Spotlight Kehkeshan Awan

Spotlight Kehkeshan Awan

By

[Sadaf Fayyaz]

Tell something about your basic education and early life?

My education is a blend of Psychology and Business Studies in Marketing. My childhood was spent on Pakistan Air Force bases all over the country and was full of fun and adventure.

How were you offered a role in Dhoop Kinare? There was another serial in which you worked, named Jungle, tell something about it too.

Before Dhoop Kinare I had worked in ‘Jungle’ and another play called ‘Asman Tak Dewaar’. When Sahira Kazmi asked me to work in Dhoop Kinare and I accepted as doing a play with her and Haseena Moin as it was an exciting option.

How many serials have you worked in total?

Three Serials

Out of all the co-stars which one is your favorite?

Everyone in Dhoop Kinare was a role-model of sorts. Everyone I guess! And this includes the very competent production team as well.

Tell something about your ICI job and achievements.

Moving from the media to the business world was not easy as I had to continuously work on establishing my credibility in the corporate world’s peer group. Being a woman definitely adds another dimension to the career challenges. Looking back I guess my key achievement was to successfully lead the sales function which opened up a new path for the career progression of women in the company that I was working with.

You didn’t continue a career in acting. Is there any reason for that?

A full time job didn’t leave me with much time for pursuing my interest in performing arts.

Tell something about SIRAAT.

SIRAAT, launched in 2008, is my capability consultancy portfolio focused on developing business skills. In Arabic SIRAAT means ‘the path’ and as an acronym for my work it stands for ‘Strategic Intervention for Resource Activation and Training’.

What is the best part after an acquisition and the worst?

The key challenge in an acquisition environment is the integration of processes and teams. Good communication with all the stakeholders is extremely important throughout the acquisition process. As the Corporate Communications manager I learnt a great deal about this from the acquisition of ICI by Akzo Nobel.

Your ‘Anji’ role sounds a very sweet and loving kind lady, are you like that in real life too?

The fun in playing the ‘Anji’ character was that she is a full, 180 degrees different from me. I am career minded and enjoy being in a work environment. It was great to play this character. The one thing in common though is the passive-assertive trait. I too find myself sitting on-the-fence quite often -– not wanting to hurt others’ feelings but not wanting to give-in to their wishes either!

Who are your favorite actors?

I have always admired Uzma Gillani, Shabana Azmi and Om Puri.

How do you feel after almost two decades, when people admire your acting?

It makes me appreciate the immense talent and efforts of Sahira Kazmi and Haseena Moin who put products like Dhoop Kinare on the entertainment map of the world.

How do you take criticism?

We all like to think that we are good at what we do until someone points out the gaps… Over the years I have worked on developing the capacity to appreciate criticism and use it constructively. I now also train people in giving work-related feedback effectively specially in appraisal interviews.

Share your experience of working with Haseena Moin and Sahira Kazmi.

I was initially scared of her because I thought that I was not doing justice to the ‘anji’ character as she had envisioned it. At the time of doing Dhoop Kinare I also held a full time job and at times found it difficult to manage the two together. However, Haseena Aaapa’s script took care of the problem for me. The characterization and dialogues were so crisp that one didn’t have to struggle much to make the charters come alive!

I saw Sahira Kazmi as a perfectionist. And yet she was willing to take a risk with some relatively new members in the cast. She drove me to do better than my best-rehearsed performance and then she did a brilliant job of editing the scenes which made them look very natural.

What is your biggest desire and expectation?

To see our beautiful country progress and its people become one of the happiest in the world.

List any funny or memorable incident during shooting.

All of the six months of rehearsing for and recording of Dhoop Kinare were funny / fun-filled.

If you are given a chance to work with Haseena Aaapa, what would be your response?

If I can devote the right kind of time to it – definitely!

Are you a deadline oriented person or let the things happen their way?

I work best when a deadline is staring me in the face and is too close for comfort.

What is the most difficult part of acting? You find acting or your current job more difficult? Why?

Dhoop Kinare was a blend of comedy and romance. Both are difficult to do. It’s easy to cry in a scene but very difficult to make people laugh through a scene. Training people is difficult in a different way. People have different learning styles and designing a program that addresses all those styles in a short duration of one or two days is always very challenging.

What was the public response towards you when Dhoop Kinare aired?

At that time I got the feeling that the response was average. But for some reason the liking for the play kept getting stronger with each passing year. Two decades on I was pleasantly surprised to see that it’s still poplar here and abroad as well.

Share a few lines on "Glass ceiling" in Pak companies. Is there any you faced being a female manager?

