries" in a fiery car crash, coroners said Wednesday, as the franchise's makers said they were shutting down production at least temporarily.

Walker, 40, was killed Saturday when he was in the passenger seat of a red Porsche sports car driven by his friend Roger Rodas in the Californian city of Santa Clarita, north of Los Angeles.

Rodas died of "multiple traumatic injuries," according to preliminary autopsy results, while Walker´s cause of death was listed as the "combined effects of traumatic and thermal injuries."

The results of toxicology tests are still pending, and could take six to eight weeks, the LA County Coroner´s office said.

Meanwhile makers of the blockbuster film franchise announced they have shut down production of "Fast and Furious 7" following Walker´s death.

"Right now, all of us at Universal are dedicated to providing support to Paul´s immediate family and our extended ´Fast & Furious´ family of cast, crew and filmmakers," said a statement cited by industry journal Variety.

New Season Of Koffee With Karan

Karan Johar is back with the new season of Koffee With Karan. The director is all set to host a new season of Koffee With Karan and if the teaser promo is anything to go by, this new outing will be just as spicy as the last few.

The promos shows Karan Johar singing and dancing with chorus girls, promising shocking revelations about all your favourite Bollywood stars.

Previous seasons of the show have seen Deepika Padukone and Sonam Kapoor fling mud at Ranbir Kapoor and Kareena Kapoor call John Abraham ‘expressionless.’

If sources are to believed, the season, that starts on December 1, will kick off with an interview with Salman Khan a coup for Johar since Salman and KJo’s pal Shah Rukh are still not entirely on talking terms.

Federal Interior Minister Chauhdry Nisar Ali Khan Suspends Police Official for Filling Wrong FIR Against Singer Annie

ISLAMABAD: Federal Interior Minister Chauhdry Nisar Ali Khan issued orders to suspend and arrest an official of Islamabad police for filing a wrong FIR against singer Annie.

Ch. Nisar said in a statement, over responsibilities of the police, on Thursday that the police should concentrate on capturing the criminal elements and maintaining honor of common citizens’ homes and prestige, instead of poking into the domestic quarrels of the people.

Earlier few days ago, Malik Noured Awan, husband of singer Annie Khalid, filed a FIR against his wife in Kohsar Police Station, alleging she had cheated him.

The police reached on conclusion, after investigation, that the allegations were false and the FIR was registered wrongly against the female singer from her husband.

When Ch. Nisar came to know about this false FIR, he issued orders to take that police official into custody after suspending, who filed wrong FIR against singer Annie at behest of her husband.

Kim Kardashian to take Kanye West’s Last Name after Wedding

Reality TV star Kim Kardashian will take her fiance Kanye West’s name and make Kardashian her middle name once they tie the knot.

The 33-year-old reality star made the revelation on the red carpet of her birthday party at Tao in Las Vegas last week, reported Aceshowbiz.

The ‘Keeping Up with the Kardashians’ star also talked about her surprise engagement which took place at San Francisco’s AT&T Park on her birthday.

“I cried afterwards. I was shaking. And when you’re like, ‘Is this really happening?’ But you’re just shaking… I honestly had no idea, none whatsoever. I knew we were going to San Francisco for my birthday, because he had a show there the next night. So I thought it was just a birthday dinner.

“My eyes were closed and then I got up and still the whole time I didn’t think it was a proposal. I thought it was dinner on the baseball field and we had a nice orchestra. I still didn’t get it… when he got on his knee, I kind of figured out what was going on,” the mother of one, who admitted that she left the wedding plan to West, added.

Kareena was Paid Rs 1.5 Crore for Dancing on TV

Kareena Kapoor Khan charged a whopping amount for dancing on a reality TV show ‘Arab’s Got Talent’ in Lebanon

Some people are simply lucky. According to sources, Kareena Kapoor had been holidaying in Beirut, Lebanon when she was offered a chance to put up a dance performance on the reality show, ‘Arab’s Got Talent’. In return, the actress apparently was paid a whopping amount of Rs 1.5 crore.

