My favorite 5 Photographers of Pakistan

Advent of Instagram has bought out a photographer in each and every one of us. We are self proclaimed photographers who would take a picture of interesting looking anything, slap on a filter on it, post it on our social profiles and tada.. There we are celebrity photographers. Worse is the situation with the people who own a DSLR. While I am not against the idea of taking photographs but one can’t call themselves a pro by just owning an expensive camera. Photography is an art. It takes a lot more than just a fancy app, filter or a camera to be a photographer.

The picture should speak for itself. The idea and the thought behind it is what matters more. The moment which has been captured should be so perfect that the viewer cannot see it just as a 2D image but feel the emotions in it and engage all his senses in the visual.

I am visual person so I automatically have a liking for photography. A lot of people enjoy portraits but my favorite genre of photography is landscape and conceptual creative manipulation. Well many might disagree with me and believe creative manipulation in photographs loses the basic essence of photography, I still love this format. Unfortunately not many photographers in Pakistan are exploring this genre. However we still have a lot of talented photographers in the country. Some self taught artists while others who got basic training. Wedding photography recently has been popular amongst upcoming photographers but sadly not all can do justice to it. Same goes for fashion and product photographers.

My favorite 5 Pakistani photographers

1. Danial Shah

Genre which I feel the photographer excels in: Landscape

His love for chai and mountains is evident from his photography. What I love about him is his passion for traveling. He portrays raw beauty in every click he takes. He is a self driven photographer with a degree in business studies.

www.facebook.com/DanialShah.official

2. Mobeen Ansari 

Genre which I feel the photographer excels in: Portraits

Have you seen such portraits which would make you feel as if the person in it is breathing? If not then I would strongly suggest you to follow Mobeen Ansari’s work. He has the power to capture emotions in such pure manner that his work speaks for himself.

www.facebook.com/mobeenart

3. Ali Khurshid 

Genre which I feel the photographer excels in: Wedding

The fearless artist’s claim to fame defiantly is his series of photographs on Seaview, Karachi. From there within few years he has grown to be one of the leading wedding photographers in Pakistan. He not only excels in wedding photograph and portraits but also captures landscapes equally beautiful.

www.facebook.com/LighthouseCinematic

4. Waliya Najib

Genre which I feel the photographer excels in: Outdoor

This gorgeous girl hails from Islamabad and has a knack of capturing the most perfect photographs in sunlight. One could see her love for Islamabad clearly. Her photographs leave the viewers with a happy and warm feeling of content. She has a massive fan following on Instagram.

www.facebook.com/waliyanphotography

5. Nadeem A, Khan

Genre which I feel the photographer excels in: Advertising

This man needs no introduction as he has been one of the pioneers of advertising photographers in Pakistan. His work not only includes product photography but also landscapes and portraits.

www.facebook.com/nadeemakhanphotography

One thing that I absolutely love about all these 5 photographers is that they are exposing the beautiful image of Pakistan.

*All the images taken are personal property of the respective photographers. 

Unlocking my Inner Glow with Ponds

I have been listening to my mother using Ponds as a cold cream since I was a child. Growing up with listening to Ponds as dependable brand I was always inclined towards it. I have been using their range of face wash since it has been launched as well. I was called to an event by Ponds recently. There they uncovered their improved Ponds white beauty GenWhite formula in the range of cream and face wash. The event was absolutely beautiful with great food, interactive and informative games and more information about Ponds.

GenWhite formula doesn't magically give you fair skin but actually get rids of all the dark spots, dark circles and dull skin bringing out the inner glow of your skin. Although that’s a big claim to make but after using Ponds White Beauty range for 7 days I could actually feel the difference in my skin. It was softer and glowing.

I took the Seven Days Diary Challenge and here goes my experience! 

So when I start using the face wash and the cream day one there wasn't any much difference. It was just like you are using any other cream but the good part was it did not make my skin oily and the face wash wasn't harsh either. 

Day two and day three it was almost the same experience. It wasn't until Day four when I started to notice the dark spots on my face slightly fading.  

Day five & six I was more than enthusiastic to wash my face with Ponds White Beauty face wash and put on my Ponds White Beauty cream. My skin was softer and I honestly did not feel like putting on any makeup. 

Day seven visible change was apparent on my face. Dark spots were rapidly fading away and my skin was glowing. 

The great part about the cream is that it has sunscreen as well. I would recommend you to use it in summers as it has a matte affect and bring out your inner glow. 

Desi and Co.

Me and my friends are always on a lookout for a new hangout place where we can get good affordable food. So my friend came across this restaurant Desi & Co. and suggested it to us.