The Glass ceiling is a cruel reality in many corporations in Pakistan. Companies look at gender diversity in terms of the percentage of women employed in their organization. This is nothing more than paying lip-service to the issue. We need to look at the number of women in senior commercial roles in any organization to see that company’s mind-set towards women. In many organizations in Pakistan women get dropped out of the race for senior commercial positions and get stuck in middle management. We need to raise the awareness and accountability in this area from platforms such as the OICCI.

What are the most challenging and difficult part for a woman to be a leader?

The leadership challenges are the same for both men and women. One additional challenge for women, depending on the environment they are in, is to manage mindsets that might not accept women in leadership roles.

What is your message for the readers?

Maintain a healthy work‐life balance and enjoy the simple joys of life.

Interview with Ayesha Mehmood

[In Health Insight]

“I was called to be a motivational figure and I talked about life with Thalassemia.”

                             -Ayesha Mehmood, official spokesperson www.thalassemia.com.pk –

Interview by Sadaf Fayyaz

Ayesha is a Thalassemia victim who has a family history of the deadly disease. She is an official spokesperson for the website and is doing a wonderful job of creating awareness among people on the fatal disease. The campaign was started by her late brother Salman Mehmood, who fought very bravely till the end. Ayesha recently appeared on “The First Blast on Dawn News” and shared some myths regarding the deadly disease. Besides this, she keeps posting updates on her website in form of her blogs too. She also manages the blood bank, guides people regarding blood needed anywhere in Pakistan, along with Farman Ahmed she arrange blood camps as much as possible, she also manages content on thalassemia blog / site and marketing about blood donation camps and registrations.

Tell something about your education and early childhood.

I have done Intermediate in Arts, currently studying for B.A, my childhood has never been different than any other child just because I was special I have to go for blood transfusion once every month with my two other brothers.

 When you were first diagnosed with thalassemia?

I was only six months old when I got diagnose with Thalassemia, my other brothers were already been diagnose so it was easy for doctor to understand my symptoms.

It’s an inherited disorder, as a child what difference you felt from other children?

 Well, it says the parent’s teaching are the best teaching of entire world you learn from, my family or rather I would say my mom never taught any of my siblings to feel different from other children, she treated us like any other mother treat her kid. We don’t have any difference, we can study, get degrees, get married, have kids, and just a transfusion in month doesn’t stop us from being normal.

 Tell something about your website www.thalassemia.com.pk.

Thalassemia.com.pk was founded by my late brother Salman in 2003 just to acknowledge people all around the world about Thalassemia, he wanted to share the suffering of Thalassemia from rest of the world, later on in 2007 we formed a group called Faith (Fight Against Thalassemia) as the need of awareness increased, we decided to arrange more blood drives and awareness camps. Soon we will be registered by Thalassemia International Federation and Thalassemia Pakistan Federation.

 Tell something about website www.iwritealot.com.

 Iwritealot.com was founded in 2009 to raise funds for the cause of Thalassemia, we use the funds in blood drive or awareness or if we get some information about any needy Thalassemia patient.

 What treatment are you getting for it? 

Thalassemia treatment is same everywhere in the world, patient have to get transfusion once or twice in a month, depending on the hemoglobin, because of multiple transfusions patient get iron loaded in the body and for that we have to go through iron chelation.

 What do you think how is the quality of life of a TA patient? 

 It totally depend on the treatment and care he / she is getting, if a patient is maintaining hemoglobin at 10 and taking proper care of his iron chelation then his quality of life is improved and he can reach the age of 40 – 50 easily. But just a bit extra care needed.

 What are the areas where TA patients need to take a special care about?

Because of compressed immune system we have to care about infections, rather I would say just a bit care on blood counts, if they are down we might catch infection easily, but that happens in any normal person too. So the patient of Thalassemia should be careful on his hemoglobin and iron chelation.

 Thalassemia patients can live happily, healthily, get married. Share a few lines on it. 

There are few friends of mine who have done LLB, MBA, BBA, and then there are few friends who have got married having kids, living a perfectly normal life, as I said early we just need to maintain the hemoglobin, take proper care of iron chelation then we can achieve anything.

How can a thalassemia patient avoid his/her child from not getting thalassemia? Are there any specific measures for it?

 Basically there are two types of Thalassemia, Thalassemia Minor and Thalassemia Major. If anyone has Thalassemia minor should get his partner tested for the Thalassemia Gene, it is considered that Thalassemia minor shouldn’t marry another Thalassemia minor, and in Thalassemia Major the partner must be tested and should be normal, shouldn’t carry Thalassemia gene.

