Great painter Sadequain’s anniversary today

TrendPK.com
KARACHI: Syed Sadequain Ahmed Naqvi, who is also often referred to as Sadequain Naqqash, or just Sadequain is being remembered on his death anniversary today (Friday).

The great painter of Pakistan, Sadequain was born in 1930 in Amroha, UP, India. At the age of 31, his work won recognition at the 1961 Paris Biennale.

Sadequain had a prolific career and much of his work is displayed in public places. During his life, Sadequain became a cult figure with a large following from all walks of life. The content of his work has wider appeal, and the early works addressed social evils. In the later decades, Sadequain used the unifying spirit of calligraphy to appeal to the masses.

Sadequain was responsible for the renaissance of Islamic Calligraphy in Pakistan. He was one of the greatest calligraphers of his time who transformed the art of calligraphy into eye-catching expressionist paintings.

In Pakistan, the art of calligraphy was relegated to a second class status until Sadequain adapted this medium in the late nineteen sixties.

Sadequain also painted in bold form the poetic verses of Ghalib, Iqbal and Faiz, which illustrate his love for classical literature. He belonged to the school of thought, which enriched realism with lyricism.

Sadequain wrote thousand of quartets and published them. Sadequain is the only painter who has been copied openly and widely by many painters and even the copies fetch large sums to the copiers, an irony since the artist himself hardly ever sold his works in spite of offers coming from the royals and the common public. As an example his masterpiece rendition of Sureh-e-Rehman has been copied widely by many known painters of the modern era.

The brush strokes stopped on February 10, 1987 in Karachi, when the greatest of the painters and calligraphists was just 57. Many have imitated his work since then, but he remains to this date a very class of his own, which cannot be imitated, copied or reproduced. TrendPK

Please click ‘Video’ button to watch this news.

Sarah Jane Dias shoots for Pepsi commercial with Ranbir Kapoor

She’s playing a good game ever as she is set to make her debut with Abhishek Bachchan starrer Game, and even before her first film is out in the theatres worldwide, she has already shot with her second co-star Ranbir Kapoor.

You heard! Sara Jane Dias tells me, “I just shot a commercial with Ranbir Kapoor a few days ago for Pepsi and he again, like Abhishek Bachchan, is so down to earth and a great guy.”

Yes, she has shot a commercial with Ranbir Kapoor but that ain’t a bad start either. I mean, to be paired opposite India’s best and current heart-throb is an achievement for a newcomer like Sara.

She further adds, “Despite the fact that he is from a filmy royalty, he is really well read and well spoken. He knows how to hold a conversation and it’s nice to be able to meet people like Ranbir Kapoor because it’s only when you meet such people you come to know that they are normal.”

So impressed with Ranbir’s professionalism, she said, “He is a thorough professional. He comes on the sets, does his work and then leaves the moment the shoot is over. No more time to loiter around.”

She ends the talk but not before confessing her favourite Ranbir Kapoor film. “I loved him in Raajneeti and Ajab Prem Ki Gazab Kahaani.”

Yeh hi hai right choice baby! Aha!

‘Laker Girl’ Jeanie’s book details life secrets

LOS ANGELES: Anybody who has ever worked for a family business knows it is hard to juggle the competing issues of work life versus family life.

But when your family business is as high profile as professional basketball’s Los Angeles Lakers — one of the winningest championship teams of all time — the job can be even more challenging. Add in that you are dating the team’s coach, and it gets even more complicated.

Welcome to the world of Jeanie Buss and her memoir “Laker Girl,” which is currently in bookstores.

Buss is executive vice president of business operations for the Lakers, one of the world’s best known sports franchises. She is the daughter of team owner, Dr. Jerry Buss, and sister to executive vice president of player personnel, Jim Buss. As important, she is the girlfriend of coach Phil Jackson.

She calls juggling her personal and her business life one of the most challenging issues she faces, day-to-day.

“My dad is very clear about family time being family time and not letting business encroach on that. And if there is a serious business issue, we make an appointment, sit down and have a meeting and keep it separate,” Buss told Reuters.

“Anybody who’s in a family business will agree that it’s really hard to keep boundaries, yet it’s really important to keep the sanity of the family,” she said.

Buss is, perhaps, the biggest Laker booster of them all, and it comes across in “Laker Girl.” Readers gain insight into the team during its championship season of 2009-2010, as well as into Buss’s life with Jackson and her career in business.

During the last season, Buss wrote in a daily journal and her thoughts on the team’s ups-and-downs over roughly eight months provide a timeline for “Laker Girl.”

