RAWALPINDI: From opting for limited production to going plastic- and waste-free and creating and using biodegradable materials, Pakistani designers are on a quest to transform the fashion industry and send out the message that fashion, too, can be respectful of the planet.
Globally, the fashion business is responsible for 10 percent of global carbon emissions, more than all international flights and maritime shipping combined during the pre-pandemic period, the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) said in a report last year.
Fashion houses around the world are thus now seeking to improve their green credentials to appeal to increasingly environmentally conscious consumers by reducing waste, cutting chemical use and producing biodegradable garments.
Many Pakistani fashion houses are also following suit.
In 2020, Islamabad-based designer Javeria Haroon launched Bridge & Ciel, a direct-to-consumer contemporary western-wear line, which she said represented a “conscious and green route” to fashion.
“Every article is made to order with minimum wastage patterns, choosing synthetic-free fabrics that will not abuse the earth, using environment friendly materials that can be recycled,” Haroon told Arab News in an interview. “And if and when these garments end up in landfill, they will biodegrade.”
She said there was room for “conscious fashion” in the Pakistani market, and designers needed to be aware of their climate effects from the “studio to the creation of the fabric, to the hands that stitched it, and lastly, the wearer.”
Haroon’s own company, she said, was 100 percent plastic-free even in its shipping and packaging and scraps left over from designs were reused as a commitment to a “zero waste” philosophy.
This year, one of Pakistan’s top designers, Zara Shahjahan, also launched sustainable fashion brand Jehan, which was “born out of the intention to create a forward movement toward careful consumption that is respectful of the planet,” its Styling Director Azka Shahid told Arab News: “Sustainability is the most significant design challenge that clothing is currently facing, and it is absolutely essential to engage with it if the art form is to survive.”
Jehan, which employs local craftspeople, has a philosophy of producing everything — from clothes, accessories and homeware — in small batches, has manufactured a type of cotton called kora that is completely untreated and free of chemicals, and aims for zero-waste, with some signature cotton pieces dyed using left-over vegetables from the local market that would otherwise be trashed.
“Though this is more time-consuming and costly than regular dyeing, we believe it is worth it,” Shahid said.
Another Islamabad-based fashion designer, Anuje Farhung, has taken her brand in a similar direction. Throughout the pandemic, she researched how she could transform herself into a conscious producer of fashion and replace existing materials with more eco-conscious options.
“I grew interested in symbiosis and the idea of materials doing more than just existing,” she said, saying she had asked herself multiple questions like, “What if they could have regenerative qualities? Or what if they were formed from a natural process as a bioproduct?”
Farhung thus teamed up with biologist Sarah Khan and produced a biodegradable solution to one of fashion’s most recognizable products: the sequin. Instead of the plastic that sequins are typically made of, the duo created a prototype made of red algae. They are now in the testing phase of dyeing the sequin using microbial processes to make it completely zero-waste.
Another brand, Repeat by Izza Fayyaz and Amna Mishal, features shalwar kameez and kurta designs using traditional craftsmanship to make modern cuts with biodegradable materials.
“Consumers are aware of environmentally damaging practices and they now want fashion that is sustainable, fair and circular,” Fayyaz told Arab News.
Jehan’s Creative Director Zara Shahjahan agreed, saying sustainable fashion was the future.
“Brand owners feel they can’t make money in sustainable fashion,” she said. “We have a chance to make a real change by being one of the first sustainable Pakistani brands and show the rest that it can be done. It’s a slow process but we are heading in the right direction.”
For next generation of Pakistani fashion designers, ‘green’ is the new black
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For next generation of Pakistani fashion designers, ‘green’ is the new black
- Brands around the world are seeking to improve their green credentials by reducing waste, cutting chemicals, producing biodegradable garments
- In Pakistan also, many fashion houses are on a quest to transform the industry and ensure their designs have a more positive effect on climate
Pakistan conducts trainings for Hajj support staff to assist pilgrims at Mashair sites
- This year, Pakistan has employed 561 Hajj support staff known as Moavineen
- Nearly 112,620 Pakistanis are set to perform the annual pilgrimage in June 2025
ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Hajj Mission (PHM) is conducting trainings for Hajj support staff from May 3-27 to orient them with knowledge of routes, accommodations and responsibilities related to assisting pilgrims as they visit sacred sites for the annual pilgrimage in Makkah, state news agency APP reported on Thursday.