 Is there any time you think thalassemia affects your life badly?

 Well we are also human beings, we also do have a thing called heart and there are times in everyone’s life where he/she get down and think over his/her life, so yes.., there are the times I have thought that mine or my siblings life could have been better if we were not Thalassemia patients, but then it’s the thing called ‘mayoosi’ which is haram.

 Share a few lines about Salman's motivation and how he started this website work.

 
 Salman got this motivation after we lost our elder brother Nauman, Salman had just a single friend in his whole life and that was our brother and after losing him and they way we saw that awareness was nil at that moment, he took the step and created this website so that no one else lose his brother or sister ever again.

 How do your colleagues and friends cooperate with you?

Well in our case friends and colleagues have been really great with us, whether it’s about blood drive, awareness camp or it’s my up and down phase of life... they have always been there, some help by promoting our work, some help by being there morally, some help by donating blood.

What is the most critical thing a thalassemia patient need to take care of? 

It is Transfusion and Iron Chelation.

 Your inspiration for continuing thalassemia awareness comes from?

It comes from my brother Salman, I don’t want to stop the cause he started, because of his efforts we have been managed to help several people around the world, he have done a sadqa-e-jariya and I have to continue it.., I don’t want to be unfair to him and to his memories.

What role do you expect from medical authorities to create thalassemia awareness among people?

 
 After a very long fight we have been managed to get the bill passed for mandatory test before marriage in two assemblies, NWFP Assembly and Sindh Assembly, I wish and hope that they pass the bill in two other assemblies and then get it implemented throughout Pakistan as soon as possible.

 What is your message to the readers of Health Insight?

 A very simple and short message, get yourself tested for Thalassemia gene today, whether you have a Thalassemia major in your family or not… but to save the next generation please get yourself and family tested today.

Help us in Fight against Thalassemia – www.thalassemia.com.pk

The Ghairat Brigade

You may have come across them. They are at schools, colleges, offices and maybe even in your family. It seems they are every where, the protectors of our innocence the ghairat brigade. 
 
Caring Cousin

A relative who often sports a beard, is a strong believer in Mullah rule,  fanaticism and a proud patriot. He uses social networks (mainly for cyber-stalking girls), but is offended by his female relatives using the same technology. His ghairat awakens. He warns females about the many evils of  “cyber boys.”

University Brat 

He proudly roams around with three or more girls at a time but disapproves when he sees any of his female friends talking to someone else. He especially doesn’t appreciate his ex-girlfriend speaking to other guys. He is lazy and slow. Amazingly, his sense of ‘decency’ remains dormant when the time comes to work on group projects, and he has no qualms about letting girls do all the work (even if this involves being put in some difficult circumstances) to get an A.

Eve teaser 

This is one of the most hypocritical men you will ever meet. He teases women on the street and physically harasses them in crowded places. However, when women protest, he is the first one to feign innocence and say things like, “What has happened to the people of this nation?” or “Don’t worry Baji.” Although he frequently harasses women, he is capable of pulling out a gun if anyone does the same to his female relatives. He often tells women in his family “zamana kharab hai,” but ogles girls in public places.

Cyber stalker
This person is the first to leave commiserating comments on blogs about sexual harassment or prostitution. He sends idiotic messages to girls who contribute to and comment on the blogs. His “ghairat” is only active at the time of reading the blog, but becomes passive when sending a stupid email to the writer.

Champion of the oppressed

This is the most innocent member of the brigade. All he does is constantly call someone “qaum ki beti” without really knowing her case or checking the facts. His ghairat only awakens when bad news about her is on the media. It doesn’t wake up when thousands of women are forced into prostitution, trafficked, abused, killed in the name of honor, raped and harassed. It only becomes active for one woman.

Family pimps

She is a call girl. She has supported her family for years. Her family lived on her income for years. She educated them with her earnings. Her siblings grew up on her money. Now they are highly respectable doctors and engineers and she has become a symbol of shame for them. They are independent now and their ghairat has suddenly awoken. They want to marry into respectable families now. Their sense of decency was passive when they were being fed on her earnings.

Famous father

How do you feel when you hear a father asking his sons not to have any girlfriends? This famous dad had more than four girlfriends in his time and they were all celebrities. His ghairat is applicable to his children only. Another famous dad criticizes girls when they study in co-ed schools and go on educational trips with their colleagues, but is silent in his own daughter’s case.

Spotlight

He is a famous director who proudly defends his wife and daughters makes objectionable demands of women entering the modeling field. His double-faced behavior makes little sense.

