The Good, the Bad and the Weird at the Magnum Chocolate Party 2016

Dali and the Chocolate Factory

Inspired by Salvador Dali, the wackiest party of the season brought chocolate, art, dance and fashion together to create a night of ‘surrealism’. The name Magnum is synonymous with indulgence, intrigue and pleasure, and all three were evident as soon as I arrived at the ‘chocolate carpet’ after walking through a woman’s dress that would have been right at home in Willy Wonka’s factory. The Surrealism Movement that began in the early 1900s had to do with illogical, strange representations of the mind and also with unleashing one’s imagination through the mediums of art, literature and music. I saw all these meanings insinuated in the elements of the party, doing complete justice to the theme of the night.

Overall, I had a nice experience watching the fashion sequences that depicted the theme well and brought a fusion of Dali and chocolate to life on the runway. It was a cozy affair with various film and TV stars scintillating in snug lounges along with the audience. The music, however, was somber and not very characteristic of a party. A party is supposed to bring people to the dance floor so the name of the event was pretty illogical to start with – The Magnum Show would probably have been better?

While there was much to give one’s eyes a jolt of varying degrees at the party, some people/features stood out more than the rest. Here are the 10 wackiest things about the party.

1. THIS!

The now infamous chocolate covered man bathing in a chocolate tub is the talk of the town. Well, surrealism is about dreams, and perhaps crazy nightmares too – at least that’s what this tub suggests!

2. Zara Peerzada’s outfit 

The ‘brown carpet’ host for the night looked beautiful indeed in black and gold  - the jacket with puffed up shoulders and heavy sequins embellishment definitely stood out from the other mainstream (and mostly boring) red carpet dresses. The velvety jacket, however, was more of a flamboyant rock star number than something to be worn to a party.

3. The lavishly indulgent chocolate bar

If there’s anything that can excite me more than fashion, it’s food, that too made of chocolate. The brown sculptures and the spread of yummy chocolate goodies were the highlights that remain closest to my heart. Confessions of a chocoholic! But the chocolate inspired face is my favorite in the display, featuring Dali’s melting clock and a starfish inspired by his famous starfish portrait.

4. Ali Xeeshan and his rooster

Now, we all know that Ali Xeeshan loves his headgears and is known for his eccentric dressing style. But this fashion statement was one like never before! The life size rooster on his head and an egg resting on his shoulder were as bizarre as it could get. Plus, the fact that a rooster does not have the biological instruments required to lay an egg was perhaps another manifestation of surrealism. 

5.Live art installations

If the Surrealism movement was about letting your imagination run wild, unhalted, then these installations by Wahab Shah did complete justice to the theme. For an art-illiterate person like me, these just went way over my head. But the sparkles, the pipes that looked chocolate coated and the bird cages used to create a dresses were admittedly pretty fascinating.

6. The Human Wall

Made up of ten people, was one of the more interesting features of art that caught the eye of many. A little more eerie than artsy for my taste but creative enough to demand attention. 

7. Amina sheikh’s shoes

Honestly, I am still suffering from withdrawal after Pakeeza’s last episode and Amina Shiekh is one of my favorite actresses, but this red carpet dress is kinda beyond me. The pink army print shirt with a silver blingy skirt, paired up with YELLOW shoes? Am I too lame to understand this fashion collaboration or are you also wondering how it makes sense? Face-wise, she looks beyond beautiful though.

8. Nomi Ansari’s tie

Totally apt for a party, Nomi Ansari’s Honeycomb EMIRATES HEX tie sparkled to bring just the right amount of glitz and glam to his look. The acrylic tie was super quirky, so different and I love it. Don’t miss those leopard print loafers with tassels!

9. Ali Zafar’s Painting

His act took him back to where he started from and me to my teenage years when I used to ogle at him while he made live portraits at PC. The most enthralling part of his act was the portrait he made onstage using chocolate!

10. Nilofur Shahid's collection

My favorite collection has got to be the one by the magnificent couturier Nilofur Shahid, inspired more by Dali than by chocolate. Nadia Hussain’s look was a representation of Dali’s painting, The Face of War, while Fauzia Aman’s dreamy sky blue dress was a depiction of his Meditative Rose. How cool is that Maleficent-inspired bejeweled headgear on Nadia Hussain and that larger than life pink rose adorning Fauzia Aman is simply gorgeous.

You can follow me on Instagram here.
This was published in TGIF Magazine, The Daily Times.

The East End - Restaurant Review/Interview

Bringing Authentic Karachi to your Table

Food is meant to excite the taste buds, cooking is a form of art, and cuisine is a reflection of the people that make a city. The founders of The East End understand this well, and promise to offer you the familiar flavors of Karachi with a twist.

