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Layla takes the limelight By Sumeha Khalid Designer Layla Chatoor gets candid with Lounge and reveals all that has contributed to making her a remarkable designer!
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PT: What motivates you to get your day started? LC: My husband is the most energetic and positive person I’ve ever met. Seeing him get ready to go to work everyday, with eagerness to get to work, motivates me to get to work. Once I’m at work I love being there; my day just flies by. PT: Who was your inspiration when you started your own brand? LC: My husband has always been very encouraging and supportive; it is very easy to work when you have a person who consistently supports you. PT: What role has your better half played in the growth of your brand? LC: My better half is my partner, my best friend, my biggest supporter. He’s my go-to-guy for everything. PT: What is your personal style statement? LC: Simple, comfortable and elegant dressing has always been important to me. I’ve never let a trend define my style. I’ve always worn what suits me and kept it a little on the simpler side so that there is some room to accessorize and make the ensemble representative of my style. PT: How do you spot trends and draw inspiration? LC: Travelling and reading makes it very easy to understand what is current; inspiration comes easily and instinctively if the mind is let open and free and knows no boundaries. PT: Any particular colors you prefer to use in your designs? LC: I don’t realize, but most of my clients and patrons attribute the use of off whites, beiges and reds to my collections. PT: You recently showcased at PSFW 2013, how was the experience? LC: It was a great experience showing my work at such a prestigious platform with all the
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best designers from Pakistan. PFDC is working very hard to promote the designers who have the capability and capacity to service not only local buyers but also international buyers. PT: Any advice for young and aspiring designers in Pakistan? LC: If you feel you’ve got the talent and the passion, then go for it. Just be patient and be true to yourself and you can be the best. There’s always space for you if you can set yourself apart from others.
PT: How do you feel the fashion industry in Pakistan has changed over the past decade or so? LC: Fashion over the last decade has become very competitive; as a result it has become much more professional also. Surviving with a small scale business is not possible anymore. It has become very important to provide a good and competitively priced product to your clients in order to form long term relationships with them. PT: What have you planned out for the future for your brand?
LC: Primarily, my short term plan is to open my own store in Karachisoon, so that the Layla Chatoor brand can be available and accessible to all easily. Secondly, I want to increase my capacity and supply to various multi brand stores in Dubai, London and U.S. Quite recently, we have partnered with the Labels E store, making the brand Layla Chatoor globally accessible. My priority is to be committed to the stores where I decide to supply so that our relationship with these retail avenues remains very professional.
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Interview
Noori music? Ali & Hamza: From a very young age, probably since we were 11 or 12 years old. We dreamt of being rockstars and used to regularly watch music videos. Def Leppard was definitely an inspiration How did your music evolve/ change with the change in your band’s line-up? Ali Noor: Well I was always the decision maker, Hamza and I formed the core of the band. We wrote songs together and worked on our music full-time. The other members added to the performance element.
Pakistani music sensation Noori, made waves when they surfaced on the local scene more than a decade ago. Since then, they are regarded as one of the pioneers of Pakistan’s rock music scene. Pakistan Today recently had a chance to interview Noori about their musical trajectory, what inspires them and their latest projects including the thrilling Fanta Rocks Campaign. How and when did you decide that you wanted to pursue a career in
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What do you regard as the turning point in your music career? Ali Noor: There was no defining point, we never had a ‘big break’ per say. It just happened organically; we performed, our music went online and people responded positively. We never regarded ourselves as a mainstream band. What challnges did you face entering the music industry in Pakistan? Ali & Hamza: none People often criticize the music produced in the current era for being too commercial. What is your take on this? Ali & Hamza: We don’t make commercial music. We don’t sell our songs and make the kind of music we feel like making.
However, calling a particular sound ‘commercial’ is silly in our opinion. Where do you gather your inspiration for your lyrics from? Hamza: Ali is a scientific person; he is logical and systematic and that element of his personality is reflected in his lyrics. Ali: Hamza’s music is tied to his personal experiences and emotions. At the end of the day the lyrics should connect with the audience so we do write with that in mind. How was your experience at Coke Studio? Ali & Hamza: Great—it was the kind of team work we wish to see more of in Pakistan. One city you would like to perform in? Ali and Hamza: Anywhere where people know our music. Wherever
we find a responsive audience Who are some musicians you look up to? Ali: Tori Amos—I think she is one of the most well-grounded musicians around. Hamza: My mother You are considered one of the pioneers of the 21st century pop revolution in Pakistan. How do you think the music scene in Pakistan has changed in the past ten years? Ali and Hamza: Technological change and greater accessibility are the two most important factors characterizing current music trends. Artists can share their music through new platforms such as soundcloud.
