APRIL 26-MAY 2 2015
Ayesha Omar: Naturally talented, Effortlessly chic
APRIL 26-MAY 2 2015
Portfolio
Cover Story
A steep adventure
Ayesha Omar: Naturally talented, effortlessly chic
The white peaks of Gulmarg beckon to skiers from around the globe
A tête-à-tête with the superstar who has kept her feet firmly on the ground
20 Feature
A class apart
26 Feature
Power steering
Pakistan’s groundbreaking female taxi driver Zahida Kazmi takes charge of her life
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4
The Justuju School provides quality education to the underprivileged children of Azam Basti
34 Regulars
6 People & Parties: Out and about with beautiful people 42 Reviews: Movies 46 Health: Antibiotic resistance is a potentially catastrophic threat
Senior Subeditors: Dilaira Dubash, Sanam Maher and Ali Haider Habib. Subeditor: Komal Anwar Creative Team: Jamal Khurshid, Essa Malik, Mohsin Alam, Talha Ahmed Khan, Hira Fareed, Maryam Rashid, Eesha Azam & Sanober Ahmed Publisher: Bilal A Lakhani. Editor: Kamal Siddiqi For feedback and submissions: magazine@tribune.com.pk Twitter: @ETribuneMag & Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ETribuneMag Printed: uniprint@unigraph.com
PEOPLE & PARTIES Ayesha Hashwani collaborates with So Kamal to launch a lawn collection in Islamabad
Rida Qazi and Hina Mir Farhan Khan and Dalinda Khan
Amer Akhtar and Nida Amer
Asif Gardezi and Maryam Gardezi
6 APRIL 26-MAY 2 2015
Shazi Waheed and Ayesha
PHOTOS COURTESY REZZ PR AND EVENTS
Hina Khan
PEOPLE & PARTIES
PHOTOS COURTESY REZZ PR AND EVENTS
Dania, Nada, Natty, Farwa and Kanwal
Sarah and Anum Awan
Saman, Shumaila Siddiqui and Urooj
8 APRIL 26-MAY 2 2015
Tehmin Sayed and Fakir Ifitkhar
Samya Saifullah and Sarah Amir
PEOPLE & PARTIES
Saira Irfan and Mawra
Sundus and Omer
Sana Adil and Shaffaq Muzzamil
10 APRIL 26-MAY 2 2015
Asad and Mishal
Erum Ahmed and Aleena Raza PHOTOS COURTESY BILAL MUKHTAR EVENTS & PR
Cross Stitch launches its Spring/Summer 2015 collection in Lahore
Sundus and Rizwan Shafi
Hina Ismail, Mariam, Samia Bilal and Sana
Sadia and Meesha
PEOPLE & PARTIES
PHOTOS COURTESY MOVIESHOOVY
Aunshey, Salima and Faiza
Natasha Saleem
Sapphire opens its flagship store at Dolmen Mall Clifton in Karachi
Meher Bano
12 APRIL 26-MAY 2 2015
Kulsum, Nabeel, Mrs Abdullah and Fatima
Mira Ansari
PEOPLE & PARTIES Zara and Hassan
Rubia and Saira
Zara Shahjahan launches her label’s Spring/Summer 2015 lawn collection at Veranda Bistro in Lahore
Aqsa Ali and Hannah Butt
Momina Ahmed and Sundas Manan
Kanwal Ilyas, Farwa Kazmi and Fatima Ejaz
14 APRIL 26-MAY 2 2015
Rashida and Amna
Arjumand Amin and Mehvash Amin
PHOTOS COURTESY IMRAN FAREED, PINHOLE STUDIO
Jania Bhatti and Maria Asif Baig
PEOPLE & PARTIES Seema Jaffer and Faiza Samee
Wardha and Fareshte
Nida Tapal
Fatima Bhutto
The PinkTree Company launches its 2015 Spring/Summer collection in Karachi
Zarmine and Komal
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Sadaf Muneer Jalil
Bunto Kazmi
PHOTOS COURTESY WALNUT COMMUNICATIONS
Faiza Ansari with her sister and niece
PORTFOLIO
A steep adventure The white peaks of Gulmarg beckon to skiers from around the globe TEXT AND PHOTOS BY HAZIQ QADRI
Gulmarg or ‘the path of roses’ — where gul means rose and marg means path — is considered the heartland of winter sports in Indian Kashmir. From November up till the end of February, Gulmarg remains draped under a thick blanket of snow, making it an ideal destination for skiing, tobogganing, snowboarding and heli-skiing on the 20 slopes of the Affarwat mountains. APRIL 26-MAY 2 2015
A Kashmiri boy walks down a road in Gulmarg, known to be a world-class skiing destination.
