PESHAWAR: Women have always been depicted as fragile and delicate in worldly matters particularly in literary pursuits or physical activities and this mindset is virtually ingrained in a male dominated patriarchal society in Pakistan.

However, there are many women in the country who have discarded the stereotype image, and proved their mettle in their chosen professional field.

One such outstanding and remarkable example is Maryam Nasim, an intrepid and determined young lady who has outclassed her male counterparts in a field said to be the exclusive domain of men.

Believe it or not powerlifting and bodybuilding are Maryam’s forte and not only has she shattered the myth she has proved herself by winning multiple medals in many competitions.

Hailing from K-P considered to be a conservative area of the country in relation to women Maryam comprises 0.3 per cent of sportswomen in the province.

While most other girls opt for softer sports like volleyball, badminton, volleyball, and handball, but she has chosen the gruelling sports of a male oriented activity.

Background information

Maryam Nasim belongs to Peshawar from a business family. She is the eldest of four siblings, who has become a role model for others to emulate.

She obtained her early education from Peshawar and graduated in Australia in the field of accounts, Besides a lucrative bank job in Melbourne she also took part in powerlifting and will soon be vying for the world’s championship.

She is also a certified nutritionist and blogger who guides various sports professionals such as coaches .

“When I moved to Australia, I was looking for activities on campus and started running initially, and then powerlifting was a sport activity which attracted me a lot.” Despite several warnings from the family members and colleagues that she had made a wrong choice, she persisted in her pursuit and now everyone appreciated her efforts, Maryam said.

She said that there are three types of lifting, but her field of expertise is powerlifting, which requires more energy and difficult task.

Achievements

Maryam has won a silver medal last year, secured a bronze medal at Avia powerlifting competition. Despite sustaining an injury she defied all odds and won the medal.

She participated in the -57 and 63 kilograms category of the event alongside participants from seven other countries and made her mark and won recognition among the sports community of Australia and Pakistan.

In recognition of her services for K-P and Australia the district government has awarded her sport recognition award (Fakhr-e-Peshawar) last year and the provincial sports ministry has offered her space for coaching and imparting training to men and women in the province. She hoped that she would win more medals for her country, but stressed that practice and physical fitness is the key to success. She said that she has been practicing hard since last year to get her eligibility certificate for competing for world tournament.

Athlete and dietician

Attired in the traditional Peshawar outfit, with light makeup and with a childish smile, she doesn’t appear to be a powerlifter. From her grace she represented the banking sector professional. But besides power lifting game, she is professional dietician and coach for sports people.

“ I am looking forward to having my own platform to utilise my knowledge and expertise to give basic health information to the majority of K-P women. She stressed on that note Pakistani women don’t have the stamina and will for physical exercise, nor do they keep their body slim and strong, only few recognise this.

“ I will provide free consultation, coaching and guideline to every sportsperson in the province” She said.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 26th, 2018.

Police booked the nephew of Minister for Religious Affairs Noorul Haq Qadri for allegedly robbing a businessman in the federal capital.

A first information report (FIR) was registered at Shalimar police station claiming that the nephew of the religious minister, Zulfiqar Qadri, snatched a vehicle from Amjad Saeed.

The FIR also stated that six of Zulfiqar’s guards also assaulted Saeed’s son during the alleged robbery.

The businessman claimed in the police report that Zulfiqar had tried to abduct his son and justice should be delivered as per the law of the land.

KARACHI: A young boy’s video of singing Atif Aslam’s song from Tiger Zinda Hai, Dil Diyan Gallan has been taking rounds of the internet.

Hailing from Okara, Punjab, Arshman Naeem is a 12-year-old boy, with his own Facebook page where he posts videos of himself singing. His latest being Dil Diyan Gallan with which he has done a tremendous job and garnered over 90,000 views.

While he might be stumbling at some parts of the song, Naeem does manage to sing very well for a boy his age. Unaware of if he has been trained or not, Naeem’s voice is very mesmerizing.

He has also sung covers for many other songs which he posted on his Facebook page.

With immense talent sprouting out from all parts of Pakistan, the nation should be proud. However, it must also be noted that such talent should be appreciated and encouraged for a more empowering nation.

KARACHI: The Pakistan Super League (PSL) shifts to the Sharjah Cricket Stadium, with Quetta Gladiators and Islamabad United taking on each other in the first match there.

The repeat of first year’s final takes on added meaning considering both teams are currently locked at two points from two games; having won one and lost the other so far.

Both sides come into the game high on confidence after claiming a win in their last games.

“We played really well in our last match against Multan Sultan, who came into that game with two wins in two, and we were able to beat them quite convincingly in the end,” said Islamabad United’s veteran pacer Muhammad Sami, while talking to The Express Tribune. “We were pumped up for that match and gave it our best.”

Sami promised a similar effort in their game against Quetta. “We expect another competitive game against Quetta so we will give it our best to not only entertain the crowd but also to get the two points,” he said.

Islamabad dominated the game against Multan almost from start to finish, having claimed early wickets to account for Multan’s in-form top-order, and Sami says they will be looking to repeat the trick against Quetta. “We took some early wickets [against Multan] and that helped us build pressure and restrict them to a low score,” he said. “Quetta is a tough side and we are both tied on two points so a win is important for both of us.”