Sadly, the opportunities to perform live have decreased due to the security situation in our country. Music making is an art and our edge was that we had done extensive research. Are you currently working on any albums/projects? Ali and Hamza: Yes, we are working on a music video for our new song “Yeh Zindagi.” Albums have become obscure these days. Apart from that, we are involved with the Fanta Project. Tell us more about the Fanta Rocks Campaign. What is the vision behind it? Ali and Hamza: Fanta is looking for three talented individuals from
three cities across Pakistan. The winner will get to record a song with us, film a music video and conduct a mini tour. What qualities are you looking for in the winning performers? Ali and Hamza: Confidence, vocal talent, friendliness and the ability to connect with people. It’s not only about how well you sing but also how well you carry yourself on stage. Why did you decide to take part in the Fanta Rocks project? Ali and Hamza: We thought it was a very interesting project. We are looking to engage with these kids, have fun and hopefully make some great music together.
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What you don’t know – doesn’t hurt? Think again! By Madiha Saail Khan
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t’s an average day in your life. You struggle to take those first few steps from your bed to the bathroom and wonder, “when did I become so old.” Lethargy seems to be consuming you like never before and you find yourself exhausted all the time. When you bend down while praying, your legs give away. You drag your feet at the gym and hardly achieve anything. The evenings are unusually gloomy too. Is this depression? Where is it stemming from? One day, you end up asking yourself, “HELLO! What’s wrong with me? I’m only 25 years old.” When you finally decide to visit a physician, all you say is, “I’m tired all the time.” The Doctor smirks a little because you look fine, young, average built, a little on the chubby side. Then he suggests a few blood tests. Viola! All tests come out perfectly within normal ranges except one. The 25-Hydroxyvitamin D .The Doctor seems to be fine with prescribing a daily Vit-D & Calcium supplement and sends you home; tells you to cheer up. But does it end there? My answer: Hell NO! Vitamin-D, also known as the SUNSHINE VITAMIN, is a fat-soluble vitamin that is
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present in very few foods naturally, hence is also produced endogenously in the human body when ultraviolet rays from sunlight strike the skin and trigger vitamin D synthesis. Vitamin D obtained from sun exposure, food, and supplements is biologically inert and must undergo two hydroxylations (conversions) in the body for activation. The first occurs in the liver and converts vitamin D to 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH) D], also known as calcidiol. The second occurs primarily in the kidney and forms the physiologically active 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D [1,25(OH)2D], also known as calcitriol. The deficiency of this vitamin is linked to many health risks, Rickets and Osteomalacia being the most well known. Vitamin D has other roles in the body, including modulation of cell growth, neuromuscular, immune function, and reduction of inflammation. Sounds like rocket science? I know. Let’s discuss this Vitamin in layman terms. According to recent studies Vitamin-D deficiency has become a worldwide epidemic, affecting 50% of the population of the world. Other risk factors linked to this deficiency are being researched on and have led to astonishing results. Vitamin-D deficiency is now being linked to increased risk of cardiovascular diseases, auto-immune disorders, neonatal abnormalities, skin disorders, asthma, respiratory disorders, male and female fertility, urogenital issues, musculoskeletal and neurological weakness, depression, metabolic insufficiency and diabetes and it has even been linked to many types of cancer. Can something that is linked to such health issues be taken lightly? Absolutely not The question as to why this deficiency has increased drastically
over the past few years is still under investigation but the prime causes seem to be the lack of sunshine exposure, lack of Vitamin-D in the diet and underlying conditions that may lead to conversion/absorption issues. As the body requires a certain amount of sun exposure to bare skin in order to synthesize Vitamin-D, the lack of exposure to the sun will lead to a deficiency. How often do we get out these days? The world today, is an indoors world. Who has the time to just go and sit outside in the sun when we have TVs, gadgets, games and technology that keep us plenty occupied in the comfort of our homes and offices? A lot of people fear the sun as it damages/ darkens the skin while others are not lucky enough to have enough sun. And then there are those who are naturally dark skinned, having more melanin in their skin disables them from absorbing enough sun hence they require greater exposure to the sun in order to obtain a sufficient amount of Vitamin D. There has also been talk of Muslim women suffering from this deficiency, as they are required to cover themselves up. After inquiring from a set of 20 individuals selected randomly in Lahore, I have found out, that 15 out of those 20 had critically low levels of Vitamin-D (Below 10 ng/ mL) and fell within the age bracket of 18 – 32 years. This shows that young adults, both male and female suffer from vitamin-D deficiency without knowing it and expose themselves to the risks mentioned above. Why are doctors not taking this seriously? Speaking from my personal experience, my general physician, my nutritionist, my gynecologist, my baby’s pediatrician and even my homeopathic specialist