Gulmarg’s heavy blanket of snow makes it an ideal spot for snow sports.
A family enjoys snowfall in Gulmarg.
Situated in the Himalayas, Gulmarg has been the pride of Indian Kashmir since colonial times. Its history dates back to the era of the emperor Jahangir and King Yousuf Shah Chak. The Mughal emperor sourced 21 different species of wild flowers for his gardens from the meadows in Gulmarg. In 1927, the British introduced skiing in Gulmarg and the hill station has been a popular destination for thousands of adventurous skiers ever since. Compared to most European and American winter resorts, Gulmarg is an under-developed hill station. To attract tourists, the authorities and other independent groups organise various skiing competitions. A cable car system called Gondola — one of the highest in the world, reaching 3,979 metres — has also been set up to manoeuvre over the difficult terrain. Besides being a popular skiing destination, Gulmarg also boasts the highest golf course in the world.
Haziq Qadri is a Kashmir-based photojournalist. He tweets @haziq_qadri
For four months, Gulmarg remains under a shroud of snow. APRIL 26-MAY 2 2015
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Tourists enjoy a snow scooter ride across the hill station. A view of Gulmarg at night.
COVER STORY
Naturally talented, Effortlessly chic A tête-à-tête with a superstar who has kept her feet firmly on the ground BY HASSAN CHOUDARY
DESIGN EESHA AZAM
PHOTOS BY ARIF SOOMRO
26 APRIL 26-MAY 2 2015
COVER STORY
yesha Omar is gorgeous, she is multitalented (an actor, a singer and a dancer) and she is honest. “I am sorry, I know I have to reply to your text,” she said, when we met for the first time at an event that I was covering. I had texted her the day before to schedule an interview but did not receive a response. She said she would text me after the event to set up a date and time, but I didn’t believe her. To my surprise, she texted a few minutes after I got home that night. “That’s not a bad way to introduce someone,” I thought to myself, en route to Karachi’s Koel Cafe for the meeting. It is hard work to schedule an interview with a celebrity — it takes days, sometimes weeks — but Ayesha humbly obliged. We were supposed to meet at 3:00pm for lunch and once again I misjudged her by assuring myself she would be late. Ayesha was not only on time, she was there before me. And that’s when I realised I wasn’t in the presence of just another egotistical celebrity.
The talk of fame Ayesha is such an approachable superstar, it’s quite extraordinary. Despite the fame that surrounds her — a string of successful serials over the past and the hugely popular sitcom Bulbulay which made her a global star — Ayesha is grounded and pleasantly straightforward. “I don’t think there is anything in my life that I would want to hide,” she says as we sat down for lunch. “I had a great, fun-filled childhood. I was top of my class and at the same time I was taking dancing and singing lessons doing painting. I wanted to excel.” Ayesha’s father passed away when she was just two years old. “My mother was a single parent so she was scared and protective. For instance, I wasn’t allowed to spend the night at a friend’s home,” she shares. “But at the same time she has always been a progressive parent. Even now she keeps telling me to go for my Masters,” she adds, explaining how her mother has always been her greatest support despite being a typical “beti ki maa (the mother of a daughter)”. 28 It was her mother’s encouragement that allowed her to APRIL 26-MAY 2 2015
On further studies: “I plan to go for at least seven to eight months to attend a film school next year, probably in New York. It’s one city everybody should live in once in their life. It teaches you a lot about yourself and the world.”
ultimately pursue a career in the entertainment industry. “We had family friends in the business so my brother and I were cast in a lot of roles as children,” she shares, explaining how it all began. In college, she was part of the sitcom College Jeans after which she became a regular face on television. “I did a lot of sitcoms in Lahore with the NCA (National College of Arts) lot. That’s the best training you can get. I did a lot of theatre, mime and television as well. People noticed me and I was eventually singled out for serials.”
