Pakistanis, once again, have made their country proud by having seven members of the nation on the Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia list this year. Through contributions to the entertainment and film industries, technology, finance and social impact, these young people are doing more than just succeeding in their respective industries; they are actively reshaping them on a regional and global scale.
Every year, Forbes publishes the Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia list, which is an internationally renowned recognition for people under age 30 who are doing remarkable things in their respective industries across the Asia-Pacific area. These achievements span a variety of fields, including business, media, technology, finance, arts, and social entrepreneurship; each of these 300 winners will be recognized as instrumental in shaping today’s world.
Nominations for inclusion on this list are submitted and reviewed by thousands of organizations, including journalists, editors, and others. Even though popularity may be a consideration, it is not solely used as a qualifying measure. Innovation, impact, influence, leadership and measurable outcomes will determine whether or not an individual will be selected. Throughout the years, Pakistan has produced numerous outstanding individuals who have received awards on every continent, and in 2026, a total of 7 individuals from Pakistan will have been recognized on this prestigious list.
Hania Aamir – Entertainment, Media & Cultural Influence
Inclusion on Forbes’ List for Hania Aamir isn’t simply about being regarded as one of the most significant influencer in the Pakistani entertainment industry, but instead, it portrays her evolution to be a pan-Asian digital and entertainment game-changer.
Aamir has not only established a career that supersedes traditional Pakistani television drama, but she has now become one of the most followed Pakistani celebrities on a global level; this is indicated by her performances in popular dramas like Kabhi Main Kabhi Tum and her appearance in the Punjabi film Sardaar Ji 3 alongside Diljit Dosanjh, along with an increase in her current/increasing number of international streaming projects, which illustrate that the Pakistani entertainment industry has entered a completely new phase of global content.
The UN has also appointed Hania Aamir as their National Goodwill Ambassador – the role recognizes Hania’s impact as an icon women, youth and specifically women in South Asia to further the cause of gender equality, amplifying and furthering women’s causes in fields that will help empower them in their areas of work or personal lives.
The one major reason for her being recognized and selected by Forbes was her sheer magnitude of cultural influence; she represents a completely different type of age group – one that contains entertainers that are able to combine acting, digital media, and global visibility into one entity through social media, streaming audiences, and cross-border entertainment visibility, making Aamir more of a modernised media personality than merely a conventional actor/actress.
Syed Ismail – Technology & Commodity Digitalization Startup
Syed Ismail is included among the top entrepreneurs directly in Consumer and Enterprise Tech. He represents Pakistan’s growing ecosystem of entrepreneurs launching startups. He co-founded Saraaf, a digital platform based in Karachi that is transforming commodity trading throughout much of Central and South Asia in many different ways.
The goal of Saraaf is to help solve the inefficiencies associated with traditional supply chain management in various industries that use raw materials (e.g., cotton, metals, and stones). Saraaf provides an innovative platform that allows buyers and sellers to communicate more effectively (e.g., through real-time pricing, digital contracts, shipment tracking, etc.), thus improving a historically disjointed method of trading.
The fact that he made this list is indicative that founders of Pakistani companies are no longer simply building applications but developing infrastructure-based approaches to meet the requirements of the global trade market.
Saman Kamraan – Film, Climate Storytelling & Independent Cinema
Independent films are often characterized by telling stories that explore deep-seated societal and ecological issues. Independent filmmaker Saman Kamraan (who was born and raised in Pakistan), a LUMS alum, is one such filmmaker whose work conveys the important themes of its subject matter through storytelling.
Saman’s short film The Bed She Made received international recognition through a variety of festivals around the world; it was screened at various locations across South Korea to highlight sensitive issues (e.g. climate change, reproductive health) within Pakistan.
Saman’s work spans many more projects including Umro Ayyar, Venusfalle, A Coup among others.
Forbes recognizes her and other creators like her to represent a new wave of filmmakers producing socially relevant material based on local realities for a global audience; this demonstrates that Pakistani independent filmmakers can be successful contenders on a global artistic level.