agree that every third person that comes to them with health problems has a Vitamin-D deficiency and out of these three people, at least one has critically low levels Vitamin-D. Doctors are becoming more and more aware of this deficiency and the test for it is becoming one of the most prescribed tests in young individuals. Vitamin-D is found naturally in fatty fish (tuna, mackerel, salmon and fish liver oil is a good source for it. Remember how our parents used to forcibly feed us those “7 seas cod liver oil capsules” as kids. They looked and smelled horrible but they are extremely necessary for optimum health. A very small amount is found in beef liver, egg yolk and cheese but this is highly insufficient to cater to the needs of a healthy individual, leave alone a person who is deficient. In the United States most foods have been fortified with Vitamin-D as the government is taking big steps to eliminate this deficiency in their people. Juices, milk, cheeses, breads, cereals, infant formula and eggs contain traces of Vitamin-D. What about us? Well, none of the food we eat contains any Vitamin-D so when the Doctor tells u to eat dairy products, please tell him not to kid himself. The only source and option we have as a nation, is supplementation through pharmaceutical products. Our foods have lost all their nutritional value and the ready availability of fast food and instant noodles/soups etc. makes them an easy food choice for children. Convenient? Yes. Healthy? Not in the least. We must realize that food comprises human fuel and we must opt for a complete lifestyle makeover. We need to be aware of the difference between a good product and a well-marketed
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product. Another reason for this deficiency may be the weak immune system of the average man (or woman) today. Stress, anxiety & societal pressure leads to many gastric diseases that may cause the malabsorption of Vitamin-D in the body. IBS (Inflammatory Bowel Syndrome) for instance is a very common syndrome in individuals with stressful lives. It causes the individual to suffer from constant diarrhea or acid reflux that result in general malnourishment and the deficit of all vitamins including Vitamin-D. Polycystic Ovarian Disease is another effects the production of certain hormones in women. The hormonal imbalance then leads to metabolic and gastrointestinal problems resulting in mal-absorption of vitamins. Many other diseases that affect the gut and digestion, like celiac disease, chronic pancreatitis, Crohn’s disease, and cystic fibrosis, can reduce vitamin D absorption. Children and the elderly are more prone to the harmful effects this deficiency. Children may suffer
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life long health problems if their bones and muscles do not develop properly during their critical years. The elderly are at a risk of breaking bones or permanently damaging their muscle tissues due to a fall or other injuries. How can one deal with this health hazard? The first step is to get tested. Shaukat Khanum, Aga Khan and Chugtai labs are the only, and I repeat, only reliable testing laboratories in Lahore. Get your 25-Hydroxyvitamin D tested. Once you find out the levels, consult a good general physician, nutritionist or your family doctor on your required dose and form of dosage of Vitamin-D supplements. Optimum levels lie anywhere between 40 – 100 ng/mL. Anything below 40 means you are deficient. The criticality of your deficiency increases as the level decreases. In most cases below 20, a patient is advised to consume 1 Oral Preparation ampule (more commonly known as teeka) of Vitamin-D (250000 IU) every week for a month followed by a
maintenance dose of 1 ampule a month for the next three months after which you must get re-tested. If the test shows satisfactory results, you may continue with a daily dose (tablet or capsule) that fulfills the daily requirement of 600IU for the next 6 months and have yourself tested again. This supplementation is an ongoing thing that will have to be taken regularly and vitamin-D levels must be checked frequently in order to minimize the risk factor. If your levels fail to rise it usually indicates that your body has absorption issues and you may need to get injected intramuscularly. In either case, periodic testing is essential. What may seem like a simple deficiency can be the cause for many disturbances in your life. They don’t say JAAN HAI TOE JAHAN HAI for no reason. Health comes first. Get yourself tested today. Buddha said, “To keep the body in good health is a duty... otherwise we shall not be able to keep our mind strong and clear.” Stay Healthy, Be Positive, Be Happy.
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Books & Authors
A voice for Palestine Jewish-American author Michelle Cohen Corasanti tells why she chose to tell the Palestinian side of the story in her novel The Almond Tree By Abdullah Khan
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ichelle Cohen Corasanti, a JewishAmerican writer, uses the Israel-Palestine conflict as the backdrop of her debut novel, The Almond Tree, which tells the inspiring story of a poor Palestinian boy called Ichmad, who despite living under the ruthless Israeli military rule, achieves great success in his life. In this interview, the author talks about herself, her book and the Israel-Palestine conflict. Excerpts: Q: What made you write The Almond Tree? A: As a Jewish American, I was taught that after the Holocaust the Jews found ‘a land without a people for a people without a land’ and that Jews went to ‘the land of Israel’ (i.e., Palestine) and made the desert bloom. In high school, I went to Israel to study Hebrew and Judaism. I soon learned that Palestine had neither been a land without a people nor all desert.
