Pakistan is home to a lot of talent and Pakistanis have made their mark around the globe. In 2017, Pakistanis delivered on many fronts. Here are some who made us extremely proud through their remarkable achievements in different fields.
- Muhammad Rayyan Siddiqui
In 2017, young guns left no stones unturned to make Pakistan proud. One of them is Muhammad Rayyan Siddiqui, the world’s youngest Google certified Associate Android Developer. It’s a huge achievement that Rayyan at the age of 13 passed his Associate Android Developer Certification.
- Unaiza Ali Barlas
This 20-year-old Lahore-based artist, cartoonist and animator became the pride of the nation as she was named in the Guinness Book of World Records for creating the world’s longest strip. Passionate about making cartoons and wanting to do something special for her country, the 267.38 metres (877 feet) long comic strip by Unaiza broke record of India’s Suhas Palimkar.
- Sarfaraz Ahmed
Skipper Sarfaraz Ahmed became the nation’s hero as he led Pakistan to Champions Trophy glory in June 2017 by beating arch rivals India in the final. Pakistan registered their first ever Champions Trophy win under Sarfaraz’s captaincy, becoming the fourth team to win all the three ICC World titles.
- Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy
Two-time Oscar winner added more laurels to her harvest of awards this year. Sharmeen’s documentary A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness won the outstanding documentary award at the 38th Annual News and Documentary Emmy Awards in October. She also bagged Knight International Journalism Award 2017 for her reporting across the globe over the past two decades in June.
- Muhammad Shaheer Niazi
This curly haired 17 year old Pakistani teenager put Pakistan on the scientific map in a scientific first with his groundbreaking research on electric honeycombs which was recently published in the Royal Society Open Science journal. Shaheer managed to photograph the movement of ions that forms the honeycomb besides recording the heat found on the surface of oil which no one has done before. The young scientist aims to bring the prestigious Nobel Prize home again.
- Samar Khan
Pakistanis are reaching great heights, quite literally. Cyclist and athlete Samar Khan has become the first Pakistani woman to summit Africa’s highest peak Mount Kilimanjaro. The 27 year old who hails from Dir, Malakand Division of Khyber Pakthunkhwa, was sponsored by Pakistan Army for the trip. Moreover, she is also the first woman in the world to have cycled on the 4,500-meter-high Biafo glacier in Gilgit-Baltistan.
- Saliha Mahmood Ahmed
Junior doctor and mum-of-one of Pakistani origin from Watford fought her way through seven weeks of grueling culinary challenges to become UK Masterchef Champion 2017 in May. 29-year-old Saleha’s three course wining menu was praised by judges as ‘East meets West’ with dishes inspired by her Pakistani heritage. Through her love for cooking and medicine, she wanted to help people with special dietary conditions find their ideal foods.
- Riz Ahmed
British-Pakistani actor Riz Ahmed made history at Emmy’s by winning an Emmy award for outstanding lead actor in a limited series or movie for his role as Nasir Khan in HBO’s The Night Of. This was a long-overdue victory as no South Asian man won an Emmy in an acting category since the past seven decades.