On a Saturday evening we decided to give the place a try. It’s in DHA Phase 4 in the same lane where Burger Shack is. The place is small and neat. I loved the desi quirky quotes that were hanging on the walls. 

We were a group of 7 – 8 people so only two of them placed order for us. I don’t remember the details but we opted for round regular parathas with filling of hara bhara aalu, chicken achari, chicken cheese and chicken fajita. In the end we wouldn’t resist the temptation and ordered Nutella paratha as well. The owner of the place, Misbah, she helped us select flavors of the dough and all because the menu was extensive.

Hands down the parathas were absolutely yum.  It’s hard to believe but there was almost no oil in the paratha and plenty of filling. I have had aalu parathas from many places but always they have tasted bitter. At Desi & Co. I liked the aaluu paratha better than the chicken cheese paratha!

My next favorite in terms of flavor was the achari paratha. Fajita paratha not only had chicken in it but vegetables as well. Nutella paratha didn’t have that oomph factor perhaps a bit of more Nutella would have made it a lot tastier.

We were given free Kheer on check in as well. My friends ordered lassi and they liked it.

Overall the owner is friendly, the service was swift, the chutnies and raitas were finger licking good, the parathas were yum and the bill was pocket friendly.

 Overall would give the place 8.5 out of 10.

You can visit their page on Facebook for more information:
www.facebook.com/pages/Desi-and-Co/1379108982414777

Reasons why tea is a perfect companion..

Tea asks no questions..

Nor it judges.

No commitments and no drama..

Can be enjoyed at any time of the day

Can be found around the globe

Comes in so many different flavors

Enhances the enjoyment of rain

And winters

So many cute cups and mugs to sip tea from

Best way to avoid awkward situation

Keeps you awake in morning

And really long boring meetings

Conversations get interesting over a cup of tea

Best way to socializing with people















And simply because it is tea.. it is love!

Movie Review: Bombay Velvet

Usually when we watch a movie we are looking forward for enjoyable time. A lot of people only tend to focus on the plot but ignore other aspects which make a movie incredible. For me Bombay Velvet was utterly an incredible movie because it is not an expected genre for a Bollywood movie.

It’s sad to see a lot of negative reviews about Bombay Velvet but for me it was refreshing to see a Bollywood movie which was a complete package. Ranbir Kapoor and Karan Johar stole the limelight with superb acting. Kapoor did justice to the challenging role of Johnny Balraj whereas Johar was flawless being Khambhata. Supporting cast did decent job as well.

What I loved about the movie were three things mainly.

The Art direction: Set in 1960’s -70’s the movie has captured true essence of that era with beautiful costumes, sets and props. Anushka Sharma wears stunning dresses as a jazz club singer. And to all those vintage car lovers out there, this movie is a must watch for you guys.

  Cinematography: The cinematographer has taken some daring shots and did not go with the regular mid shots which you would see in every other movie. Action shots particularly are very well taken which I loved.

 Sound: Not only the songs but the background score was very well blended in the narrative.

The story picks up faster after the interval so I would suggest if you are planning to watch the movie be patient, enjoy the acting, art direction and sound and let the story just be there as a supporting element.

All an all great direction by Anurag Kashya and I am looking forward to see Ranbir Kapoor winning a Filmfare for this movie. 

10 reasons to fall in love with Islamabad

Living in Karachi I have this special place in my heart for Islamabad which almost all of my friends fail to understand. They say Islamabad is dull and city of dead but for me it is the ultimate place where should live. Here are the top ten reasons why I love Islamabad.

1. The city has trees. By this statement I do not mean few trees here and there but the entire city is filled with greenery. Flowers everywhere. And the background of mountains. The scenery is pure love.

2.  Islamabad has wonderful weather. I know summer can be particularly painful there but after every other week the city receives spectacular showers. The dry winter and crisp autumn adds into the beauty of the city even more.

3.  No fear of street crime.

4. It is a very well organized city. Of course everyone will come up with a counter for this saying it’s fairly a new city, its capital of the country etc. But one has to admit you hardly experience traffic jams or see trash anywhere.

5. It’s gateway to northern areas of Pakistan. Living in Islamabad gives you the luxury to enjoy your weekends thoroughly by planning a road trip to the northern areas.

6. The overwhelming scent of pine and earth.

7.  No honks, rickshaw woes or noisy motorbikes.

8. The view from Monal.. I have been there so many times but I can never get enough of that view & the Rubab player at Pir Suhawa. The music of Rubab weaves magic in the air.

9.  Hiking trails. Although am not so fond of walking but the trails in Islamabad are something which every city should have.

10. And the utmost important reason… Peace which no other city in Pakistan has. 

#Travel