tourism minister gilgit baltistan

Close to 700,000 tourists have visited Gilgit Baltistan since Eid-ul-Fitr: GB minister

ISLAMABAD: Tourism has come back to the scenic Gilgit Baltistan (GB) where so far up to 700,000 local and foreign tourists thronged during the ongoing summer season to enjoy its weather and eye-catching mountainous terrain.

Gilgit-Baltistan's Minister for Tourism, Sports, Culture, Archeology, and Youth Affairs Raja Nasir Ali Khan told APP via phone that the significant surge in tourists' footfall in GB had helped the sector revive, which was affected last year due to coronavirus-related travel curbs.

The statistics shared by the minister were of the last three months, as tourism season started this year after Eid-ul-Fitr when the restrictions on the sector lifted, provided that the anti-coronavirus standard operating procedures (SOPs) would be observed in letter and spirit at all tourist destinations.

The National Command and Operation Centre has recently declared vaccination certificate mandatory for hotel bookings for tourists visiting Gilgit-Baltistan, Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

"We are allowing any tourist to GB and there is no plan for imposing ban on tourism," said Raja Nasir who asserted that implementation of anti-coronavirus SOPs in the area was being ensured to keep the virus at bay.

He said the GB government, in collaboration with Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), was taking multiple initiatives to boost tourism by improving air access to the area.

The minister said PIA was carrying four to five flights from various cities to GB every week, adding that negotiations were underway with Nepal and Gulf countries to start one international flight to the area as an experiment.

He said a short-term strategy was opted to improve infrastructure in the area, citing home stay financing as an example to meet accommodation need of tourists and empower locals through soft loans.

Road infrastructure was being upgraded, he said, adding incomplete road projects were being completed to improve tourists' access to the new and unexplored sites in GB.

He said the GB government's main focus was to promote the valley as a winter sports and adventure tourism destination by arranging festivals and competitions. Ice hockey tournament, skating and skiing competitions, and K-2 winter summit arranged last year in GB got overwhelming response from local and foreign tourists, he added.

Highlighting decline in foreign tourists' arrival to the destination, he said around 40 percent of adventure tourist groups cancelled their tour due to the pandemic.

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Pakistan’s Ambassador to the United States Masood Khan says tourism industry of Pakistan can play a significant role in cultivating better people to people ties and linkages between Pakistan and the United States.

He was talking to Minister for Planning & Development Gilgit Baltistan Raja Nasir Ali Khan Maqpoon at Embassy of Pakistan Washington DC.

The Ambassador congratulated Minister Planning GB for organizing a successful show that would surely catapult country’s tourism potential to new levels.

Raja Nasir Khan thanked the Ambassador for the support provided by the Consulate in New York and Pak Embassy Washington in successfully showcasing tourism potential of the country at an international platform.

Minister Planning GB said that US tourists were the second highest in numbers visiting Gilgit Baltistan annually for various kinds tourism including eco-tourism, adventure tourism and others. He apprised the Ambassador about various initiatives being taken for transforming youth potential of Gilgit Baltistan into a productive human capital.

In this context, the Minister said that GB Government was focusing on establishing IT parks, incubation centers, vocational institutes and winter sports for the youth. He informed the Ambassador that equal attention was being paid to girls education and providing them with sports facilities. Out of 52 Ice-Hockey teams that have been raised in the region, 12 were female teams, he said.

Minister Planning GB said that Gilgit Baltistan government, in collaboration with USAID and Rupani Foundation would organize ‘Invest in Pakistan Conference-II’ in May this year to encourage investors especially Pak-American community to invest in various sectors including tourism, hospitality, tech sector, minerals, renewable energy, health, education and clean drinking water.

Discussing international support to the education sector in Gilgit Baltistan, Ambassador Masood Khan especially highlighted the contributions made by Mrs. Diana MacArthur who had been a driving force behind creation of Center for Educational Excellence, in the village of MurtazaAbad, in the Hunza Valley of Gilgit-Baltistan.

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Gilgit baltistan seeks investment in tourism, energy and agriculture, gb government has evolved a vision 2040 and vision 2050 to put the most beautiful part of the world at par with other international competitive tourism destinations.

Muzaffar Rizvi

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Gilgit Baltistan (GB) has invited overseas Pakistanis and Gulf investors to explore investment opportunities in its key untapped sectors offering better profitability, its top official says.

Khalid Khursheed, chief minister, Gilgit Baltistan, said his government is keen to facilitate Pakistani and international investors if they want to avail investment and business opportunities in one of the most beautiful parts of the world.

“We are showcasing our potential in tourism, agriculture, mining, hospitality, energy, and food processing at Expo 2020 Dubai and are very positive about the response from the business community and investors,” Khursheed said at an event hosted by Pakistan Business Council Dubai on Monday.