On the popularity of Pakistani dramas in India: “They want people from Pakistan and they are loving our dramas. Anil Kapoor called up Hina Dilpazeer (coactor in Bulbulay) and said he is huge fan.”
Although Ayesha was a part of major productions, it was Bulbulay, which premiered in 2008, that pushed her to the top. “When I started doing Bulbulay, I thought to myself, ‘what is this meaningless comedy I am doing?’ But then the response was overwhelming,” she says. “We are making people of all ages and from different backgrounds laugh in times of tragedy and sorrow in the country. It’s a service to humanity,” she adds. When she was in Kalash, during one of her yearly trips up north, the entire village gathered around her shouting “Khoobsurat”, the name of her character in Bulbulay. More than the news, they claimed to be watching Bulbulay, she shares. A similar incident took place during the shooting of her upcoming film Yalghaar. While shooting at army training camps, all the jawans stood around her in awe. “I can’t leave my house and be normal. I can’t go grocery shopping or to the mall. Even on the streets of London there is no escape from it.” But Ayesha hasn’t let all this fame go to her head. While having lunch, we were interrupted by a group of girls who wanted to take a selfie with the star and she happily obliged.
dictate her choices more now. Although Ayesha’s mother never forced her to work, it came to her naturally, she explains. “After graduating l was taking up projects that were making me money so I decided that I didn’t want my mother to be working anymore. She has been teaching all her life. She has worked hard to raise us.” Ayesha’s entire life has not always been about work though. It is important to maintain a balance between one’s personal and professional life, she insists. “We forget to have fun in the things we do. Travelling and getting to know people, for example, is far more valuable to me than designer clothes.”
The best of the rest The battle of egos is a norm in the entertainment industry but Ayesha does not have a problem with other artists, she says. And it seems her colleagues don’t have any issue with her either. “Although I have a lot of friends in the industry, my closest friends are not in show business,” she says. “I think that is what makes me non-competitive in the field,” she adds. While most artists overtly display professional jealousy, Ayesha claims she doesn’t envy anyone. This is perhaps because she does not compete with anyone and makes an effort to appreciate the work of others in the industry. She was even present at the trailer launch of Mahira Khan’s new film Ho Mann Jahaan. “I love Mahira, she is an old friend. I am really happy for her success. You cannot think of being successful if you cannot be happy about other people’s success,” she explains. And she wants her future husband to display similar qualities. “You need to be with someone who supports you and encourages you and makes you feel it’s all okay when you’re going through difficult times,” expresses Ayesha. “But not a lot of men are brought up that way in our country.” Although marriage is not on the cards right now, Ayesha does plan on settling down eventually.
Work and Play “I have never planned anything,” says Ayesha, as she took her seat after taking several selfies with fans. “I did Grease (Pakistan’s first licensed production of the highly acclaimed Broadway musical) just for the love of it. Even though I knew I couldn’t do anything else for the four months that I was rehearsing for it, and there was very little money, I still went ahead with it.” But this does not imply that Ayesha is reckless. As compared to the early phase of her career, she lets passion
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On health: “I have never work out a day in my life. I am active during the day and that’s my workout.”
