As we are nearing the end of 2021, we are guessing you already have your list of goals and resolutions jotted down in your journal. But, before gearing up for the next year, let’s take a moment and look back at how 2021 has been. We have undoubtedly had many highs and a few lows but today, we are only focusing on the highs. We will talk about moments that made us feel joy and we wouldn’t mind re-visiting if given a chance.
Below are some of the best moments of 2021 that we’d love to revisit. Let’s dive right in, shall we?
1. Pakistan Beats India In A T20 World Cup Match By 10 Wickets!
Oof! What a match it was. Pakistan made history by beating India for the first time ever in a T20 World Cup match, that too by 10 wickets! It was a very well-executed match, Kudos to the Pakistani skipper Babar Azam. Not to take away from the brilliant performance of other players but, Muhammad Rizwan and Babar Azam took it upon themselves to carry the whole match and only come back to the bleachers once Pakistan had won – & that’s exactly what happened!
Emotions always run high when Pakistan and India are competing in a cricket match. It’s not just a match for cricket nuts on both sides of the border but, rather a feeling. Pakistan and India locked horns after 5 long years and cricket fans finally got a dose of what they had been longing for – a nail-biting, high-on emotions Pakistan vs India T20 cricket match!
Losing a cricket match is upsetting but losing to India in a cricket match carries devastation that knows no bounds! Hence, for Pakistani cricket fans, winning this match was like winning the World Cup! We can watch the winning moment again and again. What about you?
2. Viral Meme ‘Pawri Ho Rahi Hai’ Reunites Pakistan & India
Yeh mein hoon…go on, you know what comes next (unless you’ve been living under a rock).
A short video clip of merely 5 seconds did what many (read: governments) couldn’t do. It brought Pakistan and India together in the most entertaining way! Dananeer Mobeen, a social media influencer. now an actress, shot a video while she was on a trip to northern Pakistan. In that video, she’s just having fun with her friends and can be heard saying “Yeh hamari car hai, yeh ham hain aur yeh hamari pawri horahi hai.” She posted that short clip on her account and the rest was history…just kidding.
The video spread like wildfire! Not long after, Pakistanis (including well-known personalities and celebrities) started recreating her video in the most creative ways. Anyone and everything jumped on the ‘pawri’ bandwagon and it didn’t take long until our neighbors decided to join in as well. Yashraj Mukhate, an Indian music producer, who is known to turn viral memes into catchy songs, of course, HAD to make the ‘pawri’ meme into a fun tune as well and so he did. Listen for yourself:
From The Pakistan Cricket Team to the India Police to…wait for it, Ranveer Singh & Deepika Padukone (yes you heard that right!), everyone re-created the video. This meme would undoubtedly go down in history as the most entertaining one as of yet!
We are currently watching Dananeer in Sinf e Aahan as Syeda Sidra. It is her acting debut and she has been delivering a brilliant performance so far.
3. Nigar Johar Became The First-Ever Three Star Female General
In November 2021, Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa installed Lt General Nigar Johar as Pakistan’s first-ever female general to be appointed as Colonel Commandant of Army Medical Corps (AMC). The COAS pinned the badges of rank to formally install Lieutenant General Nigar Johar as Pakistan’s first-ever female general to be appointed as Colonel Commandant of AMC and stated that the installation of the first-ever three-star female general officer of Pakistan Army as Colonel Commandant of AMC is ‘indeed a matter of immense pride for Pakistan Army and the country’. (Source: Tribune)
Nigar Johar is the epitome of relentless courage and zest. She is an inspiration to many young girls as she set her eyes on her goals and didn’t look back or let those blocking her come in the way of her dreams!
4. Pakistan Offered Relief Materials & Aid To India During Covid
India was one of the countries where Covid hit the hardest. It was struggling to keep up with the demand for oxygen, ventilators, and even hospital beds. As a gesture of goodwill, Edhi Foundation sent a letter to Prime Minister Modi offering to send medical staff and ambulances to India to help curb the surge of Covid cases in the country.
The letter read, “We sympathise with you greatly and during this strenuous time, we would like to extend our help in the form of a fleet of 50 ambulances along with our services to assist you in addressing, and further circumventing, the current health conditions.” (Source: Al Jazeerah)
In another instance, the Government of Pakistan also offered to send relief materials such as ventilators to our neighboring country. An official statement by the Foreign Office read, “As a gesture of solidarity with the people of India in the wake of the current wave of COVID-19, Pakistan has offered to provide relief support to India including ventilators, Bi PAP, digital X ray machines, PPEs and related items.” (Source: Tribune India)
5. Haider Ali Won Pakistan’s First Gold Medal
Haider Ali made history by winning Pakistan’s first gold medal in the discus throw event at the Tokyo Paralympics 2020. Haider Ali performed brilliantly by achieving his personal best (a throw of 55.26m). Although this is his first gold medal, he has previously won both silver in 2008 and bronze in 2016.
6. Samar Khan Became The First Woman To Reach K2 On A Bike
In August of 2021, Samar Khan made history by becoming the first woman to reach the K2 base camp on a mountain bicycle. She successfully summited the 6,250-metre Burbucho peak in Shigar’s Arandu and Mount Kilimanjaro. She documented parts of her journey on social media and explained that she traversed the difficult terrain in parts and the maximum height she reached was 5000+m.
She is a testament to the fact that Pakistani women can do anything they set their eyes on!
7. Cinemas In Pakistan Re-opened After More Than 1.5 Years
In October 2021, the re-opening of cinemas across Pakistan was finally allowed by the NCOC. Movie buffs were ecstatic and rightfully so!
The Chairman of Film Distributors Association of Pakistan, Ejaz Kmaran in a statement to Express Tribune expressed, “We appreciate the decision and are also very happy. Surely the situation will be better soon. We are in the same boat as the rest of the world, and like other film industries, ours has also suffered, but now the situation is improving across the world with cinemas reopening.”
Khel Khel Mein was the first Pakistani movie released after cinemas reopened and it made big numbers at the box office! Kahay Dil Jidhar followed suit on 17th December. Apart from these two films, there are several Pakistani movies in the pipeline just waiting to release, including Parday Mein Rehnay Do, Quaid-e-Azam Zindabad, Ghabrana Nahi hai, Maula Jatt, & Nilofer. Excited? So are we!
8. Malala Yousafzai Ties The Knot!
Malala Yousafzai, a girls’ education activist, Oxford graduate, Noble Laureate and the recent star of Vogue Magazine, got nikkahfied to Asser Malik, in an intimate ceremony.
While the couple had kept their relationship private from the public eye, it is speculated that they have known each other since 2018. Soon after,congratulatory messages started to pour in from all over the world. We wish her the best too! How cute do they look?
And that’s it, folks! These are some of the highlights of 2021 that we felt were worth mentioning. Which one was your favorite? Did we miss any? Let us know!
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Sources used in this article include BBC, The Tribune India, The Express Tribune, & Al Jazeerah.