Says a source, `Bebo performed the opening act on the show and also attended the launch of a new channel the next day. She had also been promoting her upcoming film ‘Gori Tere Pyaar Mein’ but managed to take some time off.`

While trade sources say that actresses usually do not charge such a high fee for a single performance but Kareena’s popularity in the Middle East helped her earn big moolah. Says a source from the show, `Kareena is immensely popular in the Arab countries. The organisers also went home happy as they received a great response from the audiences.` Kareena’s spokesperson remained unavailable for comment.

Bigg Boss 7 - Salman Khan Criticised for Taking Tanisha's Side

MUMBAI (Web Desk) - Usually a great attraction for the show, superstar Salman Khan has been getting both pats on the back and brickbats on the microblogging site Twitter for being partial towards "Bigg Boss-Saath 7" contestant and actress Tanisha Mukherjee.

Salman gave an earful to contestant Kushal Tandon, a TV actor, on his bad behaviour towards the actress and many appreciated his stand. But others felt that the popular host is biased when it comes to Tanisha and allege that he defends her due to the fact that she is actress Kajol s sister

"A clear cheat by Salman Khan today (Saturday) to support Tanisha ... why because she is from Mukherjee family or she is a relative of Ajay Devgn," said a Twitter user Shweta.

While others think that Armaan Kohli and Tanisha s Bollywood background is what is making the Salman choose them over the others.

"Salman Khan is so partial towards Tanisha Mukherjee and Armaan Kohli. Bollywood is backing them and so is Salman Khan," Pratibha tweeted.

Salman was visibly upset when he featured on the show Saturday because of the fight between Tanisha and Kushal and even said this would be his last season as host. Many twitterati supported his stand.

Pakistan Singing Legend Zubaida Khannum Passes Away in Lahore

LAHORE (Web Desk) – Zubaida Khannum emerged on the film scene in 1950s when she started her career as a playback singer. She also performed as an actress in films like Dhullah Bhatti and Pattay Khan. Faisal, son of Zubaida Khanuum, is a known cameraman and director.

Zubaida Khanum epitomized the robustness of the rhythm based music of Lahore. Zubaida’s parents had migrated from Amritsar and settled down in Lahore, but Zubaida Khanum did not belong to any musical ‘gharana’ and singing was not part of her family norms.

It was purely her passion and talent plus financial need, which made her enter films and then turned her big in the film industry. Before Noor Jehan changed the concept of playback singing in the 60s, Zubaida Khanum ruled the Urdu/Punjabi playback singing from her Lahorian loftiness for a large part of the 50′s.

Zubaida’s thrillingly adventurous vocals which sang of love and life without regrets, filled a vacuum in Pakistani playback singing when Nazir and Swaranlata signed Zubaida Khanum for ‘Shehri Babu’ in 1953.

Rashid Attre was the composer. Gallan sun kai mahi dai naal meriyan, Raatan merian bana ke Rabba immediately brought Zubaida’s voice to the forefront of playback singers in Lahore.

During early years, Zubaida also appeared as guest artist and brief roles in handful of films including ‘Patey Khan’ and Morni’. This was more for fun, which did not last long. However, what went on was Zuabida’s sweet voice filmed mostly on Musarrat Nazir and Sabiha, the two leading ladies from the fifties.

Although she could sing all type of songs with equal ease, it was her frothy and sensuous songs where she had no equal. Whenever the film required club or dance number, Zubaida was number one choice for any music director be it Khurshid Anwar, Rashid Attre or Feroze Nizami.

Juhi Chawla Gears Up Against Mobile Phones

MUMBAI (Web Desk) - Actress-turned-social activist Juhi Chawla has highlighted the harmful effects of radiation from the mobile phones and towers and urged people to use land-line telephones. Juhi Chawla, along with a citizens  group, organised a press conference to talk about the issue.

"Why don t the mobile operator companies give us some information about how the mobile phone works and that one should use it carefully? I would say for long-duration calls, one should use either landline phones or connect earphones to your mobile and then use it for longer call duration," Juhi told the reporters.

"I think it s just lack of awareness and information, and that is what I am trying to promote as we all carry a mobile phone in our pockets," added the actress. Juhi, a mother of two, also requested parents to keep their kids away from the mobile phones as they are more prone to its health hazards.

