Empowering the stage again in Pakistan on October 5, 2018Kanwal Khoosat is one of the creative minds behind Olomopolo, the media company that brings theater performances, stand-up comedy, readings and much more to live audiences across Pakistan. The company celebrated its fifth birthday recently and Kanwal Khoosat sat with Daily Times for a quick interview. Khoosat originally directed TV plays and sit-coms like ‘Mujhe […]
Bulleh Shah for a modern audience on October 4, 2018Alhamra’s Hall II was packed this Sunday night. Not only the stairs and the space between the stage and the audience was full; there were long lines of viewers outside the hall, and the doors had to be closed because there the hall was full. This play was first written by Shahid Nadeem and presented […]
‘Kala Meda Bhes’ brings Cholistan and Seraiki language to Lahore on October 2, 2018A large green shrine covered with shawls and lights, a tree well decorated with lamplights and an ox standing under– ‘Kala Meda Bhes’ has to be the most vibrant of Ajoka’s plays. This splash of colour was accompanied with the multi-hued glittering skirts and headgear to break the monochrome of the arid desert. The play […]
Exhibition to pay tribute to late Madeeha Gauhar held at Alhamra on October 1, 2018Multi-colored silk sarees, traditional musical instruments, puppets and face masks from all over South Asia- an exhibition to remember Madeeha Gauhar served as a stunning tribute to one of the pioneers of modern theater in Pakistan. Madeeha Gauhar, an actress and director par excellence, was the driving force behind Ajoka Theater. She died in April […]
Finnish innovation reaches Lahore on September 29, 2018An exhibition of Finnish products that highlights the Finnish designs has opened at the Zahoor-ul Akhlaque Gallery of the National College of Arts in Lahore. The exhibition aims to introduce the modernist and simplistic Finnish designs in Pakistan. The exhibition included products like clothes, interior decoration products and samples of textiles. The exhibition also gives […]
Celebrating banned literature on September 26, 2018Olomopolo media celebrated the Banned Books Week by organising a reading last Sunday The week was first celebrated in 1982 to challenge the bans on books and highlight the importance of freedom. The week brings together everyone who loves books from booksellers, authors, publishers, librarians, academics and of course, readers. The event was curated by […]
Karachi’s Napier Road comes to Lahore on September 21, 2018An exhibition by the photographer Arif Mahmood in the Lahore University of Management Science’s (LUMS) Gurmani Centre for Languages and Literature has opened last week. Over two dozen photos have been placed in the Gurmani center to give us an intimate look into Karachi’s iconic Napier Road. The Napier Road has several distinct features that […]
Ajoka’s ‘dead dog’ lights up Lahore on September 11, 2018Ajoka presented the play “Marya Hoya Kutta” or dead dog in Alhamra Arts Council on Saturday during the ongoing theater festival there. The play was directed by Nirvaan Nadeem, written by Shahid Nadeem and the performance was an outcome of the Masterclass held by Ajoka to train new actors. The play revolves around a day […]
‘Trans women have no security’ on September 3, 2018Anaya Shiekh is one of Pakistan’s first and most promising transgender stand up comedians. Her performances are hilarious but also nuanced because she draws a lot from her life as a person growing up with gender ambiguity. Today, she is a proud trans woman who works on transgender rights and spends her free time making […]
Remembering Shujaat Bukhari on August 27, 2018I was in a packed food court in a posh mall on the outskirts of Lahore last Chaand Raatwhen I found out that Shujaat Bukhari — the prominent Kashmiri journalist and Editor of Sri Nagar based newspaper Rising Kashmir — had been shot and killed alongside his two security guards. I found out about the […]