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Palestine had been the home of a multi-religious society that had a high standard of living and a rich culture and heritage. I lived in Israel for seven years and witnessed the miserable life the Palestinians led there. Through my novel, I wanted to shine a light on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and show that there was a better way. Q: As a Jewish-American, wasn’t it difficult to write in the voice of a Palestinian? A: I got the idea from a Palestinian man I met at Harvard. I met his family, saw where he came from and felt I knew who he was at the core. So, the voice of a Palestinian boy was a natural choice. I had many Palestinian friends in Jerusalem. I heard their stories. I bore witness to their lives — where they came from, how they were treated, what their dreams were. Q: Novelist Robin Yassin-Kassab once said, “Palestinians, in the West at least, lack a popular counter narrative. Palestinians are reported on, met only in the news.” Do you agree?
Author Michelle Cohen Corasanti A: I definitely agree. After the Holocaust, the West was quite happy to give Palestine to the Jews and to buy into the fallacy that Palestine was a land waiting for a people. The first Zionists were from the West and they spoke western
languages, were well organised, had money and made the story they wished to tell the world whereas the Palestinians mostly spoke Arabic and didn’t have anyone to tell their story to the western audience. As time went on, the Zionist narrative was the only one heard. Q: How well has The Almond Tree been received in the U.S. and elsewhere? A: I’ve been shocked to see that the book is being embraced by people on all sides of the conflict as well as those with no involvement whatsoever. I was expecting a backlash from Jewish readers, but I have found the opposite. Q: What do you wish to achieve through your writings? A: I hope my writings can shine a light on the Israeli-Palestinian situation. I would like to debunk fallacies. I want to help the
Palestinian narrative to be heard because I don’t believe one can solve a conflict if they only hear one side. Q: You have said that Zionism is actually harming Judaism. What is the difference? A: Judaism is a monotheist religion. We follow the Ten Commandments and the Torah. Rabbi Hillel (an ancient Jewish saint) summed up the Torah thus: “That which is hateful to you, do not unto another. That is the whole Torah, the rest is just commentary.” Zionism is a concept of nationalism that arose as a result of the rise of anti-Semitism at the time. Zionists decided that the Jewish people
needed their own country and set their sights on Palestine. Q: What, according to you, is the solution to the Israel-Palestine conflict? A: I believe there can be no peace without justice, which is based on the truth. The Palestinians need to be compensated for all that they have suffered just like the Jews were after the Holocaust. I believe in a secular democratic country where everyone lives with equality and freedom. I believe the Palestinian refugees should be allowed to return. The majority of Israelis in Israel came today from the Arab world. This way, not only will the Palestinians be free, but so will the Israelis. One can’t be free when oppressing another people. Q: What is your next project? A: I hope to write another book that shows the benefits of peace between Palestinians and Israelis.
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Film
The Great Gatsby Shimmying off the literary mantle ‘The Great Gatsby’ interpreted by Ben Luhrmann
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he best way to enjoy Baz Luhrmann’s big and noisy new version of “The Great Gatsby” — and despite what you may have heard, it is an eminently enjoyable movie — is to put aside whatever literary agenda you are tempted
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to bring with you. I grant that this is not so easily done. F. Scott Fitzgerald’s slender, charming third novel has accumulated a heavier burden of cultural significance than it can easily bear. Short and accessible enough to be consumed in a sitting (as in “Gatz,” Elevator Repair Service’s full-text staged
reading), the book has become, in the 88 years since its publication, a schoolroom staple and a popcultural totem. It shapes our increasingly fuzzy image of the jazz age and fuels endless term papers on the American dream and related topics.