A bright future
It’s a wrap
Ayesha may not plan things but she is booked for this entire year at least. She is currently working on two feature films: Yalghaar, directed by Hassan Waqas Rana, and Karachi Se Lahore, directed by Wajahat Rauf. Yalghaar features an ensemble cast which includes Shaan, Hummayun Saeed, Adnan Siddiqui, Sana Bucha, Ayub Khosa, Umair Jaswal and Sikander Rizvi. “It was the first film I signed. I play a Swati girl in it, kidnapped by terrorists,” reveals Ayesha, adding that the character she is portraying is intense. Karachi Se Lahore, featuring Javed Sheikh, his son Shehzad Sheikh and Rashid Naz among others, on the other hand, is a romantic comedy. A teaser of Ayesha’s dance number in the film, which was released last month, created quite a stir. “Since Wajahat is a really good friend I said yes without reading the script. Yasir, the writer, is amazing. I gave my suggestions on how my character should be but I was really open to Yasir and Wajahat’s take on it because, for me, it was very important to break out of Khoobsurat’s character for this role.” There is also a third film, Ayesha discloses, which she has already signed up for. Its shooting will start after the release of Karachi Se Lahore in July, she reveals. But this is all that she will share for now. “I am in talks and we are trying to figure out the dates. It will be filmed in August in a foreign location,” she lets slip. Additionally, she is going to get back to singing soon. “I am going to be working with Noori on some projects.”
After lunch and a round of green tea, I popped the only logical question, “Any message for your fans and followers?” Ayesha pauses and responds, “All that glitters is not gold.” People don’t understand that celebrities are regular people with emotions, she explains. What’s worse is that most people are quick to judge, laments Ayesha. Although she is open to criticism and has received her fair share, Ayesha adds that “being out there” shouldn’t be reason enough to be mocked and criticised.
On passion: “I am passionate about food and health. I would want to live on an organic farm one day and grow my own vegetables, and maybe sell them.”
Before I tuned off my recorder Ayesha made a rather profound comment on how there is too much negativity surrounding all of us. “Even when we are describing people, we highlight their weaknesses,” she observes. “As a nation we need to be more accepting, tolerant and learn from the mistakes others make. Even our religion teaches us to hide the flaws of others. So live and let live.”T Hassan Choudary heads the web life and style desk at The Express Tribune. He tweets @hassanchoudary
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FEATURE (Top-right) Learning is made fun with several activities at the Justuju School. (Bottom-right)High achievers are awarded prizes during the parent-teacher meeting. (Below) Members of the Justuju Welfare Organisation with students.
T R A P A S A CL AS
On the outside, Azam Basti hardly seems like the sort of place where dreams come true. It is a breeding ground for drug-addicts, where the streets are paved with misery. But it is also where hope brews; it is home to bleary-eyed young men and eager, playful children. Perhaps it is this world of contrasts that sets Azam Basti apart from other areas of Karachi.
Four years ago, Azam Basti, located near Karachi’s Phase 1 area, was described in the media as a place where “the young people are lured into all that drugs offer because they have little else to do.” A year later, in 2011, the Justuju School opened its doors to the residents of Azam Basti, offering education to the young inhabitants of this community for Rs200 per month. The school is one of the main projects of the Justuju Welfare Organization, a non-government organisation (NGO) founded in 2011 with the mission of providing quality education to under-privileged children. Justuju, the Urdu word expressing ‘the ability or desire to do something’, is 34 the fruit of the dedicated efforts of 20 young individuals, APRIL 26-MAY 2 2015
many of whom are still studying in college, who strive to give back to our society the one blessing that they had — a good education. According to Haseeb Gandhi, who started the NGO, “As I was blessed with opportunities during my academic journey, I understand their importance and want these children to be able to have the same chance I had. This is my remuneration to a society which has blessed me with a good life.” The school currently runs classes from Nursery to Grade 3 at the moment, but is adding classes every year and hopes to have a Grade 4 by next year. Justuju operates through the donations of friends, family members and various well-wishers. The achievements of the Justuju School can be clearly seen in the dramatic change to its students’ lives. Abdullah, a daily-wage labourer with a meager income, is a resident of Azam Basti along with his family of six. He did not expect to ever send his children to school or provide them with a solid educational foundation. However, today, his four-year-old daughter Rida* has risen to the top of her class at the Justuju School, and she is known for her punctuality and excellent memory.
(Left) Children sit at the table for lunch. (Below) Pre-primary students enjoy some storytelling.