Left: Me, obviously. Right: Mufadal, Adil, Gulnaz, Fawad

As you turn towards the red wall that’s the hallmark of the East End Restaurant, you can’t help but notice a wall-size poster of a cawing crow. With the very familiar image of the bird welcoming you inside, you are reminded of its perpetual chattering up the air of the happening Karachi. The restaurant nests peacefully in a quiet part of Clifton and its doors open to a dimly lit, cozy little place, perfumed with the smell of South Asian spices. It screams Karachi inside out – from the flooring to the rickshaw wallpapers; from the recipes to the die-hard Karachi walas that run this place.

Why should you come and dine at the East end? You will be served recipes, which make up the multi cultural, pan ethnic, colorful and exotic cuisine of Karachi, the European way, giving you a dinner experience that spans over 5 courses. Unlike any other eatery, The East End offers you a chance to savour Karachi’s bites with class and sophistication.

I had the chance to have dinner and chat with the founding members, Adil Moosajee, Muffadal Halai, Fawad Arif and Gulnaaz over some succulent mutton leg and flavorsome black pepper crabs. Want to know more about the restaurant? Here goes!

Why did you choose Pakistani Cuisine and where does your menu take inspiration from?

Adil: I will give you multiple reasons, the first one being that I was really bothered by the fact that people are willing to pay 3000 bucks for Japanese cuisine or an Argentinean steak but when you ask about Pakistani food they say “saath rupay ki nihari honi chahiyay”. We really under-sell our food, which is why I wanted to introduce the idea of fine dining with Pakistani cuisine. I was sure that we can create the same experience. When you travel abroad and you take foreigners out to a desi joint, they will love the food but never tell you what a great experience that was. I wanted to change that. Before my grandma passed away my household used to be thriving with hard core old bohri recipes. When she left us, I started missing those dishes. That’s when Gulnaaz, who used to be the cook at my place at the time, and I started developing some of the recipes I loved. I wanted all of Karachi to try out some of the dishes I grew up with. Also, I was upset that the Kemari crabs were dying and I really wanted to keep that recipe alive. Hence, the Kemari crabs are also on our menu! Basically, what you find on our menu is a celebration of the food that contributes to the very fabric of this city. You will find Sindhi, Parsi, Bohri, Memni and Afghani items here. Our restaurant is dedicated to the people of Karachi.

Ghaatia Mirch, Aaloo Paparh, Jumbo Prawns, Kemari Khattay Aloo

Why ‘The East End’?

Adil:  ‘East’ comes from this part of the world where we are at. ‘End’ comes from the word ‘anth’ when we want to describe a killer experience the desi way – “yaar! ye end hai!” You know? We found this name to be catchy as well!

Why is a ‘crow’ a part of your logo?

Mufaddal : Well, the crow is a Karachi bird. No where will you find so many crows!

Adil: Plus, it is a resilient bird, and Karachi is all about resilience!

Your favorite items on the menu?

Adil: It’s got to be the crabs!

Mufaddal: Daal chawal paleeda.

Fawad: Currently, peanut chicken.

Tamarind Fish

Daal Chawal, Paleeda and Lal Raan

Black Pepper Crabs

Peanut Chicken

Did you hire somebody for the décor or are these all your ideas?

Adil (after a big laugh): Nope. Mufi and I started our first business, which was furniture based, when we were about 19 years old. So we have designed the furniture ourselves and a lot of the features here are experimental and accidental (laughs again). This place was an old tile warehouse and we have not done many changes to the ceiling. We had this particular flooring style in mind and spent two days digging out these old pieces from a plot next to a tile factory in scorching heat. Some of the decoration is from my home. The radio gramophone was my dad’s matriculation gift given to him by my grandfather. The achaar bharnis are my grandmother’s. The suitcases are my grandfather’s. He used to carry them to London back in the day.  So most of the stuff here has a lot of connection with us!

Who is your target audience?

Adil: We are catering to people who have Karachi nostalgia and love for the local cuisine.  We get a lot of customers who are visiting from Lahore or abroad who want to taste what Karachi is made of. Our target audience includes people who travel and know what a 4-5 course meal is like, who enjoy Spanish Tapas or those long, lazy lunches in Florence. So, when you come here, be sure to have about 2 hours at hand.

Mint Drink

Is it difficult working with friends?

Adil: Our work is divided. Fawad is the systems guy – looks after the hiring, firing, audits, costing, training, policies etc. Mufi’s job is the food; he has to ensure the food tastes amazing. Gulnaz develops recipes. My job is the aesthetics part – food plating to be exact. So yeah, we are sorted that way.

Date Halwa, Maal Pura, Kulfi Falooda, The East End Infused Water

Do you plan on expanding the menu or the premises?

Mufaddal: The place will stay nice and cozy.