This year, Pakistan has employed 561 Hajj support staff, known as Moavineen, to assist nearly 112,620 Pakistanis set to perform the annual pilgrimage, which will fall in the first week of June.
“Over 430 Moavineen currently serving in the transport, accommodation and food departments have been oriented so far on how to assist Pakistani intending pilgrims in Mashair during the Hajj days,” APP reported, quoting Deputy Coordinator Operation Sadaqat Ali as saying.
Mashair refers to sacred sites in Makkah where pilgrims visit or perform Hajj rituals, including Mina, Arafat, and Muzdalifah.
Pakistani pilgrims have been assigned 34 maktabs, numbered from 101 to 134, in Mina, while 17 maktabs are located on roads 56 and 62. The remaining are situated on road 511, the report said. The term maktab in the context of Hajj refers to an administrative office or center that provides pilgrims with essential services during their stay in Mina, Arafat, and Muzdalifah.
Pakistan’s Religious Affairs Minister Sardar Muhammad Yousaf has also recently reviewed the transport, accommodation, and catering arrangements for pilgrims, APP added.
For the first time, Pakistani Hajj pilgrims will have access to fully air-conditioned camps in Mina and will be accommodated in top-of-the-line hotels and buildings in the Azizia and Batha Quraish neighborhoods.
Over 35,000 pilgrims have reached Saudi Arabia so far to attend the pilgrimage, according to Pakistani state media.
Pakistan’s Imran Khan invites ‘establishment’ for talks, denies deal for his release
- Khan has been in jail since August 2023 in a slew of cases he says are politically motivated
- Establishment is euphemism to mean Pakistan army and associated pro-military entities
ISLAMABAD: Jailed former prime minister Imran Khan has denied reports a deal has been made for his release from prison, once again inviting the “establishment” for talks in the interest of Pakistan as it faces external and internal security threats and treads a tricky path to economic recovery.
In Pakistan, the establishment is a euphemism to describe the armed forces and intelligence agencies and associated pro-military entities.
The military has ruled Pakistan for at least three decades since independence in 1947 and wields extraordinary influence even with a civilian government in office. The current army chief, General Syed Asim Munir, promoted this week to field marshal, only the second general in Pakistan to get the rank, is widely believed to have considerable sway over government affairs. The military says it does not interfere in politics.
“The rumors that are being spread about a deal with me, no deal has been made, nor are there any talks regarding a deal, are all lies,” Khan said in a message posted on his X account after he met his lawyers and family members on Wednesday.
“I myself am inviting the establishment that if they want to talk in the interest of Pakistan, if they are concerned about Pakistan, then come and talk,” he added, saying political forces in the country would have to come together at a time when Pakistan faced “external threats, growing terrorism, and the restoration of the economy.”
“I was not asking for anything for myself before, nor will I ask for anything now,” Khan said, referring to reports he was trying to negotiate a deal to get out of prison.
After being jailed in August 2023 and slapped with a slew of cases Khan says are politically motivated, a Pakistani court sentenced him to 14 years imprisonment in a land corruption case in January. Before that, he had either been acquitted or his sentences suspended in most other cases, except for one on charges of inciting supporters to rampage through military facilities to protest against his arrest on May 9, 2023. Khan denies giving the instructions for the protests.
His supporters have led several violent protest rallies since the May 9 incidents, with the government and military publicly vowing to bring the perpetrators to justice. The protests were widely seen as the most serious challenge to the military’s hegemony in years.
The army has since also faced sharp domestic criticism over accusations it was behind the jailing of Khan and cracking down on supporters of his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party, as well as what critics alleged was rigging the general election last year to favor a rival party. The army rejects the accusations.
But the military’s popular support has surged after the worst military conflict in decades with arch-rival India earlier this month. On May 7, the Indian military carried out air strikes on what it called “terrorist infrastructure” in Pakistan, in response to a militant attack in Indian-administered Kashmir.
