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ISLAMABAD: Pakistani singer and actor Fawad Khan will be part of a panel of prominent judges who will feature in “Pakistan Idol,” which is set to make a comeback after a decade-long hiatus, a report in the international website Variety said this week. 

Pakistan Idol was a reality singing television competition show that followed the “Idol” franchise created by British entrepreneur Simon Fuller. The show ran from December 2013 to April 2014 and featured pop stars Ali Azmat, Hadiqa Kiani and prominent actress Bushra Ansari as judges. 

The show ran on Geo Entertainment and featured just one season. Production company MHL Global has secured the rights for Pakistan Idol from format distributor Fremantle to revive the singing competition series, Variety reported on Saturday. 

“The show will feature a star-studded judging panel including actor Fawad Khan, singer Zeb Bangash, qawwali artist Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, and Strings musician Bilal Maqsood,” Variety said. “The revival marks a significant return for the franchise, which last aired in 2014.”

The report said MHL Global has planned an ambitious distribution strategy for the show’s reboot, with it set to air simultaneously across five television networks, a first for any “Idol” franchise globally.

“According to the company, this multi-platform approach aims to reach diverse audiences across Pakistan’s various regions and languages,” it added. 

Zoya Merchant, director of MHL Global, said the launch represented “a cultural movement.”

“Pakistan has incredible musical talent, and this platform will not only spotlight it nationwide but elevate it to the global stage,” she said. 

Variety said the production will incorporate modern digital engagement alongside traditional television broadcasting, adding that online auditions are launching through the Begin platform, while in-person casting calls are planned for major cities and remote regions.

“Production is expected to begin later this year, with broadcast details and premiere dates to be announced,” the report disclosed. 

Khan enjoys heartthrob status in both Pakistan and India. After making a name for himself in hit Pakistani TV drama serials and movies such as Humsafar, Zindagi Gulzar Hai, The Legend of Maula Jutt and Khuda Kay Liye, he went on to star in Bollywood films Kapoor and Sons, Khoobsurat and Ae Dil Hai Mushkil. 

Before his acting career took off, Khan was a member of the Lahore-based rock band Entity Paradigm. He also sang the Pakistan Super League (PSL) anthem for the 2019 edition of the cricket league.

ISLAMABAD: Waiters weave through the busy restaurant floor, hurriedly taking orders from famished customers and making room for plenty of others who amble into the busy �ݲ��Ի���’s gourmet café in Islamabad. It has been a little over three months since the restaurant opened for business in Pakistan’s capital. The steady stream of customers suggests it’s here to stay.

This is the story of several restaurants from Pakistan’s southern port city of Karachi that have opened their outlets in Islamabad in recent years and found success in the capital. These include �ݲ��Ի���’s, Hot N Spicy, Red Apple, Caffe Praha, Student Biryani and others.

These people bring much-needed diversity to the city’s culinary landscape. The southern port city is home to the Memon, Bohra, Punjabi, Pashtun, Baloch, Bengali, Malbari, Sindhi and a large community of MuHajjirs--people who migrated from India at the time of partition. Each group has contributed distinct flavors to Karachi’s ever-evolving palate with their own signature dishes.

But while Karachi has always been famous for its mouthwatering biryani, slow-cooked beef stew popularly known as nihari and the haleem, a thick, savory porridge of meat, lentils, and wheat, Islamabad’s residents did not find the same delight in the capital city’s version of these dishes.

Hence it comes as no surprise that Karachi’s prominent eateries that tried their hand in Islamabad have gotten impressive results so far. Take for instance Red Apple, a Karachi-based restaurant food chain popular for its paratha rolls and barbecue items, that started in Karachi in 1996 and now has 25 branches in total in the city.  

“Three years ago, we launched in Islamabad and Lahore and within that period, have opened seven branches across Islamabad and Rawalpindi,” Hamza Channa, the general manager of Red Apple’s F-6 branch in Islamabad, told Arab News.

“There was no good roll paratha here. So Red Apple brought a good roll paratha and barbeque,” he said, adding the restaurant chain has the potential to open 20 outlets in the capital city.

�ݲ��Ի���’s, another Karachi-based eatery, describes itself as a modern gourmet café that serves simple and flavorful meals to customers. The cafe has been operating in Karachi for the past 14 years and found success with three outlets there before it expanded into Islamabad three months earlier.

Khasham Zaman, a businessman who has savored meals at both �ݲ��Ի���’s outlets in Karachi and Islamabad, said the arrival of Karachi-based restaurants in the city is narrowing the gap in fine-dining experience in the capital.

“There is still room for improvement in the quality of the food, but I think they are doing exceptionally well,” Zaman told Arab News.

“I have tried �ݲ��Ի���’s both in Karachi and after that in Islamabad. It’s a new addition and it’s fantastic.”

Another Karachi-based eatery that has gained popularity in Islamabad is Caffe Praha. After operating in the southern city since 2019, Praha, which offers its customers the experience of relishing coffee and cakes at its outlets that it says are styled after Prague’s street cafés, opened for business in Islamabad on June 26.

For popular food vlogger “Guy Knows Food,” the popularity of new food chains opening in Islamabad has less to do with taste and more with “aesthetic appeal.”

“It is really easy for Karachi’s restaurants to enter Islamabad’s food market because consumers here have really low expectations when it comes to restaurants,” the vlogger told Arab News.

“They usually just focus on the aesthetic and/or location of the restaurant and are not concerned about actual fundamentals, like food or service or choice of ingredients, or its sourcing even.”

He described Karachi’s range of food options as “absolutely amazing,” saying that restaurants based in the city are proof of that.

“Even Karachi’s restaurants don’t maintain the same quality of food and service here as they know that Islamabadi consumers won’t be too concerned,” he said.

“They can get away with it.”

Mahira Khan, however, absolutely relishes both the taste and experience that Praha offers. 

“As they are advertising from Prague to Islamabad, I was expecting the same kind of touch, [that is] European food,” she said, sipping her Peach Mojito.

“And yes, the food was exactly what I was expecting.”