He said February is a designated month for Gilgit Baltistan to showcase its economic and tourism potentials at Pakistan Pavilion through seminars, briefings and panel discussions to attract investment in the key sectors of GB.

“We have been presenting untapped sectors in Gilgit Baltistan and playing sector-specific documentaries and videos at Pakistan Pavilion for information and promotion of GB amongst visitors,” Khursheed said.

He said different cultural events are also part of the GB govt activities at Expo 2020.

“On the sidelines of the mega event, panel and group discussions have also been arranged prior to an investment conference, which is scheduled on Feb 24. The US and European investors will be attending the conference,” he said.

The chief minister said GB government has evolved a Vision 2040 and Vision 2050 to put the most beautiful part of the world at par with other international competitive tourism destinations.

“GB has a potential to generate up to 40,000 megawatts hydel power, virgin agricultural land for fruits plantation, ideal locations on river bank for building hotels and resorts as well as tourists hotspots,” Khursheed said.

He said GB has a potential to attract investment in infrastructure development and key sectors.

“We have finalised a plan to develop two new cities — one at Sakardu and second in Gilgit, and formal announcement is expected in March,” he said.

Untapped market

Earlier, Imran Saeed Chaudhary, a prominent businessman and chairman of Cinergie Group, delivered keynote address and said Gilgit Baltistan offers good investment and business opportunities in infrastructure, hydropower and tourism sector.

“It is an untapped market and we need to explore the opportunities to develop the area and promote as a tourist destination,” he said.

PBC delegation to visit GB

Iqbal Dawood, director and officiating president of the Pakistan Business Council (PBC) Dubai, said the business council will lead a delegation to GB to get the first-hand information and discuss various investment options with the government.

“We have very limited information about GB and its potential for investment, but now PBC is keen to explore this untapped market,” Dawood said.

Shabbir Merchant, chairman of Champion Group, echoed the similar views and said GB has potential to attract investment from the Pakistani community.

“A PBC Dubai delegation will soon visit GB and finalise a plan to invest in key sectors,” Merchant said.

Investment conference

Afzaal Mahmood, Pakistani Ambassador to the UAE, delivered the concluding marks and said Gilgit Baltistan effectively highlighted its key economic sectors at Expo 2020 Dubai.

“GB is a land of opportunities and it is expected to attract potential investors in tourism, infrastructure and hospitality. We are very positive about the investment conference on February 24,” Mahmood said.

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Winter Tourism in Gilgit Baltistan picking up

According to a report by the Pakistan Institute of Development Economics (PIDE), around 50% of families in Gilgit Baltistan (GB), directly or indirectly, depend on tourism and hospitality industry for their livelihood. Gilgit Baltistan has a rich tourism potential, as the towering mountains, lush green fields, pristine lakes, sprawling glaciers, architectural marvels, archeological monuments and the hospitability of the local people attract tourists from across the globe. According to the World Bank, Pakistan generated 765 million USD from the tourism industry in 2020, and much of it from the foreign tourists visiting Gilgit Baltistan. Gilgit Baltistan’s Minister of Sports and Tourism, Raja Nasir Ali Khan, said in 2021 that around seven lakh tourists visited Gilgit Baltistan, from June to August 2021.

Despite these impressive numbers in the burgeoning tourism industry of Gilgit Baltistan, the potential of winter tourism in the region remains untapped. The inhabitants of the region are unaware of the potential of this industry, while the government is yet to start initiatives that would attract tourists to the region during the winter season. Although, winter tourism is a risky endeavor and only ambitious adventurers dare to challenge the climatic obstacles, it offers a unique opportunity to experience the raw and unspoiled beauty of nature in its purest form. Winter tourism involves winter festivals, skiing, snowboarding, winter trekking, rock climbing, mountaineering, ice hockey and ice climbing, amongst other activities. With the government’s support in facilitating these sports in difficult terrains and far-off mountainous areas, the full potential of winter sports in GB can be achieved.

Although, winter tourism in GB is in a nascent phase, there have been a few winter festivals and winter games in recent years. The Shyok Winter Festival, organized by the district administration with the support of the Canadian High Commission and AKRSP in Ghanche, Baltistan in 2018, was one of the earliest organized winter sports festivals. Ice skating and ice hockey competitions are annually held at Khalti Lake in Yasin Valley, Ghizer, Gojal and Ali Abad in Hunza district, which are gaining attention due to efficient social media advertising. Naltar Valley in Gilgit, has also been the hub of winter sports activities in GB over the years, including skiing, ice hockey, ice skating and paragliding. The National Ice Sports Championship was held in Naltar this January, where various winter games were played. These festivals are doing nothing substantial in promoting winter tourism in the region, as they are not being well advertised, and the infrastructure needs improvement.

