Veena Malik: from drama queen to squeaky clean

LAHORE:

In her over a decade-long career as an artiste, Veena Malik has riveted people’s attention for many reasons — some good, many bad. But be that as it may, it only stands to reason that despite the detestation she has often received, she has sustained herself and more importantly, her love for her country. Following her return to Pakistan after three years, Veena recently held a press conference to introduce her husband Asad Basheer Khan Khattak and share her future plans.

Expressing her commitment to Pakistan and its people, Veena shared her plans of eventually moving into politics and doing social work. “I went through a turbulent and busy time in my life, but I suppose, distance made me realise how much I miss my people, friends and family. As the saying goes, distance makes the heart grow fonder,” she said.

Veena is inclined towards becoming a leader of the awaam and may venture into politics in the near future. However, she is in no hurry as she feels that becoming a politician requires time. She hasn’t joined a political party yet, but she wishes to join someone who has a positive vision. Underlining her avid interest in working for social welfare, she stated that she has recently been appointed as a goodwill ambassador for the International Human Rights Commission.



After Veena declared last year that she’ll be turning a new leaf, many wondered about her future course in films. She shared that she only wants to do good quality films that promote nationalism on a local and global level. She also implied that she might even produce films. On her singing career, she commented, “I am not going to quit singing.” Interestingly, we may even see Veena working on music with her husband, but she said that nothing is concrete yet.

Of the multitude of times she has been subjected to criticism by members of the local film industry including actor Shaan Shahid and filmmaker Syed Noor, she said, “In the past, there have been attacks on my personality and me as a woman. Being an individual with a global following, I [take the criticism in my stride] and believe that this shows how much people from all backgrounds love and respect me.”

Discrediting the prevalent rumours that followed her exit from the country, Veena claimed that she has always stood up for her country. Sharing her idea of a woman’s right to freedom of expression, she asserted, “I feel that freedom of expression gives me the right to speak for myself as an independent woman and in that capacity, I can say whatever I want, but when it comes to representing the country, it is different.”

Veena feels that her marriage has further strengthened her determination to pursue things that she is interested in. “Now that I have a partner with me who shares my interests, I think things will become easier for me,” she said. Asad shared that what attracted him the most about Veena was her outspokenness and clarified that her representation in the media does not reflect her true personality.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 10^th, 2014.

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