Maham Khan

ISLAMABAD: On a warm Sunday in May, Sumaira loaded her arms with cherries, a dress and a changair &ndash; a decorative basket woven from reeds &ndash; and brought them to her mother. It was not a grand gesture, she said. But her mother smiled. Across Pakistan this Mother&#39;s Day, similar scenes played out in living rooms and on WhatsApp video calls, in households where the holiday is embraced warmly and others where it barely registers. The day has taken a quiet hold in urban Pakistan over the last decade. Not uniformly, not without dissent, but undeniably. Pakistan TV Digital reached out to people across the country to find out how they marked the occasion. In Rawalpindi, Arhama kept it simple. A cheeseboard, she said, because that is what her mother likes. The specificity of the choice mattered. It was not picked from a promotional display or a sponsored post. It was chosen because someone paid attention, and had been paying attention for years. <figure class="fr-media"><img src="https://paktv-assets-7d41fab8.s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/uploads/a3b56717-d920-4f2b-912b-e3691c37ce22-2197cfcd-b157-4cb8-b0dd-c2cdc8602cef.jfif" alt="2197cfcd-b157-4cb8-b0dd-c2cdc8602cef.jfif" class="fr-fil fr-dib"><figcaption class="caption-cover-image text-sm text-gray-600 italic">Cheeseboard assembled for a Mother&#39;s Day celebration in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, May 10, 2026.</figcaption></figure> That kind of quiet knowing is what the day, at its best, seems to surface. Not the roses sold for Rs300 or more outside every major shopping plaza, but the accumulated knowledge of a child who has watched their mother long enough to know exactly what she enjoys. For some, the day was measured in distance. Umair, based in Peshawar, spent Mother&#39;s Day at the office. There was no way to get home in time. He arranged flowers and a cake online and had them sent to his family. Later, they sent back a video. His mother was leaning over the cake, cutting through it. She looked happy. He had not been there to see it in person. It is a situation familiar to millions. Pakistan is a country where young men &ndash; and now even women &ndash; routinely relocate for work, sometimes to other cities, sometimes abroad, and the distance quietly reshapes how families observe these days. The phone screen becomes the table they gather around. The video call becomes the room. The holiday itself is relatively new to Pakistan in its current form. Social media accelerated its spread through the 2010s and the markets followed. Restaurants offered Mother&#39;s Day brunches. Florists doubled their prices. For some families, particularly in larger cities, it became a fixture. For others, it remained foreign territory. In Karachi, Areeba falls firmly in the second camp. No one in her family observes the day. Not Mother&#39;s Day, not birthdays, not any of it. She is direct about why. It is commercialized, she said, and the point is lost on her. Her position is not that mothers do not deserve recognition, it is the opposite. She believes they deserve it every day, not because a market calendar has designated the second Sunday of May for the purpose. Her skepticism is neither new nor uniquely Pakistani. But it carries a particular weight here. Reverence for mothers is embedded in this society at a level that goes beyond sentiment. It is present in religious teaching, in poetry, in the way major decisions are still deferred to a mother&#39;s judgment. The word maa is among the first a child learns. The argument that every day is already Mother&#39;s Day is not deflection. For many people, it is genuinely how they live. Still, for those who do observe it, the holiday offers something the everyday does not. An occasion, a nudge, a shared moment that might otherwise be quietly postponed. A cheeseboard. A changair. A cake cut on a phone screen 400 kilometers from where a son sat watching. The mothers, by most accounts, were touched.

A Pakistani woman carries her son as she walk on a street in Islamabad on May 13, 2012, on Mother's Day. (AFP)

Culture

Across cities, families found small, tender ways to honor the occasion. Not everyone was convinced they should have to though.

From Rawalpindi to Karachi, Pakistan marks Mother's Day –  with cake, cherries, and a few skeptics

Simran Siraj

KARACHI: An original movement-based play from Pakistan, Tayraak, won the Best Script Award at the 6th Kish International Short Theater Festival in Iran, as the contemporary theater in the country continued to make waves internationally.&nbsp; The 6th Kish International Short Theater Festival, directed by Abbas Najari, was held from October 18 to 21. Hosted on Iran&rsquo;s scenic Kish Island, the festival focused on new forms of theater, such as caf&eacute;-theater, beach-theatre and experimental staging, with this year&rsquo;s themes including family and social vitality, the environment, peace and unity. Tayraak received an overwhelming response from audiences and jury members at the festival, which brings together young theater practitioners from across the world. One of the festivalgoers shared pictures from the movement piece in an Instagram post that read, &ldquo;Their performance was silent, [but] their hands spoke harshly to us.&rdquo;&nbsp; Directed by Karachi-based theater practitioner and movement coach Ashmal Lalwany, the play was written and performed by Suleman Roomi, Hashir Faraz, and Farhan Ahsan.&nbsp; In a post on his Instagram account, Lalwany announced the news of winning the Best Script Award and said that he was &ldquo;proud&rdquo; of his team.&nbsp; While speaking to Pakistan TV Digital, Lalwany said that the absence of dialogue helped the piece transcend barriers.&nbsp; &ldquo;Because our play was purely based on movement and not language, we had the audience&rsquo;s full attention,&rdquo; he shared. &ldquo;Most of the other plays were in Persian, and the audience was very discerning. You could tell when they didn&rsquo;t like something. But with Tayraak, because there were no dialogues, they were entirely focused on the actors&rsquo; movement.&rdquo;&nbsp; He said that &ldquo;whenever they caught something meaningful, I could see people reacting, turning to each other and saying, &lsquo;Oh, this happened.&rsquo;&rdquo;&nbsp; &ldquo;That was a beautiful feeling. You don&rsquo;t need language to put your art across; you just need emotion, feeling, and honesty,&rdquo; he said.&nbsp;&nbsp;The director credited his team for their dedication to the script and their ability to convey emotion through movement alone. &ldquo;We were always praised for our expression. Whatever praise we received after the performance was for the fact that there were no words, yet we delivered such an impactful story,&rdquo; he added. A play which unfolds entirely through movement, Tayraak delves into the themes of survival, growth, and the courage to break free from inherited fears.&nbsp; The piece follows three individuals navigating rigid family values, personal trauma, and suffocating expectations, portraying how pain can both hinder and inspire healing and self-discovery. The play was first developed as part of a movement class by the Arts Council Theatre Academy (ACTA) and draws on the performers&rsquo; real experiences with silence, resilience, and emotional inheritance. The award marks a significant moment for Pakistan&rsquo;s performing arts scene, highlighting the growing presence of young practitioners on international platforms.&nbsp;