Muhammad Furqan Karim Kidwai – Venture Capital & Startup Funding
Furqan Karim Kidwai is the co-founder at Plouton AI, a venture-building and AI automation platform focused on creating intelligent systems for startups and businesses. The platform streamlines critical operational and financial processes including workflow automation, data management, and decision-making by utilizing artificial intelligence, thereby enabling early-stage companies to scale their operations efficiently.
He is a symbol of how Pakistan continues to grow in both venture capital and supporting its start-up financing. He works primarily to help start-ups get capital, develop their growth plans, and connect with regional investors to assist with early-stage investments. Since there are ever-present funding gaps in ecosystems such as Pakistan’s, his role is very important in bridging the gap between ideas and scalable businesses.
Forbes recognizes individuals like Furqan because it is through venture capital that a startup economy is created. Venture capital has been the backbone of creating funding for innovation, allowing innovators to build upon their ideas and scale their businesses.
Sarfraz Shahid Hussain – Finance, Investment Strategy & Growth Systems
Finance and venture capital professional Sarfraz Shahid Hussain (also a co-founder of Plouton AI) specializes in enterprise capital strategy and organisation development frameworks to optimise business scaling and creating sustainable environments to meet the growing demand from the start-up market.
Rather than focusing on products that are aimed at the consumer market, he makes an impact by developing a financial structure that allows for better investment performance and an improved capital flow to emerging market countries like Pakistan.
Forbes acknowledges professionals such as Sarfraz when creating an inclusion list, as they play a significant role in long-term economic growth.
Dr. Maheera Ghani – Social Impact & Youth Development
The social impact group included Dr. Maheera Ghani as part of their list with her work revolving around issues such as lack of access to quality education, elimination of educational inequities and the empowerment of communities.
Maheera Ghani graduated from Cambridge University in 2025 with a Ph.D. in materials science. She is now doing postdoctoral research at Cambridge on ultra-thin semiconductors. Last year, her project WinSci Pakistan education, won the Nature Inspiring Women in Science award from the Estée Lauder Companies and Springer Nature for her efforts to encourage women to pursue careers in science. Forbes
Through her efforts to help improve the lives of people living in underprivileged communities with little or no access to education and other resources, she has worked on projects and initiatives to improve the lives of these underserved populations.
This recognition of Maheera’s accomplishments lies in the recognition that young people in Pakistan today are increasingly defining their success by measures of impacting social change rather than simply by financial success.
Fahad Shahbaz – Social Entrepreneurship & Impact Innovation
Social entrepreneur and lawyer Fahad Shahbaz is part of a rapidly growing trend of young people in Pakistan who are using civil and political innovation to be leaders in their country. At 18 years old, he founded the Youth General Assembly in 2015, offering a formal pathway for young Pakistanis to gain experience in political leadership, governance, and public policymaking. There are currently 96 members of the assembly that operates on the 2014 UK Parliament system and Pakistan’s National Assembly, where young people can debate and create formal policy recommendations on national issues.
Fahad graduated with a Master of Laws degree from the University of Law in London.
He has received the Diana Award in 2023 and is also a part of the World Economic Forum’s Global Shapers Community, an organisation for youth-led development across the globe. His involvement in this global youth development network demonstrates the increasing popularity of social entrepreneurship in Pakistan, with business models designed to solve the world’s most pressing challenges.
The overall focus of his work is on the creation of scalable opportunities through innovative solutions that address community issues. Rather than approaching entrepreneurship through a profit-first lens, he approaches entrepreneurship using a holistic method to ensure long-term sustainability by creating social impact and value.
Through venture capital, AI, finance, storytelling, and digital entertainment, each of these sectors reflects an increasingly interconnected and innovative foundation of the modern global economy. Their entry onto the Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia list not only recognizes them personally but also indicates how young people from Pakistan are engaging with and shaping regional and global industries.
Additionally, this accomplishment signifies a shift from viewing Pakistan as an emerging market only to being viewed as a creative contributor of innovative ideas, startup ventures, and creativity on the world stage. As they continue their journey to develop and grow their businesses, they will not only create their own careers but also inspire and create opportunities for future innovators, entrepreneurs, and creators from Pakistan.