She said that one question she is often asked is what it’s like to be a woman working in such a storied sports franchise, and by writing in journal form she could “share in real time, the highs and the lows” of working for the team.

Interspersed between the journal entries are chapters on her father’s start in southern California real estate, in which he amassed the fortune he used to purchase the Lakers in 1979.

Buss also shares her own work experiences with readers, starting out as a 19 year-old promoter of World Team Tennis matches in the late 1970s and moving on to her work with the Lakers, helping market the team and sell merchandise associated with it and its players, including Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol.

When asked what the Laker brand stands for, she is quick to reply. “In one word, I would say winning.

“My dad…he’s an American story. He is a self-made man who used education to pull himself out of a poor childhood,” Buss said. “He built an empire, but all the time being a fan. For him, he runs the team as a family and its fans like to win.”

“Laker Girl” offers readers some basic business tips as Buss relates experiences about being a highly-placed executive in a male-dominated business.

“You’ve got to stay true to yourself,” Buss said. “You have to have discipline and know your stuff and if people try to dismiss you, that’s their loss.

“Know what you’re good at, what your talents are, and hone those skills. That is what will help you succeed,” she said.

And, of course, she addresses the inevitable: whether Jackson will ever pop the marriage question.

Hint: the final answer is on the last page.

US pressures Pakistan for Raymond release

LAHORE: The United States on Friday renewed demands for Pakistan to immediately release a detained American official who Washington says acted in self defence when he shot dead two men.

The latest US call came hours after Pakistani police rejected the self-defence claim of Raymond Davis, who shot dead two men in broad daylight, and accused him of cold-blooded murder as a court extended his remand.

“As a member of the administrative and technical staff at the US embassy in Islamabad, Raymond Davis is entitled to full immunity from criminal prosecution by Pakistan under the Vienna convention,” US Consul General Carmela Conroy said.

Reading out a written statement to media in Lahore, Conroy, who met Davis in jail, said that under the convention, “he should be freed immediately”.

“We need to resolve this case immediately and continue our work, including cooperation in education and health, our common fight against extremist violence, and building bridges between the people of Pakistan and America.”

“We regret that authorities did not consider… eyewitness accounts and physical evidence when they stated that this was not a case of self-defence,” she added.

Lahore’s police chief Aslam Tareen had told a press conference Friday morning that “It was cold-blooded murder.”

On January 28, the US embassy identified him as a “staff member of the US consulate general in Lahore”, the next day as a “diplomat assigned to the US embassy in Islamabad”.

Under international laws, embassy diplomats have full diplomatic immunity whereas consular officials are liable for detention in case of grave crimes.

“This incident was a tragedy, and we feel tremendous sorrow over the loss of life. We extend our deep sympathy to all family members who have been affected,” Conroy said, but refused to take any questions. AGENCIES

French first lady Carla turns to music again

PARIS: French President Nicolas Sarkozy’s wife Carla Bruni is currently recording her fourth album in Paris and not as reported in Los Angeles, her agent said Friday.

The supermodel-turned-pop star is writing the lyrics and the music for the new album, the release date for which has not yet been made public. Some press reports said she was planning to record the work in the United States.

The French first lady’s last album “Comme si de rien n’etait” (“As if Nothing Had Happened”), a collection of folk-pop songs mostly penned by Bruni, was released in 2008 and has sold about two million copies.

Bruni made headlines last week when the Cannes film festival announced that a Woody Allen movie in which she has a tiny part would open the glitzy 10-day event.

The romantic comedy “Midnight in Paris,” with a starry cast that includes Oscar-winner Marion Cotillard and US actors Owen Wilson and Adrien Brody, will be shown out of competition at the world’s most prestigious film bash. AGENCIES

PM Gilani removes 4 federal, 5 state ministers

The sacked ministers include Farzana Raja, Maulana Abdul Ghafoor Haideri, Salman Farooqi and Dr. Ishfaq. According to Cabinet Division, Federal Ministers Pir Syed Fazal Ali Shah Gilani, Salman Farooqi, Khali Ahmed, Ch. Abdul Ghafoor and Farzana Raja and State Ministers Salim Mandwiwala, Dr. Ishfaq Ahmed, Maulana Abdul Ghafoor Haideri and Dr. Nadeemul Haq have been removed from their positions. The sacked ministers would continue their work on other government posts. All the privileges, facilities, security and houses would be taken back from the ministers.