Through this fog of glib allusion and secondhand thinking, the wistful glimmer of Fitzgerald’s prose shines like the green light at the end of Daisy Buchanan’s dock. If “The Great Gatsby” can’t quite sustain the Big Ideas that are routinely attached to it — a fact that periodically inspires showboating critical contrarians to proclaim that it’s not such a big deal after all — it nonetheless remains a lively, imaginative presence. The book may not be as Great as its reputation, but it is also, partly for that reason, better than you might expect. It is flawed and flimsy in some ways, but it still manages to be touching, surprising and, in its bittersweet fashion, a lot of fun. All of which is to say that whatever you think of Mr. Luhrmann’s energetic, brightly colored rendering of the sad story of Jay Gatsby, the Trimalchio of West Egg, Long Island, it should at least be immune to accusations of sacrilege. “Gatsby” is not gospel; it is grist for endless reinterpretation. Mr. Luhrmann’s reverence for the source material is evident. He sticks close to the details of the story and lifts dialogue and description directly from the novel’s pages. But he has also felt free to make that material his own, bending it according to his artistic sensibility and what he takes to be the mood of the times. The result is less a conventional movie adaptation than a splashy, trashy opera, a wayward, lavishly theatrical celebration of the emotional and material extravagance that Fitzgerald surveyed with fascinated ambivalence. This is the first time Mr. Luhrmann has taken up an American source in an American setting (though his cast is mostly British and Australian), and his vision of 1920s Manhattan is exactly as naturalistic as his portrait of Belle Époque Paris in “Moulin Rouge” which is to say not very much. Tom Buchanan (Joel Edgerton) is still a bully and a bigot, spouting the popular racist pseudoscience of his day. The gangster Meyer Wolfsheim (Amitabh Bachchan) is a bit less of a cringe-worthy anti-Semitic caricature than he was in 1925.
The poverty of George and Myrtle Wilson (Jason Clarke and Isla Fisher) remains a grim contrast to the endless ease of Gatsby and the Buchanans. But all of these people occupy a cartoon America that no living person has ever visited. Some of the finely shaded social distinctions that preoccupied Fitzgerald — between Easterners and Westerners, new money and old — are noted, but they don’t have a whole lot of resonance. We are in a world of artifice and illusion, confected from old-fashioned production-design virtuosity and newfangled digital hocus-pocus. In the 3-D version, the viewer swoops and swerves through one of Gatsby’s parties in a movement that combines Vincente Minnellistyle suavity with the controlled vertigo of a theme park ride. As it happens, Nick Carraway (Tobey Maguire) compares the sybaritic scene at Gatsby’s mansion to “an amusement park.” And Mr. Luhrmann’s peculiar genius — also the thing that drives cultural purists of various stripes crazy — lies in his eager, calculating mix of refinement and vulgarity. Neither Fitzgerald nor Nick, his diffident mouthpiece, was immune to the seductions of hedonism and luxury, and the book does not entirely succeed as a critique of American materialism at what seemed to be its high-water mark. Mr. Luhrmann, for his part, does not resist at all. He fuses the iconography of dressed-up ’20s decadence with the swagger of hiphop high-end consumerism. Jay Gatsby has got money. He’s got cars. He’ll spend a hundred grand over by the bar. But unlike, say, Jay-Z (an executive producer of the film), Jay Gatsby is a rich man whose modest background and criminal past are something to be hidden, sources of mystery, shame and potential ruin. To Tom Buchanan, Gatsby is “Mr. Nobody from Nowhere,” while to Nick he is a shimmering enigma, first glimpsed through the window of his colossal home. To those of us watching in our modest multiplex seats, he is a movie star. In previous incarnations he
was Robert Redford, Alan Ladd and Warner Baxter, and now Leonardo DiCaprio has slipped into the ice cream suit and the curious diction. “Old sport” may be the two hardest words for an American actor to say, but for Gatsby himself they were an affectation, so it is possible to overlook Mr. DiCaprio’s overdone accent. (I do wish he would try a performance without one, though.) More important, it is impossible to look away from him. His charisma has increased as his youthful prettiness has worn and thickened away, and he is beautiful, sad, confident and desperate in exactly the way Gatsby should be. Everything in the movie — and nearly everything in the novel — passes through a double lens of romanticism. Gatsby is partly a creature of Nick’s imagination, and conjures up his own idealized vision of Daisy (Carey Mulligan), the girl he left behind and acquired his illgotten fortune to win back. Is the tale of Daisy and Gatsby a credible love story? Fitzgerald himself was not sure, but Mr. Luhrmann, Mr. DiCaprio and Ms. Mulligan make it an effective one. At a crucial, climactic moment — a scene in a suite at the Plaza Hotel — the director mutes his irrepressible, circus ringmaster showmanship and plunges into undiluted melodrama. The music stops, and the camera cuts among the assembled faces as the emotional core of the film is laid bare. That scene stands out in a movie that is otherwise gaudily and grossly inauthentic. Jay Gatsby is too, of course. He is self-invented and also self-deluded, spinning out fantasies for himself and others as easily as he gives parties. As a character in Nick’s ruminations, in Fitzgerald’s sentences and in our national mythology, he is a complete mess. This movie is worthy of him.
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