Before five-year-old Ishaaq joined the school, his mother was increasingly concerned by his aggressive behaviour. However, she believes today that once the school encouraged him to explore his imagination and creative side, he began exhibiting the nature his parents had hoped for; his mother describes him as well-groomed, with a soft spot for animals and a strong desire to become a vet. Meanwhile, ‘Naughty Kamil’, as his teachers call him, used to believe that his dream of being a fighter pilot was just that — a dream. After three years at the Justuju School, he is perhaps the most motivated and hard-working student there. These are the stories of only a handful of children with enormous potential, but cultivating their abilities has been an uphill task. According to Yusra Rasheed, head of Academics at the school, the greatest challenge Justuju faced was a lack of admissions. “Since people did not know about the school, we only had 35 students when we first started. Today, in our third academic year, we have received roughly 200 applications for admission within three days.” Rasheed
ren off ation hoped to get child iz an rg O re fa el W u uj pect The Just s — what they didn’t ex m oo sr as cl to in d an s the street ldn’t want to leave is these students wou
BY BUTOOL HISAM RE THE JUSTUJU WELFA PHOTOS COURTESY: GE BOOK PA ORGANIZATION FACE AHMED R BE NO SA DESIGN BY
Children at the Justuju School celebrate Green Day. APRIL 26-MAY 2 2015
FEATURE believes parents are drawn to the school because of the excellent reputation it has developed in the neighbourhood over the years. Hiring good teachers was also a daunting task. It took a while to find good teachers who were willing to come to the neighbourhood and teach the children living here, but today the NGO employs 15 teachers. Rasheed explains, “We chose to set up this school in Azam Basti as the children here belonged to the social strata we were hoping to target — low income groups, and men and women who work as maids or drivers but who are unable to provide their children with quality education due to financial constraints.” It was the
n displaying their ir bag in the sectio the ts pu ild ch ch Ea respective symbol.
cycle of few employment opportunities and lack of education that the Justuju team wished to break in Azam Basti. For the students, the school is a welcome relief. “I love painting and playing with friends here,” says 7-year-old Aliya*, a student at the school. “I love wearing the Justuju uniform!” For Aliya, homework is not a chore. “I have to help my mother at home, but I have grown to love school so much that I always manage to find time for my studies.” The Justuju team has also created an environment where children are eager to spend their time. Four-year-old Lenny* explains, “I thought grown-ups were people who yelled at you and were angry all the time. But then I came here to Justuju and everyone is so nice; I want to come here every day.” The Justuju team believes that they have been helped by their own project, just as the neighbourhood has benefited from their presence. “The school benefits those who run it as it offers them a much-needed outlet for their determination to improve Pakistani society. And it shows the rest of the society that anything is possible, no matter how old you are or what situation you find yourself in,” explains Rasheed. *Names have been changed to protect privacy. Butool Hisam is a medical student at DOW Medical College, Karachi, and a blogger.
u and were yo at d lle ye ho w le op ere pe I thought grown-ups w en I came here to Justuju and everyone th angry all the time. But here every day e is so nice; I want to com Student Lenny
Teachers conduct a group activity for students.
FEATURE
POWER STEERING The driving force behind Pakistan’s groundbreaking female taxi driver Zahida Kazmi was a basic survival instinct BY FAWAD ALI | PHOTO BY MUHAMMAD JAVAID | DESIGN BY MARYAM RASHID
Zahida Kazmi, hailed as Pakistan’s first female taxi driver, is perhaps tougher than Robert De Niro’s character in the 1976 American vigilante film Taxi Driver. Kazmi, who was married at the age of 13 and moved from Abbottabad to Karachi in 1972, became a widow when she was only in her 20s. To support her family — two sons and five daughters — Kazmi worked as a domestic helper and later took up a job at a cloth factory. But the wages were too meager to make ends meet, shares Kazmi. “All doors [of opportunity] seemed closed but I didn’t lose heart because I had to feed my children and I wanted to educate them so they could become responsible citizens,” she adds. In the late 1980s, when Karachi’s law and order situation started rapidly deteriorating, she decided to shift to Rawalpindi. This is when Kazmi decided to get behind the wheel and steer her life back on course. It was during Ziaul Haq’s increasingly conservative and religious regime that Kazmi started driving a taxi, becoming perhaps the country’s first female cab driver. Her late husband, who was himself a taxi driver, had 38 taught her how to drive. APRIL 26-MAY 2 2015
A risky path On a regular day, Kazmi would get her children ready for school, drop them off and then drive a rented cab around the city. “I used to then pick my children up from school, come home, prepare lunch and after resting for a couple of hours, leave for work again,” she recalls. At the time, Kazmi was young and knew she would face many obstacles along the way. As a safety precaution, she decided to drive her taxi well within the limits of the city. She would pick passengers from Islamabad International Airport, now Benazir International Airport, earning “a handsome living” of Rs200 to Rs300 per day — just enough to fulfil her family’s needs. Initially, people were unreceptive and questioned Kazmi about her choice of profession. However, they soon became used to a woman driving them around. “Eventually, they started to notice my helplessness and opted to ride in my taxi,” she says.