According to reports, earlier this month, the actress and her fellow activist Prakash Munshi asked the state government to ensure that the rules for mobile phone towers curb the radiation hazard. The actress will soon be seen in producer Anubhav Sinha's " Gulaab Gang"

Transformers director Michael Bay attacked on set in Hong Kong

HONG KONG: Hollywood director Michael Bay was attacked by a man wielding an air conditioning unit while shooting the latest “Transformers” film in Hong Kong, he said. Police arrested two men in the early hours of Thursday after the attack on the “Armageddon” director, who was on the first day of location shooting in Hong Kong filming “Transformers: Age of Extinction”.

Bay recounted details of the incident on his website, while warning that “the story... being passed around is not all true!” A spokesman denied reports that the 48-year-old was injured in the assault. Police handed the case to specialist anti-triad units reserved for tackling Hong Kong's notorious criminal gangs. The men confronted Bay and his film crew in the city's Quarry Bay district, claiming they were owed HK$100,000 ($12,900) compensation for filming in the area.

Violet Fonce's Haute Couture makes Waves in Karachi

KARACHI: Violet Fonce – The Trend setter wardrobe by Kiran and Nargis has launched its collection with Nadia Hussain here in Karachi, said a press release issued here today.

According to Chief Executive Violet Fonce Ms. Kiran Sheikh, the wardrobe is all about the personas of a woman just as there are all so alluring different shades of a woman.

In addition to that she said that Violet Fonce in its apparels seamlessly fine-draws aesthetic elements that push the envelope of eroticism as well as amazing cuts further producing some of the finest pieces seen in prêt-à-porter today.

From their bold animal prints to their unique use of the basic black, hot red they draw inspiration from various worldly eccentricities. Their women's wear glorifies feminine sensuality to the fullest.

Ms. Nargis, the managing partner said, “We believe in exploring a "new you" everyday experimenting with new styles, cuts, look, and yes of course mood on top, is our strategy.”

“We attempt to satisfy our customer's desire for aesthetically designed clothing & also anticipate the customers’ changing demands and new trends of the market. We deal in haute couture and ready to wear everyday apparels.”

The wardrobe was launched at a famous hotel in Karachi and the event was attended by a large gathering of media, celebrities, other dignitaries, and hoards of fashion lovers.

They said, “Whenever we fulfill a goal, we have 10 new goals lined up ahead. Our aim is to become a lifestyle brand –InshaAllah-- and to retail across at least 5-6 countries in the next decade with a full line of accessories, shoes, bags, eastern and western women’s wear, menswear, children’s wear and the list goes on, and on.”

Shah Rukh Khan says Bollywood Thrives on Family

SYDNEY: India's biggest film star Shah Rukh Khan says the family spirit of Bollywood movies is what makes them so popular while revealing he struggled to combine dance with serious acting.

In a career spanning three decades, Khan has made himself one of the biggest box office draws in Bollywood as the hero of romantic dramas and high-octane action flicks, and he said he quickly learned there are certain ingredients that make a movie successful.

"India's so diverse with 1.2 billion people (and) not extremely rich in some places," he told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation during a just-ended visit to Sydney for the Indian arts festival "Parramasala".

"When people go to watch a film, they like to think of it as an event for the whole family for the whole year -- so the grandmother goes and the great grandson goes.

"So you've got to make a film which includes an interest for everyone a little bit of action, a little bit of fights, a little bit of song, a little bit of crying, a little bit of happiness and a big climax."

Khan, whose most recent movie "Chennai Express" has smashed box office records in India, said that family spirit had helped Bollywood also appeal to international audiences.

"(Some fans in Germany) said 'Indian films provide us with that button -- you put it on and you feel connected'," he said. "It kind of takes you back to your roots and culture," he said, adding that "in this fast-paced world ... people want to look back and think of all the good things. Why don't we sing and dance a little more in our families?"

While singing and dancing is a crucial element in any Bollywood film, Khan, whose popularity is such that he now has more than five million Twitter followers, admitted that he initially struggled to integrate this with his serious acting background in English theater.