Ice hockey is perhaps the most popular winter sport in GB, as it has been played in various lakes in Hunza, Ghizer and Skardu. The National Ice Hockey Championship as well as the Baltistan Ice Hockey Championship was held in Hunza and Skardu with the support of the Canadian High Commission in 2022, which is a positive step towards winter tourism in GB. All the districts in GB have natural playgrounds/venues for this sport throughout the winter season, and if the sports department in GB organizes an Ice Hockey competition between different districts of the province, the region has the potential to make it to the Olympics. This effort will nurture upcoming talent and give them the platform to showcase their skills. With the success of the game in GB, teams from the rest of the country can participate as well, which will further improve the standard of the game.

Naltar in Gilgit and Rattu in Astore are famous for skiing in GB, however, many new sites can still be explored for winter sports in this region. The Ski Federation of Pakistan, with the support of the Pakistan Navy, holds the National Skii Championship in Naltar Valley, located just 40 Km from the Gilgit City, where Ukraine, Turkey, Greece, Afghanistan, UK, Azerbaijan, Morrocco, Tajikistan, Iran and other countries have participated in the past. Various local teams, like the Pakistan Army, Civil Aviation Authority, GB Scouts, and Higher Education Commission have also participated in the competition. With proper outreach, funding and advertising, many new ski resorts can be developed across GB.

Trekking is usually reserved for summers, as it gives an opportunity to take in the beauty of valleys along the trek, but trekking in winter has its own charms. Famous treks in GB that are yet to get tourist attraction include the Gondogoro La Pass, Biafo Hisper Snow Lake Trek, Batura Glacier Trek, Rakaposhi Base Camp Trek, Shimshal Pass Trek amongst others. These treks are challenging for novices, but for seasoned trekkers they can be fun.

Winter mountaineering is more dangerous than in summer, because the days are short, the weather is severe, and the threat of avalanches is ever-present, but for mountaineering aficionados it is a risk worth taking. The mountains and hills in GB provide a good opportunity for all those seeking to scale snowcapped mountains and hills during winter. Winter mountaineering is a popular sport across Europe that attracts thousands of tourists from across the world: the Scottish Highlands, Aneto in Spain, Mont Blanc and Vignemale in France, and the Tatra Mountains in Poland and Slovakia, are the popular winter mountaineering destinations. The high-altitude mountains of GB provide a good opportunity for winter mountaineering, even climbing to the base camp of 7,000 meters mountains will be an expedition to remember.

Naltar has been the hub of skiing for the last decade and we have seen that it produced international-level athletes in recent years. Two of the residents of Naltar have participated in the Olympics in Giant Slalom Skiing so far. Muhammad Karim participated in the Sochi Winter Olympics 2014, while Muhammad Abbas played in the Winter Games 2021 in Vancouver, Canada. With proper grassroots-level investment in other winter sports in GB, Pakistan can hope to win Olympic medals in these games, as the region has both the talent and natural landscape.

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Gilgit baltistan’s winter festival to become ‘national level’ event from next year — minister.

https://arab.news/vzt8u

• The region’s traditional Shyok Winter Festival seeks to increase tourism by arranging Gilgit Baltistan’s cultural games
• Canadian High Commissioner to Pakistan expresses hope the areas also becomes famous for ice hockey across the world

ISLAMABAD: Gilgit Baltistan’s sports and tourism minister Raja Nasir Ali Khan has promised to turn a traditional winter festival in the region, which kicked off in Ghanche district on Saturday, into a national event from next year by inviting people from other parts of the country.

The three-day Shyok Winter Festival, named after a river that meanders through the area, has been organized by the district administration in collaboration with the Canadian High Commission and Aga Khan Rural Support Program.

The festivities have attracted hundreds of people who are interested in watching cultural and traditional games of Gilgit Baltistan along with ice hockey which has been introduced in the area for the first time.

“With this festival, a series of winter sports [will continue across] Gilgit Baltistan,” the minister told Arab News over the phone. “Similar festivals are also planned in Ghizer, Hunza, Skardu, Astore and Diamer this year.”

“Next year,” he continued, “we will arrange a national level winter festival to which other provinces will also be invited.”

Known for its picturesque landscapes, Gilgit Baltistan is a mountainous area in Pakistan’s northern region that borders China and Afghanistan. It is among the country’s most popular tourism destinations and was listed by Forbes among ten “coolest places” to visit in 2018.

According to the sports and tourism minister, nearly two million local and international backpackers attended various festivities in the area last year while more than 155 high-altitude climbers summited the world’s second tallest mountain, K2, which is also located in the region.