Lisa Ray to open yoga studio in Toronto

Marriage seems far away from Lisa Ray’s mind. Speaking exclusively, Lisa reveals she has big career plans this year including the opening of a Yoga studio in Toronto for which, work is on full-throttle at the moment.
Yoga, it must be mentioned, provided Lisa with tremendous emotional spiritual and physical solace during her prolonged illness and recovery last year. And now Lisa is ready to share her Yoga gyan with the world.
Lisa says there’s no room for marriage in her life right now. “This news has come completely out of left field. It was most unexpected! I’d love to clarify matters as I’m working on projects in India and don’t want my work colleagues out in India to get the impression that I’m not committed to my projects and work out there.”

Ask her about the status of her relationship with her faithful companion Brett Wilson and Lisa says, “The point is, marriage is not on the cards. The news that came out is unfounded. I am very good friends with Brett and I described marriage as an ‘imperfect institution’ to make light of the situation, not to make light of marriage.”

Lisa is excited about her projects this year. “I’m opening a hot yoga studio here in Brampton, Canada. There’s so much to look forward to this year. Every day is a blessing. I was recently at the Toronto Film Critics Association dinner where I was surrounded with love and compliments on my ‘Second Coming’ (the near-death illness). I’m working on a kick-ass series for TLC. Finalising some film projects soon. Involved in another momentous stem-cell event in Toronto. Life is grand. I’m so blessed to live and work in two different worlds.”

ICC Worried About the World Cup Venues

Less then one month remaining in the start of ICC World Cup 2011 but the construction work of stadiums in India and Sri Lanka is not completed yet, for the hosting of Mega event. World Cup will be co-hosted by India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka starting from 19 February. The ICC is so much worried about the situation and has sent an inspection team to India in order to check the construction work of these venues.

In Premadasa stadium of Sri Lanka seven matches will be played including a quarter final and a semi-final. While talking to media, the chairman of Sri-Lankan cricket committee Dandeniyage Somachandra de Silva accepted that four important stadiums are not ready for the Mega event yet. He further said that hopefully the work on these venues will be completed soon.

The duo of Eden Gardens in Kolkata and Wankhede Stadium of Mumbai are not ready. The final of Mega event will be played in Wankhede Stadium. The organizers are hopeful that before the start of the world cup all work would be completed.

Kotla Stadium in Feroz Shah is an other important venue of World Cup and its construction work is little bit remaining it is to be remembered that this stadium was banned by the ICC in 2009 for producing a track which sub-standard and dangerous for
the batsmen.

The chief exective of ICC Haroon Logart has shown his reservations about venues before Indian and Sri Lankan cricket boards time and again. In the ICC meeting held on 30 October, last year, ICC gave the deadline for completion of construction of stadiums and to make them suitable for play as 30 November and 31 December 2010 respectively. Both India and Sri Lanka did not put these deadlines under consideration which makes ICC so angry.

14 teams are participating in the tournament. These 14 teams are divided into two groups in each of which seven teams are included. The final of the tournament will be played on 2nd April.

Egypt wonderful to get married in: Celina Jaitley

Celina Jaitley is ready to take the plunge with her Dubai-based beau Peter Haag. And she says she would love to get married in picturesque Egypt whenever she decides to tie the knot.

So the Celina-Peter wedding is being planned for the year-end in Egypt, for which she is a tourism ambassador. “They want to play host to my wedding. You know Naomi Campbell got married in Egypt. It’d be a wonderful wedding in that beautiful country,” Celina said.

But she is in no hurry.

“I want to give it a year. Right now, I’ve so many endorsements and movies. Peter is not comfortable with the media glare. I guess he will have to get used to it,” the former Miss India said.

Celina and Peter Haag, who is an Austrian by nationality, exchanged rings at a very private ceremony last year.

“There were just my parents… no one else. Yes, Peter and I exchanged rings during Durga Puja. It was an auspicious time and we had my parents’ blessings. We don’t call it an engagement because that term is not auspicious in our family. My last engagement eight years ago didn’t work out. My parents said, ‘Just keep the matter quiet and decide to get married whenever you do’.”

Celina’s brother Vikrant is getting married in March or April. “First he will get married, then me,” she said.

Peter has been working in Dubai for the last nine years in the hotel business and Celina says it was a “quirk of fate” that has united them.

“By some quirk of fate I kept going to Dubai repeatedly for my work. That’s how we kept meeting. And then of course I started visiting Dubai for Peter. If I have the time I will spend it with the man I love. We have a house in Dubai now. Peter doesn’t want to visit India that often,” she revealed.

