Amidst heated debate on a recently-imposed ban by the government on artistes traveling to India in the shape of No Objection Certificate actress Veena Malik is once again busy in Indian yatra. After Bigg Boss 4, the actress has signed two more shows in India -- one is the reality show Big Toss with Indian item girl Rakhi Sawant and the other a TV programme regarding the on-going cricket World Cup.

Well, the people say apart from the fact that Veena and cricketer Muhammad Asif are at daggers drawn with each other, but she must have been quite thankful to Asif because of whom she is also being considered for cricket events.

Chak De Cricket is an Indian TV programme which Veena will do. The panelists will be Anjuman Bassi, Chetan Sharma, Yograjsingh Bhagsingh Bhundel and others.

The other programme is a cricket-based reality show on Indian TV Big Toss which will have two teams, one led by Veena Malik and the other by Rakhi Sawant.

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The annual Rose Petal Lahore International Children's Film Festival is being held from March 5 to 9 at two venues at Ali Auditorium on Ferozepur Road and PAF Cinema in Cantonment.

The festival aims to provide alternative learning opportunities to children in Pakistan and introduce arts as a positive learning vehicle to schools and parents.

The festival is presenting 83 films from 26 countries on two venues this year.

The event is full of excitement and thrill which is packed with five morning and evening shows for five days. Morning shows are scheduled from 9am onwards while the evening shows will start at 6pm.

The festival is being organized by The Little Art, an organization dedicated to produce innovative arts education projects for children and young people in Pakistan.

It is a youth-led organisation which is determined, through numerous artistic avenues, media in particular, to promote principles and ideals of democracy, equality, civil rights, community, prosperity, higher education, religious and cultural tolerance and sustaining cultural heritage. Children and young people are its audience.

The festival had been organised in 2008 and 2009 that had attracted over 20,000 audiences consisting of children, families and the education community.

The Little Art's last project was the Children Performing Arts Festival in January 2011 in which five schools and two organizations working with marginalized children performed theater plays.

As a result of its international submission call, the festival received nearly 400 films from all over the world and has selected some of the best films suitable for children and young people in Pakistan.

Festival director Shoaib Iqbal says: “The festival is proudly becoming synonymous with a sense of wonder and delight, of cultivating young hearts and minds destined to become our future leaders. And we are proud to lead the innovation in arts education in Pakistan.

The full schedule of films can be accessed from the festival website at www.lahorechildrenfilm.com

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On International Women's Day on March 8, an exhibition of paintings titled 'Reading Faces Marking Places' by New York-based artist Tehseen Ali Khan will open at Alhamra Art Center on The Mall.

Tahseen Ali Khan lives and works in New York and paints in her studio at Gramercy Park. Her work is regularly exhibited in members' shows at the prestigious Salmagundi Art Club. She also maintains her membership with the Punjab Artists Association and participates in their annual exhibitions in her hometown, Lahore.

One of her portraits titled 'The Composed' has the honour of being a part of the permanent collection of the National Gallery in Islamabad.

Throughout her education and professional life in areas of graphics, advertising and fashion, Tahseen has remained dedicated to painting as a medium of self-expression.

She has had a good fortune to have been tutored by iconic and inspirational artists such as Anna Molka Ahmed and Zulkarnain Haider at the University of Punjab in Lahore; John Howard Sanden at the Art Students League, Richard Pionk at The Pastel Society of America, and John A. Parks at the School of Visual Arts in New York.

A self-proclaimed perpetual student, Tahseen Ali Khan continually draws inspiration from her visits to museums, galleries and shows in and around New York city.

Her designs and artwork have been reviewed in several magazines and periodicals in Pakistan, the UK and the US.