Blast from the Past

She is a grandmother who, is the first one whose ghairat awakens upon seeing an advertisement for birth control or her granddaughter’s uncovered head. She forgets that she too used birth control for a long time. She forgets about the skintight, short, sleeveless clothes she wore in the sixties. Her sense of decency is generation-based.

Uncategorized

He is a new lecturer at a college or university who doesn’t want to see his students interacting with the opposite sex. His ghairat awakens when he sees people flirting and frequently lectures them about it. However, his strong beliefs are not as evident when he flirts with students and finds excuses to call them to his office.

No one needs any special alarm clock to awaken their ghairat. Social stereotypes are enough for that. It only awakens at special times and during favorable seasons.

The Post was published in Express Tribune: 

Interview With Fariha Rashed

Published in The Saturday Post Issue 201

Meet Fariha Rashed, the owner and CEO of a quarterly, in print magazine called Ink. She is a freelance writer and has written for many publications like Libas, FAQ, The Khaleej Times, Times of India, Anokhi Vibe, Lucire, and Images (Dawn). She has quite a diversified profile and various interests. She is a senior partner at Pitch Media Inc., a project she runs with her design partner. Read more to learn more about Fariha’s projects and where she derives her inspiration from.

How would you introduce yourself and your work to our readers?

I would introduce myself as a person who is passionate about any work she takes up, especially when she initiates something herself, such as Ink [a quarterly, print & online, entertainment based magazine]. Ink is a labor of love. :)

Tell us something about your education and childhood.

I was moving around a lot from country to country as my father was in Foreign Service. Hence, I have studied in many different systems across the world. As a child, I was also very quiet and reserved.

When did you start writing? What was the inspiration behind it?

I began writing after I graduated from Pakistan Institute of Fashion Design (PIFD) in 2003. I was inspired by fashion, and wrote most articles related to the topic when I started out as a freelancer.

Tell us something about INK.

It was launched in the market in November 2008. It’s a quarterly, print and online [http://www.ink-on-the-web.com] magazine which covers all aspects of entertainment, locally and internationally. We have writers from and correspondents based all around the world. Our tagline is 'Whatever Entertains You' and every Ink issue has a new theme, based on entertainment.

What is the motivation and inspiration behind INK?

The motivation comes from the will to bring something new into the market. The inspiration is all the great talent inherent in Pakistan.

Tell us something about your freelance work.

Before I began Ink, I had been writing as a freelancer for various local and international publications for five years.

What is your biggest passion?

Doing something worthwhile in life!

Discuss your work on "Mind The Gap" and "A Mighty Heart". How was the experience?

“Mind The Gap” was a talk show of sorts, dealing with the communication gap inherent between children and their parents, due to the age gap. It was a show I worked on as a part of the Production team, while working at GEO TV some years ago. The show was aired and I believe was quite a success. The experience was exciting!

I worked as Assistant Costumes, for the movie “A Mighty Heart”, while Director Michael Winterbottom was shooting in Pakistan for three days. The experience was eye-opening as for the first time I realized and learnt what a professional, united team works like.

Tell us something about your art work. How do you define art in your own words?

Art is something I always did as a hobby, as it relaxes me. For me, art is best explained in Eckhart Tolle's words, "All true artists, whether they know it or not, create from a place of no-mind, from inner stillness."

Out of painting, writing, photographing, editing, fashion designing, which acumen defines you the most? Why?

All of them put together define me best and most accurately, I can never be happy pursuing one path only.

What acts as your source of inspiration?

Hard work and dedication!

Tell a little about your work at Pitch Media Inc.

Pitch Media Inc. is a project by Ink, it is primarily a design and PR company run by myself and my partner Haroon Khan who is a graduate [with honors] of NCA. He takes care of the design side and I take care of the PR / Marketing side. We create brand identities, layouts and designs for print & electronic media, written content and much more.

Having a diverse profile, how would you explain your family's support towards your career?

My family has always been supportive. They like to see me work hard and do what I love doing. They have never tried to discourage me from anything. My mother and sister in particular have been amazing support systems throughout.

Any obstacles so far, that you faced being a female?

Not really - you have to stand your ground and be confident as a human being and everyone will respect you, whether you are a man or a woman.

How much do you believe in woman empowerment?

I believe every woman is empowered - she just has to recognize and act on it.

How do you take critiques on your work?

I welcome them, as long as they are constructive.

What is your biggest desire and expectation from life?

Well, my biggest desire is to succeed at every step of life.

What is your message for the readers of The Saturday Post?

Thank you for reading through this interview and God Bless!

The interview was Published in The Saturday Post.