Celina, who has acted in films like “Golmaal Returns” and “No Entry”, met Peter through her maternal uncle.

“He’s my maama’s (uncle) best friend. My maama lives in Dubai and that’s how I met Peter. We’ve been dating for less than year now. I’m one person who has never gone for random relationships. Peter and I wanted to keep it quiet for as long as we were not sure of where the relationship was heading. I’ve become really superstitious… Now I’m certain Peter is the person,” the actress said.

World Condemns Salman Taseer’s Assassination

The assassination of Punjab Governor Salman Taseer has been condemned worldwide. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Tuesday condemned the assassination of the governor of Pakistan’s Punjab province, calling his death “a great loss.”

“We strongly condemn the assassination today in Pakistan of Punjab Provincial Governor Salman Taseer,” Clinton said in a statement.

“I had the opportunity to meet Governor Taseer in Pakistan and I admired his work to promote tolerance and the education of Pakistan’s future generations. His death is a great loss,” the chief US diplomat said.

“Our deepest sympathies are with Governor Taseer’s wife and children,” she added.

France on Tuesday condemned the assassination of the governor of Pakistan’s Punjab province, hailing him as a man known for his “courage in defending democratic institutions.”

“France firmly condemns the assassination on Tuesday of the governor of Punjab Salman Taseer. Governor Taseer was a political personality of the highest order,” deputy foreign ministry spokeswoman Christine Fages said.

The United States said Tuesday that the assassination of the governor of Pakistan’s Punjab province, Salman Taseer, was a “great loss” because he was trying to stabilize his country.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will offer Washington’s condolences to Hussain Haqqani, the Pakistani ambassador to Washington, when she meets him later Tuesday, State Department spokesman Philip Crowley told reporters.

“From our standpoint, his death is a great loss. He was committed to helping the government and people of Pakistan persevere in their campaign to bring peace and stability to their country,” he added.

US Ambassador to Pakistan Cameron Munter has expressed his deep grief and condolences over the assassination of Governor Punjab Salman Taseer.

“I am deeply saddened by the assassination of Governor Taseer. On behalf of the United States, I offer my condolences to his wife and children,” said Cameron Munter.

Speaking about the assassination of Salman Taseer, Ambassador Munter said, “He had the courage of his convictions and was a champion of tolerance. His death is a great loss to the people of Pakistan,” says a US Embassy press release issued here Tuesday.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on Tuesday condemned the assassination of the governor of Pakistan’s Punjab province calling it a blow to the country.

“The secretary general condemns the assassination today of the governor of Punjab province,” said UN spokesman Martin Nesirky. The official, Salman Taseer, was shot dead by a bodyguard opposed to his criticism of blasphemy laws.

Ban called the governor “a prominent leader whose death is a loss for Pakistan.”

People from all walks of life including politicians, civil society, trader unions and Human Rights Commission of Pakistan have condemned the tragic death of Salmaan Taseer, while expressing deep sense of sorrow and grief over the sad demise.

The PPP’s Punjab Leadership, members of provincial cabinet including Law Minister Rana Sana Ullah and leaders of other political parties while condemning the assassination of Punjab Governor Salmaan Taseer demanded exemplary punishment for the accused involved in the murder conspiracy.

In their separate statements, PPP’s Punjab President Imtiaz Safdar Warraich, Secretary Information, Dr. Fakhruddin Ch, Secretary Finance, Aurangzeb Burki and Additional Secretary Dr. Hasnaat Shah termed governor’s murder a big loss for the PPP and demanded arrest of those who masterminded his assassination.

Speaker Punjab Assembly, Rana Muhammad Iqbal, Senior Punjab Minister, Raja Riaz, provincial Ministers, Rana Sana Ullah, Tanvir Ashraf Kaira, Dr. Tanvirul Islam, Ch. Abdul Ghafoor, Ahmed Ali Aulakh, Mujtaba Shujaur Rehman, Malik Nadeem Kamran, Kamran Michael, Member Provincial Assembly Syed Zaeem Hussain Qadri and Dr. Saeed Elahi have expressed deep sense of sorrow and grief over the assassination of Governor Punjab Salman Taseer.

Senior PPP leader and Chairman Evacuee Property Trust Board, Syed Asif Hashmi held a condolence meeting at his residence and condemned late Taseer’s murder in strongest words.

In their separate condolence messages, all ministers and PPP leaders prayed that may Allah Almighty rest the departed soul in eternal peace and grant courage and strength to the bereaved family to bear this irreparable loss with fortitude.

Next Page »