Adil: We are starting a breakfast menu, most of which has been tested during Sehris this Ramzan. We are hoping to serve brunch Friday through Sunday soon. We are adding something called The Feast at dinner time – the concept is like a king’s table in Game of Thrones! We are also looking at a crab shack and a tapas bar. So there is a lot in the pipeline. Wish us good luck!

Proudest moment at work?

Fawad: We got to host the celebratory party for Raza Rabbani Khar, chairman of the senate

Mufi: When Sharmeen Oaid came here after her first Oscar to celebrate

Adil: Fawad and I were in Dubai and ran into some Karachiites at a restaurant. When introducing ourselves we mentioned we run a restaurant called The East End and everyone there knew about us! That was a happy moment. When I meet Karachiites while travelling all over the world and they know about The East End and tell me how awesome their experience was when they visited, it makes me really proud.

Challenges of running a restaurant in Karachi?

Fawad: I see three main challenges – consistency of ingredients sourced, training and retention of skilled labour and managing the expectations of guests. To sum it all up, maintaining the high standard against all odds every day.

* Photography: Locura by Faizaan Ahmad. You can see more of his work here.

**This story was published in TGIF Magazine, The Dailly Times, with some edits

14 Thoughts After Watching Janaan

To see or not to see

Shot in stunning Swat, showcasing some beautiful young talent and some senior veterans, the release of Janaan has been the talk of the town. The promotions of the film started over a month ago in London. From exclusive photo shoots to PR events to public promotions, the hype around the movie made it difficult for us to wait. I finally got the chance to catch up with the starts at the red carpet and watch the premiere show last Saturday night in Karachi. Here are some of my thoughts about the film.

Go watch Janaan because of:

• Swat

I love the fact that the movie is based there. Some brilliant cinematography captures the natural beauty of the ‘Switzerland of Asia’. And it was just brilliant to see Swat as the center piece of a major production after what it has gone through over the last decade or so. Kudos to the filmmakers for a brilliant decision.

•  The LOL moments

Osman Khalid Butt made it big with his absolutely hilarious YouTube videos back in the day. As the writer of ‘Janaan’, his razor sharp wit and comedic timing shine through Ali Rehman Khan’s character. Not to take away anything from Ali who delivers every punch line to perfection and, as far as I am concerned, steals the show!

• The title track

It has a nice tune to it. I guarantee you will be humming it as you walk out of the cinema.

• The groovy dance number

‘Shor Sharaba’ is so catchy that I couldn’t help but tap my feet as it came on. It is sure to be the next mehndi sensation this wedding season.

• The lead hunk

Bilal Ashraf has a sultry sizzling angry look going on throughout the film. His larger than life presence and those oh-so-yummy dimples that make frequent appearances left me swooning. Whether or not his acting chops are enough to make him the next Pakistani export to Bollywood – only time will tell.

• The bubbly young one

Haniya Amir is a breath of fresh air. At just nineteen years of age she comes across as the most natural actor on screen. By far the strongest female actor in the film.

•  The local language

While the entire film couldn’t have been in authentic Pashto, I loved the fact that the most intense scenes where the dialogues have to come dil se were delivered in pure beautiful Pashto.

But be wary that:

• Some scenes drag on for too long without purpose and some scenes just don’t add any value to the plot or story altogether
• Someone needs to tell these guys that no one gets this high on local anesthesia! If that part was made to be hilarious, it really wasn't
• I found it a little difficult to believe that daughters of big Pakhtoon landlords will drive around alone in their lands, that too at night, wearing clothes only suitable for major urban weddings.
• Given that Armeena Khan has considerable prior acting experience, she failed to impress. The times she wasn't on the screen, I didn't miss her much. It would have been nice if she didn't have as much make up on as she did throughout the film (she looked the best in the last scene). Her skin is pretty good and she could have carried a less cake-y look
• The chemistry  between the two main leads is lacking. I never really understood when they fell in love and how. Bilal and Haniya had much more chemistry as brother and sister

• You will not for the life of you figure out who is who’s offspring!! With such a big happy family always on screen at the same time I was often left wondering who is related to whom and how. (My husband asking kaun kiska baccha hai throughout the film didn't help either.)
• Your speed reading skills will come into serious play. The subtitles, strangely enough, are written in Roman Urdu and fly past at bullet speed before you are even able to understand that the dialogue was in Pashto and you were supposed to be reading and not listening.

*This story was published on womensown.pk with some changes.

5 Reasons why Slovenia Should be your Next Travel Destination

Do you love travelling to Europe but are done with all the mainstream places? Have you checked off the Greek amphitheatres, the Roman cathedrals, Gaudi’s Barcelona and those Parisian patisseries off your to-experience list? If yes, then Slovenia should definitely be your pick for your next vacay. It is an earthly paradise with turquoise lakes, mysterious medieval towns, snow-capped mountains and a marvelous coastline. The best way to travel through this tiny, but beyond gorgeous land tucked between the Alps and the Adriatic Sea, would be to rent a car and get going. Distances are short and navigation easy with GPS.