“We want to see tourists coming to GB in winter as well,” he said. “That’s why we are promoting winter activities here and want to keep the area open for tourists [throughout the year].”

Addressing the inauguration ceremony of the festival, Canadian High Commissioner to Pakistan Leslie Scanlon highlighted Gilgit Baltistan’s potential to generate more tourism by arranging such activities.

“While I recognize we are in a world-famous region for rock climbing, trekking and mount climbing, I hope that Gilgit Baltistan will also become a world-famous region for ice hockey for boys and girls and men and women,” she said.

Rana Haider Tahir, assistant commissioner in Ghanche district, said the event had a major scope for the development of the area.

“This festival is a celebration of all cultures in Baltistan region, especially the valley situated across the Shyok River,” he told Arab News over the phone.

He informed the authorities were also going to inaugurate a museum along with an information technology park and school for people with disabilities during the three-day event.

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Muslim world league secretary general leads eid prayers at islamabad’s iconic faisal mosque.

• Dr. Mohammad bin Abdulkarim Al-Issa arrived in Pakistan on Sunday on nine-day visit
• Will spend time on Eid day with children at orphanage after leading prayers at Faisal Mosque

ISLAMABAD: Dr. Mohammad bin Abdulkarim Al-Issa, the secretary-general of the Muslim World League (MWL), on Wednesday led Eid prayers at the Shah Faisal Mosque in the Pakistani federal capital of Islamabad.

Dr. Al-Issa arrived in Islamabad late Sunday night on a nine-day trip aimed at fostering interfaith harmony and strengthening Saudi Arabia’s bilateral relations with Pakistan. 

The MWL is a Makkah-based non-governmental organization that represents followers of Islam around the world.

“Upon receiving an official invitation from the Prime Minister of Pakistan to deliver the #EidAlFitr sermon at King Faisal Mosque in Islamabad, His Excellency Sheikh Dr. #MohammedAlissa, Secretary-General of the MWL and Chairman of the Organization of Muslim Scholars, arrived in Islamabad,” the MWL said on X.

“He was welcomed by distinguished scholars and ministers whose work is related to the mission undertaken by the MWL.”

Upon receiving an official invitation from the Prime Minister of Pakistan to deliver the #EidAlFitr sermon at King Faisal Mosque in Islamabad, His Excellency Sheikh Dr. #MohammedAlissa , Secretary-General of the MWL and Chairman of the Organization of Muslim Scholars, arrived in… pic.twitter.com/K41cUXRv5w — Muslim World League (@MWLOrg_en) April 10, 2024

Muhammad Umer Butt, a Pakistan government spokesperson, told Arab News Al-Issa planned to spend Eid at an orphanage run by his organization in Islamabad after leading Eid prayers at Faisal Mosque. On Tuesday, the visiting dignitary was reported to have met President Asif Ali Zardari.

“It is his nine-day-long visit during which he will hold high-level meetings with Pakistan’s president, prime minister and minister of religious affairs,” Butt said on Tuesday. 

“The MWL secretary-general will sign an MOU [memorandum of understanding] with the government of Pakistan for the establishment of a state-of-the-art Seerat-un-Nabi Museum in the federal capital,” he said, adding that Dr. Al-Issa would also perform the groundbreaking ceremony for the museum after signing the MOU on April 15.

The museum will be the first of its kind in Pakistan dedicated to exhibiting relics related to the Prophet Muhammad’s (PBUH) life.

Butt said the visiting dignitary attended an iftar-dinner on Monday night at the Saudi embassy where he interacted with Pakistani cabinet members and others high-profile officials.

According to the MWL’s Pakistan office, Dr. Al-Issa will also be the chief guest on April 13 in Islamabad at a prize distribution ceremony among young “huffaz” who have memorized the Holy Qur’an. 

He will return to Saudi Arabia on April 15.

Dr. Al-Issa was conferred the prestigious Hilal-e-Imtiaz award in 2022 by Pakistan’s then president Dr. Arif Alvi for humanitarian efforts and his role in strengthening Pakistan-Saudi Arabia relations.

Dr. Al-Issa is described by the AWL as a “trailblazer” for forging partnerships among different communities, faiths and nations and is also a renowned Saudi religious scholar who has had the honor of delivering the Hajj sermon or Khutbah in 2022.

Pakistan and Saudi Arabia enjoy strong trade, defense, and cultural ties. The Kingdom is home to over 2.7 million Pakistani expatriates and serves as the top destination for remittances to the cash-strapped South Asian country.

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Major karachi party demands army crackdown as 57 killed in street crime this year.

