The Express Tribune hi five - February 17

Ms FEBRUARY 17, 2013 ISSUE NO. 35

Want Neha’s gorgeous daytime look?

Follow make-up artist Anam Falak’s simple tips

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Forever in Love page

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inside fashion smashion —

Let your hair down

domestic goddess —

A clear favourite

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page Section In-Charge: Batool Zehra Send your feedback to women@tribune.com.pk

The desi rapper who’s finger-lickin’ good

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Ms

the buzz

THE EXPRESS TRIBUNE, FEBRUARY 17, 2013

Celebrating by Nida Ameen

First love is only a little foolishness and a lot of curiosity, said GB Shaw. But sometimes that first love goes a long way. This story is for all those high-school and college sweethearts who stayed together through thick and thin

L

ove is happiness, love is eternal bliss but can true love really happen in college?

Laiba remembers the “very cheesy” day when Rayan ‘proposed’ to her. The two were only in their A’ Levels and were talking on the phone.

“He asked me how he should propose to this really hot girl he would be meeting that night,” says Laiba. “I felt weird and just hung up. That same night he came to my house and told me that he did not want to date me but wanted to marry me. Imagine, I was just 17!”

Fast forward six years, and Laiba and Rayan have been happily married for three of them.

Most of us will spend our twenties trying to navigate relationships and get a handle on our emotions (read: crying in the pillow all night because that egoistical corporate slave broke up with you), being inspected by the rishta brigade and turning down that Mama’s boy who, despite all his sweetness, would never have made you happy. Because, after all, marriage is a big deal, right? It needs to be a well-thought out union, a mature decision. College and high-school sweethearts turn these notions on their head, when, they succumb to their first love, without the barest idea of what else is out there or what their ‘prospects’ are, agreeing to spend their lives with someone else just because they feel the magic of being together.

While most of us are still wondering what love is at that age, these sweethearts are convinced that they’ve found it in each other. Struck by Cupid’s arrow, they are not searching for someone better – they see their better half as the shy boy/girl that confessed his/her feelings at 17 and has never wavered since. And while some of us might want to go it alone, explore our individuality and hold out for someone better, we can’t help going “Awww” when we hear the sweet stories of these couples who decided on each other young. Ever wondered what constitutes a successful college love saga from start to finish?

sleeping over at a friend’s house. He presented her a beautiful bunch of flowers as he proposed to her. “I was half asleep,” remembers Sarah. “I took the flowers while still in my bed and was like ‘Mm-hmm… ok!’”

While such idyllic college romances may seem cheesy as we step into ‘real’ life, those who’ve been swept off their feet by their first love speak delightedly of that feeling of butterflies in their tummy. Believing in the fantasies of having a romantic movie ending, they expect their ‘hero’ to seal the deal amidst all the drama surrounding their relationship.

Saeed asked Nina out when they were still in school. After a bumpy relationship in their A’ Levels, they faced their worst nightmare: Nina had to move to Canada to pursue her undergraduate degree while Saeed stayed back in Karachi. Saeed gave Nina a sparkling silver ring the day she was going to take off, a symbol that assured her it was going to last forever. “We went to watch Spiderman 3 with a group of friends. At the exact moment when Peter Parker was proposing to Mary Jane, he started slipping a ring on my finger,” says Nina blushing.

Then there are those special moments when love happens when you least expect it to followed by the excitement of going on the first date, the aimless talking till 4 am in the morning and the nerve-wracking chills of the very first meeting with each other. Tooba and Hassan spent over seven months chatting on MSN, before they actually ‘met’. They’d see each other at their A’ Level school, but they were not quite ready to talk to each other. “It was only a month after he confessed on the internet that we talked face to face for the very first time and I can’t explain how amazingly nervous and excited I was,” laughs Tooba.

" Those who’ve been swept off their feet by their first love speak delightedly of that feeling of butterflies in their tummy. Believing in the fantasies of having a romantic movie ending, they expect their ‘hero’ to seal the deal amidst all the drama surrounding their relationship

First Love Just like Shane West built a telescope from scratch to gift it to Mandy Moore while asking her if she would marry him in A Walk to Remember, that special boy in your life will typically leave no stone unturned to make an over-the-top confession and create a cherished memory. Often the ‘confession’ and ‘proposal’ tumble into each other, as in Laiba’s case.