Pakistan claimed to have downed at least 5-6 Indian fighter jets in response and carried out air strikes on Indian military bases. India has indicated that it suffered some losses and inflicted damage on key Pakistani air bases and air defense systems.
A ceasefire was brokered by the US on May 10.
– With inputs from Reuters
Fashion and family: Amir Adnan heiress takes father’s legacy forward with sustainable vision
- Parishae Adnan, 30, celebrates taking over as CEO with debut collection Nakhlistan, which means oasis
- Aims to take her father’s iconic brand into future rooted in climate sustainability, cultural integrity
KARACHI: The name Amir Adnan has been synonymous with menswear in Pakistan for over 35 years.
Adnan launched the eponymous men’s fashion wear brand in 1990 and several sub-brands since, and is widely credited for glamorizing the long-sleeved sherwani outer coat in modern times.
Now, it’s time for his daughter Parishae Adnan to take the helm of Adnan’s fashion empire as CEO and transition the company, Shapar Private Limited, into a future rooted in climate sustainability and cultural integrity.
Last week, Parishae, a 30-year-old managerial economics graduate, launched the company’s summer collection, Nakhlistan, which means oasis, a show she has conceptualized and that she exhibited as a formal celebration of her appointment as CEO in May 2024.
“It absolutely feels incredible, I feel a lot of gratitude, taking the legacy forward,” Parishae told Arab News in an interview last week.
Adnan said it was always clear that his children would take over the business.
“My children were raised while we were working in the workshops, and they’ve been seeing this all along. My eldest daughter, Parishae, she worked with me for three years and now she’s become the CEO of the company,” he told Arab News.
“It’s not common, especially in this industry that we are working in, the fashion industry, to see legacy go on from one generation to another.”
And Parishae has plans for her father’s company, with her major aim being to introduce and integrate environmentally conscious practices into its operations.
“We need to do anything, even if it’s a little small step,” said Parishae, who explored fields like acting, hospitality, IT, and supply chain before finally embracing fashion designing.
“One of the first things I did was I changed our packaging material, making it recyclable.”
In 2021, she launched the ‘House of Parishae,’ a collection grounded in sustainable couture, with her debut show featuring 35 pieces created entirely from upcycled clothing, extending the life cycle of garments and promoting conscious consumption.
“The idea that couture, high end couture luxury can come out of upcycling or recycling, it’s not an idea that was digestible to the public in Pakistan,” the designer said, pointing to inspirations like Stella McCartney and Alexander McQueen.
“People here usually don’t go for that concept for their event wear. They don’t want to spend so much money if it’s going to be recycled or upcycled.”
But Parishae is resolved to take her vision forward — all the while staying true to what she has in common with her father: a deep connection to Pakistan’s cultural identity.
The designs of Adnan, who was born in Lahore to a bureaucratic father and a mother from the royal family of Dhaka, often draw inspiration from the sartorial heritage and timeless attire of South Asian nobles.
“If I go back in time and I look at my forefathers, photographs or paintings, they actually wore what I’m making right now, literally,” Adnan said.
Parishae too sees cultural identity as central to her vision, especially in an increasingly globalized and digitally connected world.
“As globalization is on a rise, it is even more important in this day and age to understand where your roots are coming from and it’s even more important to keep an identity, a cultural identity, in order for you to realize who you are and where you belong to,” she said.
“I wanted to be a pioneer for change, not in the West because they already have that. It’s actually trying to help us here because you never know, there might be a next generation that looks at this story and gets inspired by it and says, ‘Let’s go, it’s been done before, we can do it better’.”
And her father is proud.
“For every parent, whether you’re a father or a mother, it’s always your dream to see your children outdo you,” Adnan said.
“For me to see my daughter excel in my lifetime ... is one of the best gifts I could have asked from Allah.”
Trump says settled Pakistan-India standoff through trade deals
- Trump has repeatedly said he offered to help both nations with trade if they agreed to de-escalate
- India has previously rejected that trade concessions were discussed in ceasefire discussions
ISLAMABAD: President Donald Trump said on Wednesday he had used US trade ties to persuade nuclear-armed neighbors India and Pakistan to back off from their worst military confrontation in decades earlier this month, a claim New Delhi has previously rejected.