• Victims of muggings in the country’s commercial hub include students, traders, military officer
• 2013 paramilitary crackdown brought down crime nut gave rise to accusations of rights violations

KARACHI: The Muttahida Quami Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P), a major opposition party in Pakistan’s southern Sindh province, on Tuesday demanded the federal government empower the Rangers paramilitary force to conduct a crackdown on street criminals in the port city of Karachi or hand the city over to the army for three months. 

At least 57 people have been killed in street crime in Karachi, the country’s commercial hub and home to roughly 30 million people, averaging nearly one murder every other day since the start of this year, according to a tally collected from media reports.

At least 18 of the killings, including that of an army major who was assigned with the Coast Guard, occurred during the holy fasting month of Ramadan. The officer was shot by muggers on March 30 amd died after being hospitalized for a week.

Ali Khurshidi, an MQM-P member, told Arab News provincial police had failed to control street crime and Rangers should be given special powers to lauch a crackdown. 

The demand is a hark back to 2013 when, after years of crime and militancy had made Karachi a byword for violence, an extended operation by the Sindh Rangers, who are ultimately answerable to the powerful Pakistani military command, pushed crime notably down across the city.

“Rangers have been granted such powers in the past to restore law and order,” Khurshidi said. “Isn’t the killing of more than 50 people reason enough to involve paramilitary forces to control crime, especially when the police have completely failed?”

He said the killing of such a large number of people in a little over three months “is reason enough to seek the intervention of all stakeholders, the provincial and federal governments, to take immediate steps to save precious lives on the streets.”

Karachi, Pakistan’s largest city and home to its biggest port, has for decades been plagued by street crime, robberies, kidnappings for ransom as well as ethnic, political and gang violence.

After a drop in crime following the 2013 crackdown, violence and robberies are once again on the rise, with dozens of residents, including traders and university students, killed during muggings on the city’s busiest thoroughfares.

Amid calls to bring in Sindh Rangers, Zoha Waseem, an assistant professor at the Department of Sociology, University of Warwick who has authored a book on corruption within Karachi police, said Rangers were meant to act in support of the police and their role in controlling crime needed be clearly defined.

“We know from the past that this has not always been the case,” she said. “At times, they have acted independently.”

She was referring to widespread reports that the 2013 crackdown, which continued for a number of years, had also been used to upend the city’s political order, and was expanded to target political parties and figures at odds with the military establishment, including the MQM-P at the time. The operation also left behind a broad trail of human rights violations — including accusations of extrajudicial killings, in which officers shoot suspects after taking them into unlawful detention, according to rights advocates and political leaders. Sindh Rangers denies this. 

In view of the rising crimes, Mustafa Kamal, a member of the MQM-P party which has itself in the past been the target of a military-backed crackdown, demanded the army take control of the city.

“Karachi should be handed over to the army for three months as the Sindh government has failed to adequately protect the lives and property of its citizens,” he said in a statement.

In the latest killings in Karachi, Muhammad Hassan, 70, and his 37-year-old son were killed in the Motorville area of Karachi by robbers as they snatched Rs12.6 million ($151,398) from the father-son duo on Monday. 

Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah suspended the in-charge of the area police station in response. 

Arab News made multiple attempts to get a comment from Karachi police chief, Imran Yaqoob Mihas, but he did not respond.

Sindh Information Minister Sharjeel Memon told Arab News he did not believe the provincial government needed assistance from the center.

“Unfortunately, the chain of street crimes has escalated throughout the country,” he said. “Our efforts are aimed at swiftly controlling street crimes and the new interior minister and the new IG are working hard [in this regard].”

Pakistan marks Eid Al-Fitr with prayers for people of Palestine, Kashmir

• Eid Al-Fitr, festival that ends Islam’s fasting month of Ramadan, began in Pakistan on Wednesday
• Eid comes this year as six months of an Israeli air and ground campaign have devastated Gaza

ISLAMABAD: Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif wished the South Asian nation and the Muslim world on the Eid Al-Fitr holiday which began today, Wednesday, reminding them not to forget the people of Palestine as they celebrated.

Six months into Israel’s air and ground campaign in Gaza, triggered by Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on southern Israel, the devastated enclave faces the risk of widespread famine and disease with nearly all its inhabitants now homeless.

Palestinian health authorities say more than 33,000 Palestinians have been killed in the war so far.

“I also urge Muslims around the world to remember their Palestinian and Kashmiri brothers and sisters who are facing the worst kind of atrocities of the occupation forces and they will be constrained to enjoy the joys of Eid. We all pray to Almighty Allah to ease their difficulties,” Sharif said in a statement to the nation on Eid Al-Fitr, the feast that ends Islam’s fasting lunar month of Ramadan.