Sarah played the hard-to-get chick when Rizwan first confessed to her. Both went to the same college and hung out with the same group of friends. But Rizwan, who said he’d known she was ‘The One’ when he first set his eyes on her, was not one to be discouraged. On 2nd January 2008, after a snowstorm in Toronto botched his plans to propose on New Year’s Day, Rizwan walked in with another friend while Sarah was

The Challenges We have all come across those couples who hung out in empty school corridors during lunch break or sneaked into the corners of the library. It seemed that they were inseparable – until graduation day, when they waved their final good-byes.

With so many of them drifting apart and breaking up as they grow more mature and see the clashes in their personalities, it is a general perception that college couples are simply do not last Tooba, who married her high-school boyfriend after a 10-year relationship, says, “I got criticism from literally everyone. Friends, teachers, parents, siblings, everyone was against it because we were too young.”

While she admits that the criticism was valid, Tooba never considered any other options because the relationship felt so right and natural to her. As wonderful as being in love can be, having that special someone in your life can cast a shadow on your social life as he is the only person that you hang out with most of the time. Not only do you forego making new friends, you grow apart from your old ones because you did not share the same experiences. Young couples worry so much about

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THE EXPRESS TRIBUNE, FEBRUARY 17, 2013

Power Couples who were

College Sweethearts

Bill and Hillary Clinton Two of the most powerful personalities in the world met each other at Yale Law School. After going out for a few years, they said their vows in 1975. After 38 years of both personal and political ups and downs, they are still standing strong.

spending every second together that they often end up completely disregarding family, friends and even themselves.

“You only grow as much your relationship allows you to grow,” agrees Nina, “But if you are committed to making it last, you must give each other significant space to develop a separate identity.”

Your late teens and early twenties are a period of immense change. When you look back on this time, you will probably laugh over how you wanted to be a pilot or how you thought turning your uniform shalwar into a ‘patiala’ was a good idea. But for a young couple committed to each other, it can sometimes feel as if the relationship held them back from developing and exploring different facets of their personality. At a time when you are struggling to deal with family obligations and charting a career path, planning the destiny of your relationship can be a burden.

Such complications can make a high school/college relationship difficult to maintain.

“It wasn’t always rose-tinted. Many a times we felt like pulling each other’s hair out!” admits Laiba. “But then these difficulties only made our relationship stronger.”

And It Continues…

So why would couples go through such nerve-wracking complications when they can enjoy a period of freedom before finally settling for someone better?

The answer is as simple as it can be: because they are sure that they are right for each other.

“I knew I was going to marry him the moment we became friends, though for him I was ‘The One’ as soon as he set eyes on me,’ smiles Sarah. After a six-year relationship, Sarah and Rizwan tied the knot last year on the same date as the proposal, 2nd January.

As long as you are willing to bring out the best in each other, you are bound to be in a long-lasting relationship. “We fought, we adjusted. With time we wanted to become better for each other. My husband left drinking for me and I didn’t have to ask him to do so,” agreed Sarah.

Nina and Saeed stood the test of time and distance. Living in separate corners of the world, having only two lunches together every holiday season served with a heavy dose of family drama, they have managed to stay strong without any official guarantees. “It’s because I have complete faith that it will happen,” says Saeed. “I just cannot imagine a life without her. Nobody would have gone through as much as we did and it makes this relationship all the more special.”

Having someone to share life’s ups and downs with is a powerful motivator for these couples to work hard on their relationship. Having spent so much time growing with and loving each other, these young couples seem to have an edge over the skill of navigating married life.

“I think it makes me a lot better at marriage because I was virtually married to him all this time, except that we weren’t living together,” says Tooba who believes she is better at dealing with married life because she has been with her guy from such a young age. “I know what he needs and when, I know what will annoy him and what will make him happy.”

A deep, meaningful college/ high-school relationship is a safe place to grow, to love and be loved. He will praise you, he will spoil you and he will make you feel on top of this world. He will make you smile and he will make you cry because he knows you in and out and has a right to. So, let’s celebrate the sweethearts that sailed through the test of time. Who stayed far apart and yet very close, who remained near and yet allowed each other to explore new horizons and who worked hard to make it last without really knowing if they would be together forever.