When I picked Slovenia as one of the countries to visit during my last trip to Europe with my husband, it did raise quite a few eyebrows. People said who goes to Slovenia? Why Slovenia? Here are some of the answers, based on the 4 days that I spent there.

Request: Please don’t judge my fashion sense by those ugly black Nike shoes but that’s all that I can survive in given the amount of walking one needs to do in Europe.

1.      Cycling around Ljubljana is an amazing experience.

Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia, is tiny and one of the most cyclist-friendly cities in Europe. I firmly believe that the best way to explore a city is on a bicycle – it is faster than walking, easier on the feet and a great way to keep burning those calories! Being on a bicycle in this picturesque city was one of the most rewarding cycling experiences of my life. My husband and I rented bikes from the Ljubljana Tourist Information Centre for as cheap as 5 Euros for the entire day. We cycled through the city, over the Dragon and Triple bridges, discovering mysterious alleys, beautiful little homes and cozy cafes – where we stopped for dessert multiple times during the day (so much for the cycling). 

While sight-seeing,  be sure to cycle along the beautiful Ljubljanica River. The area by the river is so quaint and so green. All you will hear is birds chirping and fish making litle ripples in the water. By the way, our one day in Ljubljana was a Sunday and the city almost empty so cycling at a relaxed pace without swarms of tourists was beyond awesome. You don’t really get that in Europe, do you?

  

2.      The breathtaking view of the Adriatic Sea from The Piran Castle is not to be missed

The most beautiful coastal city in Slovenia is Piran, an artistic monument in itself. The Venetian architecture and Italian inspired cooking surely make it the town of your dreams. It is the perfect setting for a season of Game of Thrones with its tightly packed red-roof houses, bell spires and the charming Tartini Square. Climbing up to the ancient Roman walls, you can see Croatia on one side and Italy on the other. There, you need to pause and absorb the blue calmness of the Adriatic Sea and it is my guarantee you will remember this sight forever. The best deal is getting to enjoy the Istrian coast without packs of tourists, who end up picking Croatia and Italy to enjoy the fantastic Adriatic Sea waters. It is the perfect town to visit for a day trip from Ljubljana (about an hour’s drive). Don’t forget your swim suit – after all, when in Piran, you gotta swim in the Adriatic Sea! (Pssstt! if you’re having a little fight with the hubby - we all have those when travelling - the cool water will act like cupid in your life.)

3.       The sunset in Piran is as spectacular as it gets

When the sun sets in Piran, it seems as if a great painter is let loose on the Slovene sky, who throws colors relentlessly over the clouds and the sea. The harbor is lined with boats, adding to the charm of the town and helping create an incredible scene as the sun says good bye for the day. Until that evening in Piran, I thought my favorite sun set was the one I saw at Ponte Vecchio in Florence, Italy.

4.       Lake Bled is your gateway to Narnia

And once you enter, you will be left enchanted for life. It becomes difficult to decide whether you should take pictures to make memories for later or throw the camera in your bag and let your eyes enjoy the green. The car ride from Ljubljana to Bled is about an hour long. There are some tourists but you won’t find the area to be as commercial as a lake town in Switzerland. You can walk around the lake, go boating, climb up to the bled castle or take a chairlift up to a hill and come down on a sledge! Since I was making a day trip there, I had to choose and I chose to go up the chairlift. The bird’s-eye view of the lake was like a scene from a fairy tale. The ride down on the sledge added just the right amount of adventure to my life. The place is extremely photogenic so carrying a tripod with you will be worth it – we did our own mini photo shoot there! Be sure to sit at one of the cafes by the lake when you’re tired and enjoy a slice of the famous Bled cake. Caution: The coffee you get served will be lukewarm so be ready for a mean stare from the waiter if you ask him to warm it up! Pakistanis like their caffeine hot – what to do.

5.       Lake Bohinj is where all you hear is silence

I don’t know what it was about this place but I had never been as spellbound by nature as I was that night when I saw Lake Bohinj – the sun had almost set and we reached the lake (about 30 minutes from Bled) after a frantic drive and being majorly misguided by Google maps. The sheer beauty of this lake is just crazy and seldom in life do you find yourself to be in such a peaceful, romantic setting. I forced my husband to drive back to the lake the next morning from Ljubljana before exiting Slovenia because I was dying to see it in day light too. And the trip back was totally worth it. Lake Bohinj is mostly untouched and you are likely to find yourself to be the only one there! Get loads of pictures and be sure to do some Bollywood posing while you’re at it!

*This story was published in TGIF Magazine, The Daily Times