“May the underlying meaning and significance of Islam spread among us all as a guide to the emancipation of humanity and may the world be filled with peace and harmony.”

Israel’s military assault on Gaza has displaced nearly all its 2.3 million population and led to genocide allegations that Israel denies.

“While we enjoy the celebratory delight of this great occasion, we must not forget the least fortunate among us,” PM Sharif said. “I appeal to you to help those around you who deserve our support so that they could also share the joys of this occasion.”

Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari also mentioned Palestine in his Eid message.

“On behalf of the Pakistan nation, I want to give the message to the oppressed Muslims of Gaza and Palestine that the whole Pakistani nation express solidarity with you,” the president said. 

“We impress upon the international community to ensure immediate peace in Gaza and provision of assistance to the Palestinians. The oppression, barbarity and genocide by Israel is the gravest violation of human rights.”

Pakistani actress Mehwish Hayat hopes fans relish supernatural rom-com releasing on Eid today

• “In Daghabaaz Dil,” Hayat plays a girl possessed by a demon and being forced to marry against her will
• Directed by Wajahat Rauf, Daghabaaz Dil is the only Pakistani film releasing this Eid Al-Fitr holiday

KARACHI: Pakistani actress Mehwish Hayat hopes her fans will flock to theaters this Eid Al-Fitr to watch her new film “Daghabaaz Dil,” which unlike typical Pakistani films mixes the theme of the supernatural with romance and drama.

Directed by Wajahat Rauf, the film’s trailer shows it contains elements of romance, drama, comedy and witty dialogues. Apart from Hayat and Ali Rehman Khan, who plays the male lead, the film also features stellar actor Saleem Shaikh and popular Internet personality Momin Saqib in prominent roles.

The plot revolves around Zoya, a free-spirited girl played by Hayat whose marriage is arranged by her parents against her will to Faris, played by Khan, a reluctant groom-to-be who just can’t say no to his grandmother’s wish for him to marry Zoya. The film follows the tensions and troubles between the couple and their families, providing comic relief for viewers along the way. And as Zoya and Faris gear up for a big fat Punjabi wedding, there’s a plot twist unlike any other: Zoya is possessed by a jinn.

Speaking to Arab News in an exclusive interview, Hayat said it was this element of the supernatural that would make her film, the only Pakistani film releasing nationwide this Eid, unique.

“In South Asian families, a wedding is a big deal, it is a formula that always works [in our films],” Hayat said. “People do want to watch elaborate clothes, song and dance. But at the same time, this one [film] is not just about the wedding, it’s also the drama that comes with the supernatural element.”

Her co-star Khan agreed.

“I think the USP of this film is the supernatural element,” Khan told Arab News. “Because we have always seen masala films [such as] shaadi (wedding), drama, you know, but the supernatural aspect makes it a little spicier … It really makes it unique.”

Another thing the actors hope the audience will find interesting is the chemistry between the two main characters, who are portrayed as stark opposites. While Zoya is loud, argumentative and free-spirited, Faris is a “sweet” and “empathetic” man, Khan said.

“On the other hand, Zoya is somebody who doesn’t give a damn about anybody around her,” Hayat said, chuckling. “She just wants the best for herself. She loves herself the most. That is the contrast, the dynamic that exists between these two.”

“ADD TO EID FESTIVITIES”

Shooting for the film was a hectic affair, with production starting in December 2023 and completed before Eid. This meant the cast rarely got breaks and were dubbing for the film even on days when they were supposed to be off.

But a “positive” environment on set and a “cordial” team helped the cast complete the shoot in record time, the two lead actors said.

“We are quite in sync, we really enjoyed working with each other,” Hayat said about being paired with Khan on the silver screen for the first time.

“I learnt a lot from Mehwish [Hayat],” Khan added. “She is a very professional actor and she is extremely humble, kind and forthcoming when it comes to helping someone out.”

Besides Pakistan, the film is also set for release in the US, UK, Canada, Norway, Denmark and all Gulf countries.

“We know how many fans, Pakistanis and South Asians, are there [in the Gulf region],” Hayat said. “So, please go and support our movie Daghabaaz Dil this Eid.”

While Hayat said it was not possible to predict how well the film would do at the box office, she hoped the fact that it was the only movie being released on Eid would help.

“I am hoping that it will [work in our favor],” she said. “This movie goes with the spirit of Eid and there is no such entertainment available to people [in Pakistan] except for food and going out and having fun with the family. So, I think this movie is something that would really add to their Eid festivities and fun.”

Want a haircut, bread trim or calming facial this Eid? Head to Quetta’s Prince Road 

• Barber shops on the busy road offer 24-hour services for customers wanting to match new looks with Eid outfits
• Customers and shop owners say people in Balochistan province becoming increasingly aware of new trends

QUETTA: Need a haircut before Eid? Want to get your beard trimmed? Or looking for a break from hectic Eid preparations with a calming facial?