Chelsea Clinton and Marc Mezvinsky Brought up in strong political families, Chelsea and Marc first met in 1993 at a Democratic political retreat. It was in 1997 that Chelsea followed Marc to Stanford University but 2005 was the year when their romance became public. The two tied the knot in 2010.

Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan The man behind Facebook met his wife while at a party at Harvard University. The two got married just last year at a quiet ceremony right after Chan completed medical school.

Prince William and Kate Middleton This beloved royal couple first set eyes on each other while attending St. Andrews University, Scotland. After dating for seven years straight they finally got their fairytale wedding in 2010 with more than a million people sharing their moment live on TV.

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en vogue

THE EXPRESS TRIBUNE, FEBRUARY 17, 2013

Glam Night vs.

Makeup: Anam Falak Hair: Shameem at ANAM Model: Neha Ahmad Photography: Umair Bin Nisar

Emerging make-up artist Anam Falak gives tips on how to turn on the heat during the day and become a show-stopper at night! Gett Neha’s sizzling look by following these simple steps.

I wanted to emphasise her eyes in this dreamy nighttime diva look, keeping her skin very glowy and the rest of the make-up relatively subtle.

Eyes: I used Ricepaper eye-shadow by MAC on Neha’s entire lid and brow-bone. On the inner corners of her eyes I used a shiny metallic eye-shadow in a silverish colour by MAC, called Electra. Her crease-line was blended out with MAC’s Wedge eye-shadow which is a slightly deep beige colour and I added a hint of black eye-shadow on the outer corners of her eyes using MAC’s Carbon eye-shadow. Her waterline was filled in with black eyeliner and her lower lash-line smudged with a bit of Wedge eye-shadow as well. I finished off the eye make-up with false lashes, mascara and a fine line on her upper lash using a gel eyeliner called Blacktrack, also by MAC. Face: I used Armani’s Luminous Silk foundation in number 7 all over after moisturising her already flawless skin. I lightly contoured her face using Xen-Tan’s bronzing powder and applied a shimmery peach blush on her cheeks called Super Orgasm by Nars to give her a gorgeous, glowing natural flush.

Lips: I used a soft powder pink lipstick called Snob by MAC blended in with another MAC lipstick called Girl About Town, an electric pink with a hint of purple.

THE EXPRESS TRIBUNE, FEBRUARY 17, 2013

Day Chic

This day make-up look was kept fresh, minimalistic, natural and easy to do!

Eyes: I used Ricepaper eye-shadow by MAC on Neha’s entire lid and browbone and finished off with L’Oreal Telescopic Mascara. Her eyebrows were filled in with an eyebrow pencil by MAC called Lingering.

Face: I used Armani’s Luminous Silk foundation in number 7 all over after moisturing her already flawless skin. I lightly contoured her face using Xen-Tan’s bronzing powder and applied a peachy pink blush on her cheeks called Taos by Nars to give her a natural flush.

Lips: I used a soft powder pink lipstick called Snob by Mac on her lips.

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fashion smashion

THE EXPRESS TRIBUNE, FEBRUARY 17, 2013

Luckily for fashionistas, 2013 has brought a variety of wearable hairdos that will inspire you to make an effort and bring out the diva in you. Be a show-stopper with the most popular hairstyles this year!

Hair in Style: 2013

by Nida Ameen Plait it up!

Lower that Ponytail:

From an intricate fishtail to a simple, low-lying messy braid, 2013 is all about crisscrossing those locks into a super-appealing braid. This is a minimal effort look that you can rock by day and night. Go for a fun and peppy look during the day by using a wide-barrelled curling iron to create smooth waves and then plaiting them in an unfussy braid. At night, put the spotlight on your elegant style by plaiting those strands of beautiful hair into a picture perfect bun. So brush up those plaiting skills!

Let your hair down while still locked up in a ponytail.

This year’s ultimate fashion statement is a lower than low ponytail. Part it left, right or centre and pull it all back in a ponytail which perfectly ties on the nape. To get that ‘straight from the runway’ look, iron your hair super straight, tie it into a low ponytail in a wide band and tuck your side locks right behind those delicate ears.

Soaking Wet: Icing on Top: No need to go through the hassle of blow-drying your hair with that Babyliss because the wet look continues to drench the fashion scene this year as well. Keep your look glam and glistening in a slick half-wet hairdo by applying a quality mousse or a serum to the front half of your hair and combing it back. Or keep on trend with a deep side-part pony tail (i.e. heavy on one side) with a wet front! We can vouch that you will get those heads turning.