Zahida Kazmi, who started driving a taxi in the late 1980s, is perhaps Pakistan’s first female taxi driver.
A woman driving a taxi was a strange phenomenon, but they (tribesmen) never criticised or harassed me. Rather, they appreciated and encouraged me Taxi driver Zahida Kazmi
Down the road In the early 1990s, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif announced the Yellow Cab Scheme and the government gave Kazmi her own car. She was also made the chairperson of the All Pakistan Yellow Cab Federation. With renewed confidence, Kazmi started ferrying passengers to rural areas, even as far as South and North Waziristan in the tribal belt. Her fluency in Pashto gave her an edge as she travelled to remote areas of KhyberPakhtunkhwa. “At the time, the tribal areas were peaceful. A woman driving a taxi was a strange phenomenon, but they (tribesmen) never criticised or harassed me. Rather, they appreciated and encouraged me,” says Kazmi. “It is often said men don’t know how to respect women, but throughout my life, I have been accommodated by men,” she adds. Although Kazmi remarried after her children completed their education, she did not rely on a single source of income and continued driving. “I am old but my courage is young. I don’t want to be a burden on my children or anyone else,” she says. Today, Kazmi also gives driving lessons to women in Rawalpindi, encouraging them to make a respectable living and face hardships head on. One can imagine her telling students that the road is long with many a winding turn, but no journey is too great.T Fawad Ali is an Islamabad-based reporter for The Express Tribune. He tweets @fawadalishah84
39 APRIL 26-MAY 2 2015
Back with a vengeance Avengers: Age of Ultron, to be released in Pakistan on May 1, has already won over audiences BY SCHAYAN RIAZ
All superheroes seem to have one superpower in common: resilience. There is nothing stopping them from coming back ack onto our cinema screens, movie after movie, irrespective of how the last one fared. For the past couple of years, even television networks have jumped the bandwagon, producing shows like Arrow and The Flash, while online streaming giant Netflix has only recently released the first season of Daredevil for its subscribers. elf a If you don’t read comic books and don’t consider yourself eel a fan of these worlds, all the different films and shows can feel dios’ bit like overkill at times. But then comes along Marvel Studios’ latest offering Avengers: Age of Ultron, a sequel to 2012’s The Avengers, which is so ridiculously entertaining that there should be no complaints. There truly is plenty to love here,, especially the sheer wit of writer-director Joss Whedon’s writing. Age of Ultron assembles all the main Avengers from the first outing. Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr), Thor (Chris Hemsworth), Hulk (Mark Ruffalo), Captain America (Chris Evans), Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) and Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) are by now a well-oiled machine and that shows especially in the first hour where the chemistry and camaraderie is most palpable (the hammer scene being a highlight). A lot happens concurrently, there is a lot of banter between the characte characters and the absolute energy pulsating from each frame in instantly catches your attention. Two new ccharacters are also introduced, Pietro (Aaron Taylor-Johnso Taylor-Johnson) and Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen), who possess powers of their own. They are, in fact, Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch, respectively, the mutant twins from the post-credits scene of The Winter Soldier. As age agent Maria Hill (Cobie Smulders) explains in a later scene to Captain America, “He’s fast, she’s weird.” Scarle Scarlet Witch causes a lot of chaos for the Avenger Avengers, using her mind control tricks to make