Prince Road is the place to visit if you require men’s grooming services on any day of the year, but especially ahead of the Eid holiday in Quetta, the provincial capital of the southwestern Pakistani province of Balochistan.

A few days before Eid this week, crowds of men, young and old, arrived at the brightly lit street to visit their favorite salons as barbers and stylists worked frantically to keep up with the holiday rush. 

All types of vendors will be at your service on Prince Road: from salons that employ dozens of staffers to street barbers that set up their shops on footpaths and don’t have much at their disposal except their tools, a chair, mirrors, and impressive skills.

Muhammad Siddique, who owns the largest men’s salon on Prince Road and has more than 50 staffers, said his employees worked day and night starting a week before Eid to groom customers at the Continental Hair Salon.

Almost every customer wished for a “fresh, unique look” to match new Eid outfits, according to the 60-year-old salon owner.

“We are providing shave, haircut, beard-trimming, facial massages and hair-straightening services to our customers, but the demand for facial services increases during the Eid season,” Siddique told Arab News this week.

And which were the popular haircuts this Eid?

“Customers have been asking for straight, rough and puff hairstyles, because everyone wants to look handsome for Eid,” said Siddique, an experienced barber for the last 40 years who said his salon offered “very reasonable” rates for all services to cater to customers from across Balochistan, Pakistan’s largest but most impoverished province.

“We charge Rs500 ($1.80) for a simple haircut and beard-trimming, but for facial massages there are different rates, ranging from Rs2,000 ($7) to Rs10,000 rupees ($36).” 

“BALOCHISTAN CATCHING UP ON NEW TRENDS ” 

Balochistan is home to 10.48 million people mainly from the ethnic Baloch and Pashtun tribes, famous for their elaborate cultural attires and grooming techniques, with salon owners and stylists on Prince Road saying the clients’ urge to try new styles on Eid knew no bounds. 

“We travel outside of Quetta for picnics with friends during Eid vacations, record TikTok videos and take pictures for social media. Because of this we take extra care about how we look on Eid,” said Munir Ahmed, a 26-year-old mechanic who works on Quetta’s Sabzal Road and was visiting a men’s salon to get his hair and beard trimmed ahead of Eid. 

“There are dozens of men salons in Quetta but on this street, there are so many professional barbers,” Ahmed added. “In the last week of Ramadan, we visit the market for Eid shopping and get haircuts after the iftar [fast-breaking sunset] dinner and you will find people standing in queues outside barber shops all the way till suhoor [sunrise meal].”

Thirty-eight-year-old Syed Shahzada, who was getting his long hair trimmed at a salon on Prince Road, said the people of Balochistan were becoming more conscious of how they looked and following trends from the relatively prosperous Punjab and Sindh provinces.

“In Quetta, males have even left females behind, who used to be famous for visiting beauty parlors during the Eid season,” Shahzada told Arab News. “People like me, with long hair, we visit salons twice in Ramadan, but for a facial massage, I will come here again on Chand Raat [night before Eid].”

Siddique agreed that fashion trends were catching on even in remote parts of the province, saying his salon was visited by tribesmen from far-off districts like Chaman, Pishin, Mastung, Kalat and Khuzdar.

“More than 400 customers daily visit our shop during the last 10 days of Ramadan,” the barber said as he chatted with incoming clients. 

“That’s why we provide 24-hour services to cover the rush.”

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Today's Paper | April 10, 2024

Tourism is what gilgit-baltistan needs.

These days when tourists visit Pakistan, families and friends back home worry about their safety, as they mostly read about suicide attacks in the country. But when the tourists visit Gilgit-Baltistan's peaks, rivers, glaciers, mountain passes, trekking routes, still lochs, hidden and untouched valleys home to thousands of years old culture, wild life, unpolluted air and clear waters, their perception of Pakistan undergoes a complete change.

“When I told my wife I was going to Pakistan, she asked me to find a place for suicide in Switzerland. Despite her protests, I came here and was stunned to see Gilgit-Baltistan. The people were hospitable, friendly and atmosphere was calm and peaceful,” remembers a Swiss tourist who visited the country last year.

It shows that in the worst of conditions, Pakistan holds attraction for tourists. But unfortunately the tourist industry is going down, even in places like Gilgit-Baltistan, which fulfill all benchmarks for attracting tourists from around the world.

With provincial status, the Gilgit-Baltistan government has to move quickly to bring the tourism out of morass it is caught in. Several private tourism companies have been forced to close down offices. Hotels are empty and thousands of people related to tourism are jobless in Gilgit-Baltistan for the last many years.