Young pacer Faheem Ashraf, who recently claimed Pakistan’s first-ever T20I hat-trick, is also eager to perform against the team of his national captain. “Sarfraz Ahmed has guided me a lot and I have learned a lot from him while playing for the national side,” he said. “Playing against him will be tough but I will try to give it my all. We are hoping that Misbah ul Haq will be able to recover and lead the line against Sarfraz; Misbah is an absolute legend of the game and one of the best captains around, so it’s understandable that we have more confidence when he is leading us.”

‘Quetta confident about winning’

Quetta Gladiators all-rounder and Pakistan U19 captain Hasan Khan revealed the confidence running through the side as they take on Islamabad. “Winning the last match [against Lahore Qalandars] in that emphatic a manner gave us a lot of confidence and we will use that against Islamabad,” he said.

“Our batsmen have been performing well so that gives added confidence to our bowlers, who know they can afford to bowl with aggression. The addition of [West Indian pacer] Jofra Archer has also improved the quality of our bowling unit.”

The two-time runners-up have been propelled by Muhammad Nawaz’s performances in the two games so far and the all-rounder is keen to keep his purple patch going. “My figures in the previous match (2-4 in four overs) were exceptional,” he said. “Usually the batsmen are hit all over the park in this format but I was able to claim the wickets of Lahore’s main two batsmen.”

Nawaz, however, admitted it won’t be easy to repeat the heroics. “Islamabad’s batsmen can be much more difficult to bowl to, but I will still try to give my best and do what skipper Sarfraz wants from me,” he said. “Islamabad’s batsmen have the ability to surprise you since they can suddenly switch gears and just a few bad overs are enough to completely change the direction of a game.”

DUBAI: Pakistan Super League T20 tournament is in full swing in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. At the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Pakistani teams alongside other esteemed international stars and players have come together to play against each other for the third year of the league. As the brand PSL grows bigger and stronger, different teams have brought on mainstream television and movie stars to take on the role of their brand ambassadors.

This year’s brand ambassador for Peshawar Zalmi is none other Mahira Khan, who is one of Pakistan’s most popular and beloved actors. Mahira tweeted earlier last week that she had joined Peshawar Zalmi as brand ambassador and appeared in Peshawar Zalmi’s music video alongside Hamza Ali Abbasi who is also the team’s brand ambassador. The music video, where Mahira looks fierce and does a customary Pakhtun dance is shot very much with the team members of Peshawar Zalmi and Hamza Ali Abbasi. The video and the anthem is perhaps the best out of all the anthems this year in PSL.

But the video is not the only exciting part about Zalmi fans, Mahira and Hamza’s fandom knows no bounds – be it on social media or in the stadium. Fans and media mobbed Mahira Khan for the chance of interviews and selfies with her. The Express Tribune caught up with Mahira Khan amidst all the excitement and madness of Pakistan Super League 2018 to talk about Peshawar Zalmi, cricket memories and more.

How does she like it, this PSL madness, I ask the Verna star. Has she ever been a part of something like this? “Never,” she responds looking around with her distinctive childlike candour. “I’ve never been a part of something like this – the last time I remembered that I was in a stadium when I was in Karachi when I was fifteen years old. We’d packed our bags and we were in a little box. It was all quite exciting.”

Is there any déjà vu she feels? “A little,” she replies thinking briefly. She shakes her head immediately afterwards and begins to say something else when there is suddenly a huge noise outside the press box, where the match is happening. The audience has gone wild. Has Zalmi scored? “This is something else though,” she remarks, perhaps denoting the electric atmosphere. “I love being here, I love rooting for the team.”

A lot of people criticised the PSL beginning in Dubai and having most of its matches here. While its final was played in Lahore last year and this year it would be played in Karachi, it continues to garner criticism for being held mostly in Dubai. Does Mahira agree? “It should definitely happen in Pakistan,” she nods. “There’ll be nothing better than PSL coming home,” Mahira says warmly. “Our stadiums getting full. Nothing better than that. If you’re asking me if I’d rather have it at home, yes. I would. But in a way, what is happening here in Dubai is amazing too. All cricket lovers from all over the world are coming here and watching this tournament happen. Which is also a great thing, I think.”

When we talked about the sense of betrayal Karachiites felt (I simply had to ask) as Mahira, a Karachiite herself, supports Peshawar’s team. Did Mahira face any backlash for going to Zalmi’s side? When I ask her this, she bursts out laughing. “Absolutely, I’ve got whatsapp groups going insane.” She pushes her hair back and gears up for a suitable explanation for this. “See, for me, if we win, my team wins, if your team wins, it’s a win-win situation.” She does have a point.

“You know the cool part is though,” the Humsafar actor says, “when the match is happening, till the time the match is going on, you’re like uurgghh (she makes a little angry warrior gesture) but when it’s over, everyone’s friends again!”

Mahira Khan is also the brand ambassador of Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and was recently in Dubai at one of their fundraisers as well. Peshawar Zalmi had flown in some children from the hospital to attend one of the matches. Mahira had not had the chance to interact with them but she speaks just as passionately about them.

“I couldn’t get the chance to meet them, by the time I arrived in here, it was too late, otherwise I would have met them because it is one my absolute favourite things to do. To interact with them. And I recommend it to everyone. Next time you’re in Lahore, you must visit them. Take your kids. It’s a very special place to be.”

Mahira Khan will be seen soon in a film opposite Sheheryaar Munawar called Saat Din Muhabbat In and in another film opposite her Zalmi brand ambassador friend, Hamza Ali Abbasi, in Maula Jatt 2.