them think all sorts of bad stuff. Iron Man is hit the hardest and he decides to rrestart an artificial intelligence peacekeeping programme called Ult Ultron. His plan horribly backfires though, as Ultron (James Spader) becomes self-aware and decides to destroy Earth. So, the Aveng Avengers have to come back together once again and save the world This time around, they are joined by Nick Fury (Samuel world. L Jackson), the twins and an Ultron-like being called Vision (Paul Bettany). Like in the first film, the script is masterful. Whedon m makes each character feel relevant — and there are man many. What sets this film apart from similar superhero flick flicks is the calculated balance of completely over-the-top act action-comedy scenes with a morally responsible social com commentary. In one scene for example, Captain America is adm admonishing Iron Man for creating Ultron. He says, “Every tim time someone tries to win a war before it starts, innocent people die.” It’s undoubtedly an important thought, but he speaks such a powerful line right after he has ripped a log apart with his bare hands. So, while every noble gesture is to be taken with a pinch of salt in a film providing laughter for the same moment, it’s great that both elements work equally well. The threat of Ultron is greater than Loki’s menace in the previous movie. The idea of self-awareness is a scary one; this entity that we have somehow created but do not fully understand turns on ies us. In a way, certain portions from the film evoke memories of last year’s iCloud scandal, when private photos of celebrities were criminally hacked and then made public. Technology is not as reliable and foolproof as we think it is and Age of Ultron, though a e big, superhero film, makes its well-rounded characters tackle topical issues. Of course in the first instance, the film is a romp, a thrilling ride, but it’s also deeper than most will give it credit for. Rating: Schayan Riaz is a Germany-based writer who tweets @schayanriaz
A predictable journey
The Longest Ride does not reach a satisfying destination BY ALLY ADNAN
The Dorothy and Herbert Vogel Collection is one of the most significant collections of art in the world. It belonged to New York couple, Dorothy and Herb, who amassed a collection of almost 5,000 works of art, using their meagre earnings as a librarian and postal worker, respectively. The collection, which included works of Roy Lichtenstein, Robert Mangold and Richard Van Buren, was displayed and stored in closets in the couple’s rent-controlled apartment in Manhattan. The modest couple ultimately donated their entire collection, worth several million dollars, to the National Gallery of Art because they wanted the public to have free access to the works of art they had acquired over the years. The compelling story of the inveterate collectors deserves an intelligent, engaging and astute film. Unfortunately, The Longest Ride is not that movie. It is, perhaps, unfair to criticise a film based on a novel by Nicholas Sparks. After nine adaptations that have garnered more than a billion dollars worldwide, Sparks’ work has become a brand in itself. Common sense and logic cannot be used to determine the merits of these films. They need to be judged only on the standards of the genre they have come to represent. In Sparks’ world, very good-looking — and always white — people from different worlds meet and fall in love. Their romance is always fascinating, adorned with clichés and set against lush landscapes. Coincidence, misunderstanding, emotion, and beatitude abound in the stories that depict trivial but exaggerated barriers that the lovers must overcome to live happily ever after. The formula works primarily because Sparks’ characters are written vividly, and willing viewers allow themselves to be manipulated emotionally. This formula, however, fails in The Longest Ride. The story revolves around two very dull couples — Luke Collins (Scott Eastwood) and Sophia Danko (Britt Roberston) and the older Ira Levinson (Jack Huston and later Alan Alda) and Ruth Levinson (Oona Chaplin) — with no chemistry and little believability. The film’s many attempts to control emotions are consistently unsuccessful; it is 44 virtually impossible to engage an audience that is APRIL 26-MAY 2 2015
bored and disappointed. Luke is a good-looking bull-rider, trying to make a comeback after an event in which he was seriously hurt by a bull named Rango. He meets Sophia at a bull-riding competition and the two fall in love and start dating. The lovers spot a crashed car while driving through the picturesque landscape of North Carolina on one of their dates. They arrive at the scene of the accident to find an injured Ira inside the burning vehicle. Luke rescues him while Sophia saves a box that holds love letters that Ira wrote to his wife Ruth. The lovers start visiting the recovering Ira who enjoys having the letters read to him as he recounts details of his romance. Ruth and Ira, it turns out, were all set to marry each other during the Second World War when fate intervened by calling Ira to army service. An injury during the war left Ira unable to father children and give Ruth the large family that she dearly desired. The two overcame the hurdle by