Mohammad Iqbal, owner of Baltistan Tours and member of Gilgit-Baltistan Tourism Board, says foreign tourists visit Gilgit-Baltistan because of its peaceful atmosphere. “But to come here, they have to first reach Rawalpindi or Islamabad, where they don't want to stay. If there is a direct flight to Skardu from abroad, we can bring back the days when tourists flocked Gilgit-Baltistan.”

Before 9/11, a large number of tourists visited Gilgit-Baltistan compared to other places of the country, as the World Tourism Organisation had declared Pakistan number two on the list of countries with tourism potential.

In the past despite absence of government backing and negligence of the Ministry of Tourism, 65 per cent out of the total foreign visitors used to visit Baltistan every year for mountaineering, trekking and witnessing nature.

But today the crumbling infrastructure, especially in Baltistan, is leaving little chances of reviving tourism. Shigar-Askoli Road, the only source to get to Baltoro or Concordia, the junction of hundreds of lofty peaks, glaciers, passes and trekking routes, is in extremely bad condition. The condition of road with dangerous turns and supporting wall has in itself become an adventure for the trekkers and climbers who pass through it.

A thriving tourism can become engine of change in Gilgit-Baltistan – the region has everything a tourist can think of – helping its people to come out of years of poverty and backwardness.

Four of the world's 8,000 metre high peaks – K2 (8,611m), the second highest peak in the world, the Broad Peak (8,060m), Gashabrum-I (8,068m) and Gashabrum-II (8,036m) – are in Baltistan. Besides hundreds of other beautiful peaks, including Masha Brum, Laila, K7, and Trango Tower are also here. Gigantic glaciers like Baltoro, Biafo, Hisper, Bilafound and Siachen (the largest in the world outside the polar region) add to the importance of the region. Still lakes, Sadpara, Kachura, Jharba Tso and many others, invites those interested in fishing as they are full of trout fish.

It also has Deosai, world's highest plateau with hundreds of beautiful wild flowers, thousand-year-old palaces and forts like Kharphocho (the mighty fort, built on a hill in the heart of Skardu city), Phong Khar Sghigar (the palace on the stone) and the palace of Raja Khaplu, and mosques and tombs having brilliant Kashmiri, Moghal and Iranian architectural structures. The surrounding rocks embellished with monuments and carvings of 1,200-year-old Bonism and Buddhism religions lure those who are interested in religious tourism.

The Pakistan People's Party-led government has taken the first right step by giving the region back its name, Gilgit-Baltistan, along with provincial status, instead of 'Northern Areas'. But more needs to be done to cash in on the potential the region has for tourism.

The provincial government has to go beyond mere announcements. Chief Minister Syed Mehdi Shah and late governor Dr Shama Khalid announced that they would make Gilgit-Baltistan 'paradise' for tourists. In May this year the chief minister also announced that Skardu airport would be made international within two months. Six months on the promise remains unfulfilled.

Experts want Skardu to have international airport if it wants to be a destination for tourists, but for that heavy investment has to be made. Additionally relations with India have to get better to allow flights between Ladakh and Skardu and also from Kashgar, China, and Kathmandu, Nepal.

Asking Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) to operate regular flights from Islamabad to Skardu and Gilgit for domestic tourists, experts demand permission for other private airlines to bring tourists to Gilgit-Baltistan.

For them, it is high time to open Skardu-Kargil and Khaplu–Ladakh roads for attracting tourists from neighbouring Indian regions of Ladakh, Kargil and Nobra through bus service, adding that it would also reunite families living on both sides of the Line of Control (LoC) for the last 63 years.

Experts also want reopening the Siachen region, a favourite tourist and mountaineering destination before 1984 because of beautiful lofty peaks and glaciers and organic valleys.

They also demand that trekking and climbing permits should be available in Gilgit and Skardu. The deputy commissioners of the districts should be authorised to give briefing and de-briefing.

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• Tourism in Gilgit-Baltistan witnesses downturn

During winters, when a large number of tourists visit snow-clad mountains, Gilgit-Baltistan is witnessing no tourist inflow due to a lack of infrastructure. Gilgit-Baltistan has perennially been subjected to state-backed discrimination and exploitation. Islamabad’s policies are not just hampering the quality of lives of residents of the region but they have severely affected the natural beauty of the region.

• Updated On Feb 9, 2023 at 12:23 PM IST

Tourism industry in Gilgit Baltistan facing severe crisis amid COVID-19 outbreak

The hotel and tour operators association in Hunza carried out a strike and blocked the main highway as they allege inattention by Prime Minister Imran Khan.

• Published On Feb 9, 2023 at 12:12 PM IST

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