"I used to find it awkward to begin with, but then I suddenly realized as an actor that given the right kind of a film, character and motivation, it's perhaps easier than going into an unnatural space and trying to make it look as real as possible," he told the broadcaster. "The first couple of years I had an issue and perhaps that's why I got accepted because I did it a little differently... because I would try to give some logic to it and I think this fitted for people to think there's a new way of doing it." (AFP)

Miss Universe in Trouble for Taj Mahal Photo Shoot

LUCKNOW (AP) - Indian police have filed a case against Miss Universe, American Olivia Culpo, for an unauthorized fashion shoot at the Taj Mahal, India's white-marble monument to love, a police officer said Thursday.

Police Inspector Sushant Gaur said Culpo and others in her group are accused of violating India s Heritage Act. Culpo, from Cranston, Rhode Island, was on a 10-day visit to India. He said they shot a commercial for footwear at the Taj Mahal on Sunday without the permission of the state-run Archaeological Survey of India. Police acted on a complaint received from the ASI on Thursday, Gaur said.

If found guilty, they can be jailed for up to two years and fined 100,000 rupees ($1,600), Guar said. Indian police file a case as a first step in investigating a complaint. They formally charge a suspect in court at the end of the investigation. Indian media said commercial activity is banned on the premises of the Taj Mahal, a World Heritage Site.

Culpo posed for photographs wearing one sandal, holding another in her hand and keeping another pair on the bench she was sitting on, Guar said. Culpo left India on Sunday night. A representative in India declined to comment.

Pakistan's Most Anticipated Film Waar to be released on Eidul Adha

KARACHI: The action movie ‘Waar’ will be released on this Eid al-Adha, directed by Bilal Lashari while written and produced by Dr. Hassan Waqas Rana, ARY News reported on Saturday.

The movie comes under the banner of ARY Films and Mandviwalla Entertainment, holds a significant importance to every Pakistani due to its resemblance with the real issues of the country.

‘Waar’ is Pakistan’s highest budgeted movie, it cost about Rs. 170 million. The cast of film includes Shaan Shahid, Meesha Shafi, Ali Azmat, Shamoon Abbasi and Ayesha Khan, among others.

The first promo of the movie went on air exactly two years back but due to the uncertain hurdles, the movie failed to make its way to the cinemas.

Australian Men Consider Hugh Jackman as the Ideal Modern Male

Hollywood: A study has revealed that Australian men consider Hugh Jackman as the ideal modern male. The research found that men appreciated the kind, caring, happily married, successful, masculine and humble nature represented by Jackman.

The study found that men think that the 'X Men' star represents the evolution of Australian men from macho larrikin beer-swiller to well-groomed, sensitive and polished. According to 'The Modern Male' study, men between the age of 16 and 70 consistently nominated Jackman as the public figure they most admired, and saw him as a true versatile and nice gentleman.

Social trends expert Neer Korn said that celebs like Glenn McGrath, Dick Smith, Michael Hussey, Adam Hills and the fictional Dave Rafter were also highlighted as desirable ideals of manhood in the study. Korn said that men think the way the 44-year-old actor starts off by saying how much he loves his wife, whenever he is giving a speech, is very brave.

The study showed that McGrath was looked up to for his stoicism and charity work, Hussey was admired for being a family man who excels at his sport whereas Clark was recognized for being well groomed, successful and professional. The research found that Shane Warne was classed as a fallen idol, and was regarded as too plastic and no longer authentic.

Pakistani Actor Faran Tahir replaces Khali in Film Starring Arnold and Sylvester

Hollywood: Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger, who will be teaming up in the upcoming action-thriller Escape Plan could have had some Indian company, had things worked out according to the 'plan.'

According to sources, Stallone was keen on having Indian origin wrestler, The Great Khali play the part of the chief warden of the jail from where the two inmates plan to escape. However, things didn't work out owing to Khali's exclusive contract with the World Wrestling Entertainment Federation, forcing him to let go off the major Hollywood project.

A top-source close to the film's production told foreign media: "Sylvester Stallone recommended Khali for the role. They have interacted with each other on various occasions in the past and Stallone was keen to have him as a part of the film."

Added the same source, "However, the federation's contract doesn't allow Khali to sign up for any movies - at least not as of now."

Eventually, the role was altered and offered to Pakistani actor Faran Tahir, who was recently seen as President Patel in the Matt Damon-starrer 'Elysium'. 'Escape Plan' also features Jim Cavaizel and 50 Cent in important roles.