DRIVEN: Zunira Malik is going to host YouTube-based talk show What’s Up Doha. Right: LET’S TALK: Zunira going through an interview for the show whose format allows more than one guest.           Photos by Umer Nangiana

 By Umer Nangiana


In a world of increasing social interaction, many stories of great achievements emerge — tales of extraordinary public service and accounts of personal glory. But do we get to know them all? Probably, not.
So just when you think the local media content is beginning to appear as beige as the dunes out there, out comes someone with a passion to uncover and share all such inspirational stories.
With “What’s Up Doha” — a soon-to-be-launched You Tube-based talk show — Zunira Malik, a Pakistani expatriate, is all set to help us communicate with ambitious individuals who have demonstrated exceptional talent or selfless commitment towards the well-being of humanity.
With her 45-minute talk show, she plans on bringing us up close and personal with people in Doha who have already inspired a world with their deeds or still lay out in the rough to do just that.
Born and brought up in Doha, Zunira feels there has been a dearth of media attention on people who have dedicated their lives for the service of their communities within a larger community or, other individuals, who have earned great personal laurels with their unique ideas and hard work.
“As expatriates, we have a lot to tell about Doha, ourselves and our experiences, and I believe my talk show would be an ideal platform for this. It is for all those people who have such stories to tell and to inspire others,” Zunira tells Community.  
“I have also seen that people outside Qatar are not much informed about Doha. They think that it is conservative and its people, the communities, are not much aware of the world outside. Well, that is not true,” she emphasises.
Her show, she believes, would also help create awareness about Qatar and the people living in this rapidly growing, diverse and multicultural country.
Zunira has been taking part in social activities since her school days and been active in hosting different debates, competitions and other programmes. The surprising fact is that she has never faced a camera before, but she is confident she can pull it off.
“Yes, it would be my first (such) experience, but I think I have enough experience of hosting programmes of public participation and have faced audiences before. I am actually excited about it,” says Zunira.
She takes her inspiration for hosting a talk show from Nadia Khan, a Pakistani anchor who has been hosting popular TV shows on different channels in Pakistan.
“She is a trendsetter. I have always admired her shows. I like her style, her way of interviewing people and interacting with guests. She, too, had started from Dubai in a similar private production show and achieved great success,” says the soon-to-be-host.
Zunira also admires the popular American TV show host and producer Oprah Winfrey.
Zunira has chosen You Tube, the popular social networking site as her medium, because she feels the future of broadcast industry belongs to the world of Internet. Studies suggest people prefer using their phones for all their information needs, so much so that they do not watch TV for days.
“I myself have not switched on TV for I do not know how many days. We even watch the drama serials on You Tube. And secondly, it can reach more people than a TV-based talk show which has a certain audience,” reasons Zunira.
The format of the show is such that she would invite people from different walks of life to talk about their life experiences or projects. It might be people who have rendered great services to the members of their communities here in Doha.
Then, there are stories of great successes, struggles and sacrifices. “We would give a platform through our programme for such stories to reach a larger audience. It would also give an opportunity to people who would want to showcase their talent to the world,” she adds.  
Following a Q&A format, the show host would ask the guests about their lives, ideas and work. It would relate to their past, present and future. The format is such that there can be space to invite two or three guests on a single topic.
Zunira says the show would have two episodes every month. This would allow people to approach her and for her to do research properly.
Before every programme, she would share with the audiences the name of the personality appearing on the show and his or her portfolio. Then, she would ask people to send questions they want to ask the guest’s.
“We would include all such relevant questions in the programme. And I am sure there would be a lot of people wanting to ask a lot of questions,” says Zunira, beaming.
She says getting guests on the show would not be difficult. The Pakistani personally knows many people and then, she says, people here are always connected so it is not difficult to reach them.
The programme would be telecast in both English and Urdu/Hindi. She has not restricted it to a single language. It would be in the language of the guest appearing on the show as it is not restricted to or targeted at one specific community or group. It is open for all.
“There are so many good stories from all the communities living here in Qatar that need highlighting. For instance, I think there are people in the Filipino community in Doha who are doing a lot of good work for their people and it needs to be shared with others,” says Zunira.
“We would invite people from all communities to our show. It is an awareness programme and would be all inclusive,” she adds.
Zunira also plans to publish a newsletter about every episode of the show that would be uploaded on Twitter and other social networking platforms.
“It would be a platform like others for people to market their products or to demonstrate their talent. There are many young musicians, for examples, who are always looking for such a stage from where they can connect with people,” says the host of What’s Up Doha.
Similarly, there are associations and forums that are doing some substantial work for local communities here. They all would get a chance to market themselves, she adds.
The talk show would be produced under the banner of Zest Studios Doha — a platform that promotes upcoming talent in any field related to entertainment, news, current affairs, social work, music and cultural activities.
They have already arranged for a studio at a four-star hotel. A professional team of technical staff, including the cameraman and the research/co-ordination assistant are already on it.
She says they are using a combination of four to five cameras, including the gib cameras to shoot the programme and then they have equipment for digital mixing and processing of the show.
Zunira plans on marketing the show through social media mostly. In the longer run, once it has a bigger viewership, she might also employ other means of marketing. “We are planning it in the form of seasons with six episodes in a season of three months, for instance. We are also targeting different sponsors as well who would get air-time during the show. We would keep space for advertisements to run on the show during the breaks just like it happens on TV,” she says.
Zunira is also planning to link her show with Web TV. She says she is targeting the Internet-based audience. “Everyone has smart phones these days and I think it is even bigger in Doha here,” she quips.