KARACHI: For over seven decades, the Bundoo Khan Restaurant has been a culinary landmark in the Pakistani port city of Karachi, delighting generations of food lovers with its signature kebabs, sizzling chicken tikkas and crunchy parathas.
Founded in 1948 by Al Hajj Bundoo Khan, a migrant from Meerut in present day India, the restaurant began as a humble barbecue stall on Karachi’s MA Jinnah Road, then known as Bandar Road, using family recipes passed down from a maternal uncle.
While the eatery was a hit from the beginning, it gained visibility when its innovative approach to grilling and marinating caught the eye of General Ayub Khan, who served as the president of Pakistan from 1958 until his resignation in 1969. Becoming a favorite of the president turned the small eatery into the talk of the town, and it began to draw large crowds from all walks of life.
“My father can be called the founder of barbecue [in Karachi],” Akber Bundoo Khan, the founder’s 62-year-old son, told Arab News. 
“No one knew how to make tikka [like him], how kebabs were made, how parathas were made or how halwa was made.”
Indeed, barbeque has become synonymous with the Bundoo Khan name in Karachi, cementing its reputation as a must-visit destination for the city’s residents and a gathering place for politicians, government officials, actors and singers.
“This brand has been around for 76 years,” said Waqar Mehmood, Bundoo Khan’s grandson who oversees a branch in the city’s Sindhi Muslim area.
“When we first set up an exhibition [during the first few decades], the first person to visit was [Pakistan’s former president] Ayub Khan who gave us the first prize and a gold medal for our barbecue.”
Mehmood spoke about visits to the restaurant by General Ayub Khan’s family, as well as Pakistan’s former first lady Ranaa Liaquat Ali Khan, ex-premier Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto and the now jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan. Legendary Pakistani actors like Muhammad Ali, Zeba and Waheed Murad were also loyal patrons and iconic singer Noor Jehan continued to request Bundoo Khan’s food until her last days before she passed away in 2000.
“Every day, I would personally take her double-spiced chicken tikka and six kebabs to the hospital,” he said.
The restaurant’s influence has also been immortalized in Pakistani music, with songs like Ahmed Rushdi’s 1954 hit “Bandar Road Se Keamari” and Mehdi Hassan’s 1977 track “Makhan Jesi Larki,” both mentioning the eatery.
Pakistani TV and film actor Behroze Sabzwari recalled childhood memories of visiting the original branch on MA Jinnah Road and meeting the restaurant’s founder, who passed away in 1987 at the age of 105.
“I lived and grew up in the area right behind the Bundoo Khan [Restaurant] in Jacob Line,” he told Arab News. “It wasn’t much, but you could get tikka for just 10 or 15 rupees [$0.05] and everything else as well. And believe me, the taste from those days of that halwa, that tikka, those kebabs, that paratha still lingers with me to this day.”
Asad Sohail, an engineer and regular customer, also recalled visiting Bundoo Khan as a child with his father and grandfather, saying dinner at the restaurant was a must after a night out at the movies.
“We used to come here with my grandfather, wearing shorts, when we were little. Then, as kids, we came with our father,” he said.
“Their barbecue, I haven’t tasted anything like it anywhere in Pakistan. It’s truly unique. Their kebabs are so tender, the marination is perfect, and the tikka, what can I say? It’s completely different from anything else.”
Today, while the restaurant keeps attracting new customers at all its branches in Karachi and across Pakistan as well as in Dubai and Madinah, the first branch on MA Jinnah Road has seen a decline in clients in recent years due to a rise in crime in the area. 
Still, Akber Bundoo Khan’s son insists the original location will never shut down.
“This is our asset,” he said. “The flavor that started here has spread all over the world. It’s because of this taste that we’re famous ... Our identity, our entire legacy, has been built from here.”

DUBAI: The inaugural edition of the Billboard Arabia Music Awards — which will take place on Dec. 11 at the King Fahad Cultural Centre, as part of the first edition of Riyadh Music Week — will present awards in more than 40 categories, organizers announced.

Some of the categories include Top Artist, Song of the Year, Best in Dialect Charts, and Top New Artist of the Year.

With 210 nominations and 96 artists covering top songs, artists, composers, songwriters, and producers, Al Shami leads the nomination count with 14, while other prominent stars such as Assala Nasri, Ahmad Saad, Tamer Ashour, alongside Elissa, Dystinct, Ayed and Tul8te, are also nominated. 

The event will feature musical performances by some of the most prominent artists in the region and the world, including Elissa, Dystinct, Ahmed Saad, Ayed and Tul8te, among others.

The event celebrates established and emerging regional talents, as well as the songs that have gained wide popularity on the trusted Billboard Arabia charts, including the “100 Artists” and “Hot 100” charts, and genre-specific and dialect-specific charts.

Billboard Arabia and the inaugral Billboard Arabia Music Awards is a result of a partnership between SRMG and Billboard. With Saudi Arabia’s live events market projected to surpass $1 billion by 2025 and streaming platforms in the region experiencing annual growth rates of between 10 percent and 15 percent, Billboard Arabia is poised to shape the regional and global music scene, driving economic growth and fostering creative expression.

Mike Van, the president of Billboard, expressed pride in the strategic partnership with SRMG, saying in a statement: “The Billboard Music Awards is globally recognized as the pinnacle of musical achievement, celebrating artists for their chart success and industry impact. We are excited to bring this legacy and vision to the MENA region, shining a spotlight on the incredible talent and musical excellence of local artists. This collaboration provides them with a unique platform to amplify their presence on a global stage.

“Winning a Billboard Arabia Music Award is a significant milestone in an artist’s career, one that can significantly accelerate their journey and open new doors for success,” he added.

Rami Zeidan, managing director of Billboard Arabia, described the event as historic: “Shaping new cultural trends in music has always been a fundamental part of Billboard’s pioneering philosophy.”

He highlighted that “the Billboard Arabia charts reflect our steadfast commitment to empowering the next generation of musical talent and celebrating the music that deeply influences listeners’ tastes and shapes the evolving music landscape.”

Zeidan further stated that “the music industry in the MENA region is experiencing unprecedented growth and rapid expansion, making it a focal point for global music platforms.”