Don’t those over-the-top hair bands and glittery barrettes at Accessorize look tempting?

Give in to your temptation girls because hair accessories are what’s hot this season.

Keep it simple with a metallic gold head band or bring out the sizzle in pretty pearls tucked into that stylish up do.

Not in for some bling on your hair? Replace your headband with a retro printed scarf and finish it off with the right attitude!

Tie the Knot: Did you think those low-slung loops and sculpted knots were only for the grannies? Think again, because they just became an icon on the runways! Top-notch hairstylists from all around the globe are going gaga over the simple yet striking granny buns. Dazzle in a tidy loop by ironing your hair straight, pulling it down into a low half-done ponytail so that it forms a knot. Now wrap the remaining strands around the loop and tuck it up with a pin for a hairstyle that spells finesse and sophistication!

domestic goddess 7 recipe

THE EXPRESS TRIBUNE, FEBRUARY 17, 2013

Chicken, shiitake mushroom, noodle soup Madiha Hamid is a digital media professional. She loves the food traditions unique to families.

She is running a food blog for Pakistani and regional cuisines called cheflingtales.com

Clear soups are both mouthwateringly delicious and extremely healthy. They are easy to cook and you can play with the ingredients to create an array of flavours. A clear soup can be a great appetiser for a dinner, especially when you don’t want your guests to fill up on just soup and enjoy the other dishes as well.

Note: Shiitake mushrooms are the best mushrooms for soups and can usually be bought in dried form.

ingredients For the broth

method • Soak the mushrooms in water till soft.

• In a deep pan, simmer all the broth ingredients for 30 to 45 minutes.

• Once the water becomes cloudy and the liquid has reduced to half the initial quantity, sieve and separate the broth from the rest of the ingredients.

• Pour the broth into the deep pan again.

• Add back the cabbage leaves and small cubes of shredded chicken to the broth. You can also fry the chicken pieces in a non-stick pan without oil before adding them to the broth.

• Dice half the carrot used in cooking the broth and add. (Optional) • Add bean sprouts, Shiitake mushrooms and corn and let the broth simmer on low heat till all the flavours have fused together.

• Mix cooked noodles into the soup.

• Garnish with sliced spring onions and serve.

Preparation time: 15 minute(s) Cooking time: 1 hour Serves 4 people

Chicken 1/2 kg A whole carrot Half a cabbage A whole spring onion Whole black pepper 7-8 Salt 1-2 tsp Garlic cloves 2-3 Water 4 glasses Other vegetables Bean sprouts ½ can Corn ½ can Shiitake mushroom ½ cup Flat rice noodles or normal flat egg noodles ¼ pack

hottie of the week 8

THE EXPRESS TRIBUNE, FEBRUARY 17, 2013

Status Born

Single

Lahore, Pakistan

Birthday

Face

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1987

Who is he?

You know a guy is seriously hot when he can put on a shalwar and banyan in his first music video ever and still look fingerlickin’ delectable. This is what Faris Shafi did in his song Awaam in which he rapped about the absurdity of our government and the state of our country, while wearing that ridiculous ensemble, thus earning himself some serious brownie points with us. These days, our local Slim Shady is working on another video and has also tiptoed his way into acting. He recently starred as the lead in a drama serial Munjalee and is busy working on another video.

Why we love him

Body

60%

Talent

The fact that he can come up with satirical lyrics which perfectly express how every Pakistani is feeling everyday is proof that he’s extremely talented and smart. Rapping comes naturally to him since he’s been listening to the genre for years and has been secretly writing rhymes in his journal since he was a kid. We kind of get why he’s inclined towards the arts: singer-model Meesha Shafi is his sister and actor Saba Hameed is his mother. With a family like that, who wouldn’t be talented? Both female figures have a played a huge role in Faris’ life and he’s pretty close to them.

Even though he has a lot of acting projects lined up, he’s not afraid to admit that he acts only to pay the bills since acting is a more lucrative profession. But his real passion is music.

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Total Package

63% His Ideal woman For Faris, “opposites attract”, so women with completely different interests would intrigue this guy. When asked if he had a celebrity crush, he says, “Even if I did, I don’t think I’d like to announce it to the world”. Smart move, Faris!

Faris Shafi