When the stars start to shine

The Pakistan Style Awards 2010 took place at the Pearl Continental Hotel in Bhurban.

BHURBAN: The stage and decor were simple, and only the maroon curtain in the background gave a hint of the event which was going to take place that evening.

The Nestle Fruita Vitals Pakistan Style Awards 2010 were unlike other award ceremonies, in that the nominees at this event were only those who are considered the front runners in their field and have fused talent with hard work to achieve their goals.

The event kicked off with Sonu Dangerous and his dance crew performing a tribute to the late pop icon, Michael Jackson and was followed by Amanat Ali who sang “Teriyaan”.

The very first style award of the evening were presented to photographer Amean Jan for the title of Stylish Photographer. Teejays designer Feeha Jamshed took home the Apna Style award and said, “Trust and believe in yourself. Belief in oneself can do wonders.”

Artist and designer Yousuf Bashir Qureshi took the Individual Style Icon award. While accepting the award Qureshi said, “I dress up as a common man and I accept the award for this.”

The ceremony was dotted with performances by dancer and choreographer Joshinder Chaggar, Seige and Hadiqa Kiani and Irfan Khan. Musician Ali Azmat performed his newest song “Bomb Bomb Phata” during which models walked the ramp wearing Teejays creations.

Azmat took home the award for Stylish Singer Male and said, “I believe I don’t deserve it, because of the fact that Atif Aslam and Rahat Fateh Ali Khan have captured the market abroad.”

The Lifetime Achievement Award was given to Abdul Sattar Edhi for his services to the poor and destitute and though the philanthropist was not present, he received a standing ovation from the audience. Edhi had recorded a message in which he said, “I work for the sake of Allah and if He hadn’t bestowed on me this capability I would not have been able to bear this burden.”

The most sought after award of the evening was the ‘Legend Award’ which was bestowed on Babra Shareef. The actor looked as fresh as she did at the peak of her career and graciously thanked “Allah Mian for bestowing me this name and fame”. Shareef did not forget those who helped her during her career and thanked Fifi Haroon, Tapu Javeri and Ghazanfar Ali, who she said she wished to share her award with.

The award goes to

• Style Encore: Athar Hafeez


• Stylish Singer Female: Hadiqa Kiani


• Style Diva: Meesha Shafi


• Style Guru: Deepak Perwani


• Style Female Icon: Mahira Khan-Askari


• Style Male Icon: Tariq Amin


• Style Bhai: Mustafa Chaudry


• Billo Style: Mathira


• Stylish Sportsman: Aisamul Haq Qureshi


• Stylish Sportswoman and Icon of the Year: Naseem Hamid

Published in The Express Tribune, October 22^nd, 2010.