Play receives overwhelming response audiences, jury members; director says absence of dialogue helped piece transcend barriers. 




Pakistani play ‘Tayraak’ wins best script at 6th Kish International Short Theatre Festival in Iran

Web Desk

ISLAMABAD: Against the romantic backdrop of the Eiffel Tower and the gentle hum of Parisian chatter, the aroma of garam masala and sizzling kebabs lured passersby into a world far from the Champs-&Eacute;lys&eacute;es. The International Village of Gastronomy had transformed the heart of Paris into a global feast, and the Pakistani pavilion quickly became its crown jewel. Dressed in green and white, and lined with vibrant images of Lahore&#39;s food streets and Hunza&#39;s serene landscapes, the Pakistani stand offered more than just food. It served a slice of home for expats and a taste of discovery for curious locals. From steaming plates of chicken biryani, each grain fragrant and perfectly spiced, to golden-brown vegetable samosas with a satisfying crunch, the display was both a culinary and cultural celebration. Sweet treats like gulab jamuns and jalebi, soaked in syrup and glistening under the French sun, delighted visitors from every continent. And when thirst struck, guests reached for classic Pakistani drinks &mdash; Rooh Afza, served chilled with a splash of lemon, or refreshing mango juice that reminded many of tropical summers. The star behind this gastronomic diplomacy was Ambassador Mumtaz Zahra Baloch, who inaugurated Pakistan&rsquo;s participation at the event. Standing alongside international guests and French dignitaries, she welcomed the founder of the event, Anne-Laure Descombin, and thanked her for including Pakistan in such a vibrant cultural showcase. &ldquo;This pavilion highlights not just our culinary traditions, but the spirit of Pakistan,&rdquo; Baloch said, smiling as she greeted guests and posed for photos with plates in hand. &ldquo;Diverse, warm, and full of flavor.&rdquo; The festival, now a staple in the Parisian cultural calendar, brings together over 60 global and regional cuisines, drawing more than 10,000 visitors daily. Held just steps from the Seine River, the four-day event mixes gastronomy with storytelling, inviting embassies and chefs to build bridges between cultures through their signature dishes. Curious visitors leaned in to ask about secret spice blends and family recipes passed down generations. &ldquo;Is this saffron?&rdquo; asked one French tourist, pointing at the golden hue of the biryani. &ldquo;No,&rdquo; laughed the chef, &ldquo;It&rsquo;s turmeric, our sunshine spice.&rdquo; As part of Pakistan&rsquo;s broader public diplomacy efforts in France, the event served more than food. It showcased the country&rsquo;s rich cultural identity. From the bustling food markets of Karachi to the home kitchens of Peshawar, the variety of dishes offered at the pavilion spoke volumes of the country&#39;s regional diversity. Many attendees were surprised by the balance of flavor. Heat from the chilies, depth from slow-cooked meats, and sweetness in desserts, all harmonized in perfect rhythm. By sunset, as the Eiffel Tower began to sparkle in the Parisian twilight, the Pakistani pavilion still buzzed with activity. The crowd lingered, some sipping on Rooh Afza, others enjoying their first taste of channa chaat or seekh kebab, while music played softly in the background. Baloch commended her team for their dedication, calling the event &ldquo;a celebration of cultural connection,&rdquo; adding that &ldquo;moments like these remind us how food can unite people, beyond borders and languages.&rdquo; In a city that prides itself on gastronomy, Pakistan&rsquo;s flavors didn&rsquo;t just compete, they captivated.

Food

Pakistan’s vibrant cuisine dazzled Parisians at the International Gastronomy Village near the Eiffel Tower, drawing thousands of eager food lovers.

Articles tagged with "Pakistani Culture"

From Rawalpindi to Karachi, Pakistan marks Mother's Day – with cake, cherries, and a few skeptics

Pakistani play ‘Tayraak’ wins best script at 6th Kish International Short Theatre Festival in Iran

Biryani to Rooh Afza: Pakistani cuisine steals the spotlight in Paris