Following a May 10 understanding reached between India and Pakistan in what was a US-mediated ceasefire to stop military action on land, in the air and at sea, Trump has repeatedly said he had offered to help both the nations with trade if they agreed to de-escalate.
Pakistan has not commented specifically on the trade-related claim though it has repeatedly thanked Trump for his role in the de-escalation efforts. The Indian government has, however, said trade concessions did not come up in discussions to secure the ceasefire.
“If you take a look at what we just did with Pakistan and India, we settled that whole thing, and I think I settled it through trade,” Trump said in televised comments during a meeting at the White House with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa.
“We’re doing a big deal with India. We’re doing a big deal with Pakistan,” the US president added, without giving details of what agreements he was referring to.
Before the ceasefire, the militaries of India and Pakistan were engaged in one of their most serious confrontations in decades since May 7, when India struck targets inside Pakistan it said were affiliated with militants responsible for the killing of 26 tourists last month in Indian-administered Kashmir.
After India’s strikes in Pakistan, both sides exchanged heavy fire along their de facto border, followed by missile and drone strikes into each other’s territories, mainly targeting military installations and air bases.
The escalating hostilities threatened regional peace, leading to calls by world leaders to cool down tempers.
Trump has said he not only helped mediate the ceasefire but also offered mediation over the simmering dispute in Kashmir, a Himalayan region that both India and Pakistan claim in entirety but govern in part. The two nations have fought two wars over Kashmir, which has long been described as the regional nuclear flashpoint.
New Delhi has rejected Trump’s offer for mediation, saying Kashmir was a bilateral issue, while Pakistan has welcomed the offer.
With inputs from AP
Pakistan recalls fast bowler Hasan Ali for T20 series against Bangladesh
- Hasan played just one T20 international in nearly three years when he returned against Ireland in Dublin in 2024
- Fast bowler has forced his way back into the squad with a rich haul of 15 wickets in the Pakistan Super League
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has recalled fast bowler Hasan Ali for this month’s Twenty20 home matches against Bangladesh but overlooked senior batters Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam for the third successive series.
Hasan played just one T20 international in nearly three years when he returned with expensive figures of 0-42 in three overs against Ireland in Dublin in 2024.
However, the right-arm fast bowler has forced his way back into the squad with a rich haul of 15 wickets in the Pakistan Super League while representing the Karachi Kings.
Rizwan and Babar were dropped for the last two series in Zimbabwe and New Zealand as Pakistan continued to reshape its top-order ahead of next year’s T20 World Cup.
Rizwan scored 367 runs at a strike rate of 139.54 in the PSL this season as his franchise, the Multan Sultans, suffered nine defeats in 10 games.
Babar’s Peshawar Zalmi also missed out on the playoffs for the first time in PSL history as he finished the season with 288 runs and a strike rate of 128.57.
Salman Ali Agha, who was appointed captain ahead of the T20 series in Australia last year, will continue to lead the side with Shadab Khan as his deputy.
The series will be the first assignment for Pakistan’s newly appointed white-ball coach Mike Hesson, who is currently in charge of Islamabad United in the PSL.
The selectors have made eight changes to the squad which lost the series in New Zealand 4-1.
Fast bowlers Shaheen Shah Afridi, Jahandad Khan and Abbas Afridi were replaced by Hasan, Naseem Shah and Mohammad Wasim while another pace bowler Mohammad Ali was also dropped.
Opening batter Sahibzada Farhan, who leads the PSL charts with 394 runs in 10 games, Saim Ayub and Fakhar Zaman were recalled, with all-rounders Faheem Ashraf and Hussain Talat also making their way back into the squad.
The three-match series will be played at the Qaddafi Stadium in Lahore on May 28, May 30 and June 1.
Pakistan squad: Salman Ali Agha (captain), Shadab Khan, Abrar Ahmed, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Hassan Nawaz, Hussain Talat, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Haris, Mohammad Wasim, Irfan Khan, Naseem Shah, Sahibzada Farhan and Saim Ayub.
