Ishrat Fatima Explained

Ishrat Fatima (or Ishrat Fatima Saqib) is a former Pakistani newsreader and radio presenter who worked for Pakistan Television and Radio Pakistan. In 2019, she received a civil award for her services.

Early life

She was born in Pakistan and lives in Islamabad.

Career

Ishrat Fatima was 'the face' of 9 pm daily Urdu news Khabarnama in the 1980s and 1990s. She started her career in Radio Pakistan hosting a program Khel aur Khiladi. she had gone to PTV to audition for a weather segment, but instead was selected for the news segment.^[1]

Ishrat Fatima was called "a poised lady presenting news with elegance".^[1] She seemed to have a great command of the Urdu language while presenting the news with an abundance of self-confidence.^[1] During an interview with a Pakistani English-language newspaper, she said that she used to put in effort and time in rehearsing before she actually went on-screen, including fact-checking everything.^[1]

Personal life

She got married in 1996 to Saqib Waheed. They have two children.^[1]

Awards and recognition

• Pride of Performance Award in 2019 by the President of Pakistan.^[2]
• Tamgha-i-Imtiaz (Medal of Excellence) by the Government of Pakistan^[1]
• Nigar Award^[1]

External links

• This presenter of Urdu news was a celebrity in South-Asian journalism when even the word 'celebrity' wasn't commonly-used.
• Khalid Hameed & Ishrat Fatima Still Reading News
• PTV Newscaster Ishrat Saqib robbed
• Ishrat Fatima on Twitter

Notes and References

1. Web site: In conversation with PTV's yesteryear newscaster Ishrat Fatima. 3 October 2018. Madiha Nizam. The News International (newspaper). 24 March 2019.
2. https://www.dawn.com/news/1471417 President Alvi confers top civil, military awards for excellence on Pakistan Day