substituting their desire to have children with a passion for collecting art. Henceforth, they collected a large number of paintings while living in near perfect marital bliss. The story captivates the young lovers who identify with Ruth and Ira and find inspiration in their tale. It offers encouragement to Luke and Sophia who must overcome their own hurdles to succeed in love. The story of The Longest Ride is not very different from other, and better, films based on Sparks’ novels. Yet, it fails because it is terribly boring and lacks interesting characters. The meet cute between Sophia and Luke is contrived and devoid of sparks. Eastwood looks good but seems to have a greater interest in displaying his admittedly well-built body than in convincingly playing the part of a determined bull-rider. Roberston is dull and bland as a student of art. Huston, Alda and Chaplin make half-hearted attempts to act well but fail to save what is a truly uninteresting film. Rango gets attention from the director and the cinematographer, as he compellingly plays the role of an indomitable beast. His is the only convincing performance in the film. Rating: Ally Adnan lives in Dallas and writes about culture, history and art. He tweets @allyadnan
Antibiotic resistance is a potentially catastrophic threat, irrespective of geographical boundaries
BY KOMAL ANWAR | DESIGN BY HIRA FAREED
It’s bug-ging
Antibiotic resistant bacteria or ‘superbugs’ have the potential to cause untreatable infections, posing one of the gravest public health concerns to the world’s population. An urgent multidisciplinary response is required in Pakistan, and all over the world, to overcome this critical — if not high-profile — threat. Antibiotic resistance occurs when an antibiotic loses its ability to effectively stop or kill bacterial growth. In other words, bacteria continue to multiply in the presence of therapeutic levels of an antibiotic. Unlike other drugs, such as antihypertensives, antipsychotics and anti-diabetics, the use of antibiotics is limited to their dosage. Without the economic motivation driven by a populace’s propensity for pill-popping, not a lot of effort is being put to discover new classes of antibiotic drugs. So, while antibiotics may be failing, new bacterial diseases are on the rise.
Ditching the DIY approach Dr Obaid Ali, who is the deputy director of the Drugs Regulatory Authority of Pakistan where he also serves as the federal inspector of drugs, shares why antibiotics can sometimes do more harm than good. "Due to patient noncompliance in Pakistan, while following proper storage requirements and consuming antibiotics at regular intervals, resistance towards them has greatly increased," he says. "Multiple and unreasonable therapies of antibiotics need to be strictly avoided. Self-medication by consuming antibiotics and stopping when symptoms vanish is a major area of concern," adds Dr Ali. This is also why he strongly suggests doctors and prescribers not prescribe antibiotics in cases of viral infections. The drug inspector sheds light on another interesting aspect pertaining to the packaging of medicines: one bottle does not include the complete dosage. For example, if the full treatment consists of 15 doses of an antibiotic, the packaging should contain the prescribed quantity to deter patients from giving into the temptation of just completing half the course, consequently spreading the resistant bacteria to people around them.
Steps to mitigate problems caused by antibiotic resistance
Further education should be provided to medical students and qualified staff on the use of antibiotics. The public should also have the right to ask doctors for alternatives where possible.
Pharmaceutical companies should undertake surveillance of antimicrobial resistance in order to develop and implement strategies to overcome the problem.
Prudent use of antibiotics is essential to maintain their effectiveness for future generations.
Marketing authorisation should only be granted to those antibiotics that meet international standards of quality, safety and efficacy.
The government should give pharmaceutical companies incentives to invest in the research of new antibiotics.
Delays in efforts to counter antimicrobial resistance can prove dangerous. The issue of resistance does not seem to have captured the public’s imagination yet but unless addressed, it will continue to pose a risk to precious lives.T
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Komal Anwar is a subeditor at The Express Tribune magazine desk. She tweets @Komal1201 APRIL 26-MAY 2 2015