Culture editor
Writes about rooms, screens, and the country after dinner.
135 stories in the magazine
Selected stories
Page 1 of 8
Makli is not one tomb complex. It is a vast funerary landscape containing monuments to rulers, saints, scholars and others across several centuries of Sindh's history.
Bilal Ahmed · 27 Oct 2026
Walima is the post-marriage reception traditionally associated with the groom's side, but venue, timing, scale and dress vary enormously across Pakistani families.
Bilal Ahmed · 27 Oct 2026
Taxila is not one ruin beside one museum. The UNESCO property connects several settlements and religious sites that record centuries of urban change on routes linking South and Central Asia.
Bilal Ahmed · 25 Oct 2026
Dholki, mayun and mehndi overlap in modern weddings but come from different ideas: music gatherings, bridal preparation and the henna celebration itself.
Bilal Ahmed · 25 Oct 2026
Rohtas Fort is not a palace with a defensive wall around it. It is a vast 16th-century garrison landscape designed around control, movement, water and monumental gates.
Bilal Ahmed · 24 Oct 2026
An FRC is a NADRA record of family composition used for immigration, visa and administrative purposes. It is useful evidence, but it is not itself proof of nationality.
Bilal Ahmed · 22 Oct 2026
There is no official British Pakistani wedding tariff. Give what fits your relationship and budget, agree a household amount before the event and do not borrow to meet an imagined family rate.
Bilal Ahmed · 21 Oct 2026
A £1 transfer fee can hide a weak exchange rate. Compare the total Pakistani rupees received, delivery method and FCA status before choosing a remittance service.
Bilal Ahmed · 20 Oct 2026
Birmingham's Pakistani population share is far above the England and Wales average, making national figures a poor guide to local schools, services and neighbourhood life.
Bilal Ahmed · 20 Oct 2026
NADRA's child documents are age- and status-specific. CRC and Juvenile Card register under-18 Pakistani citizens, while overseas citizenship documentation can involve NICOP.
Bilal Ahmed · 18 Oct 2026
POC and NICOP can both make travel to Pakistan easier, but they represent fundamentally different legal statuses: citizenship versus eligible foreign origin.
Bilal Ahmed · 15 Oct 2026
A marriage certificate is one requirement in a UK spouse-visa case, not the whole case. Relationship evidence, finances, English, accommodation and immigration rules remain separate tests.
Bilal Ahmed · 13 Oct 2026
Eid can feel generous without producing twenty small plastic presents. Coordinate relatives, mix money with experiences and let one thoughtful gift be enough.
Bilal Ahmed · 12 Oct 2026
Census 2021 counted 1,587,822 usual residents in England and Wales who identified with the Pakistani ethnic group, about 2.7% of the population.
Bilal Ahmed · 12 Oct 2026
Pakistan's six inscribed UNESCO World Heritage properties span the Indus civilisation, Gandhara Buddhism, Mughal Lahore, Sindh's funerary landscape and Suri military architecture.
Bilal Ahmed · 12 Oct 2026
Rukhsati is the emotional departure of the bride after wedding celebrations, not the act that creates a marriage in law or religion. Families handle its timing differently.
Bilal Ahmed · 10 Oct 2026
Bilingual children need meaningful reasons to use Urdu, not weekly correction sessions. Build it into stories, grandparents, jokes, food, errands and ordinary family conversation.
Bilal Ahmed · 9 Oct 2026
The suitcase-for-Pakistan problem is usually not generosity but scale. A simple gift plan, honest family boundaries and a customs check make arrival warmer and the airport much easier.
Bilal Ahmed · 9 Oct 2026