What Makes Pakistani Weddings So Enjoyable?
Being a Pakistani means having a lot of emotions, traditions, and cultures, especially when it comes to a Muslim wedding ceremony. The marriage season in Pakistan is considered the best time for everyone to have fun with family and everyone around.
Have you ever encountered Muslim traditions? If yes, you must have an idea of how they gather everyone together. The Pakistani traditions and customs come back from the subcontinent, and thus, are conventional yet super-fun. Out of all these, a marriage ceremony is the happiest event, not only for the couple but also for the entire family.
And you know what?
There are many traditions and customs that make Pakistani events a lot more enjoyable than any American Muslim wedding. It is because of the unity and alignment in the feelings and emotions of everyone that makes everything worthy and memorable.
To help you know more about Pakistan and its culture, we have gathered some fun facts to unwind some basic things. So, come on, let's find out why these events are so full of fun, enthusiasm, and excitement.
Customs and Traditions That Make Pakistani Weddings Worthwhile
If we talk about a typical Pakistani family, you should know that a marriage ceremony lasts from 3 to 7 consecutive days. Each day is full of traditions, customs, and exciting events, adding much more to the celebrations. With lots of ceremonies and games, the whole event becomes wholesome and exciting for everyone. If you want to know further about it, here are some prominent features making a Pakistani gathering admirable and fun.
• Bride – The Center of Attention
If you're from the bride's side of the family, she must be the center of attention for everyone in the house ranging from a toddler to a grandparent. Her outfit, jewelry, and henna design bring so much excitement to the bridesmaids. The bride's royal dress preparations start many days, or even, months earlier than the actual marriage day. Almost everyone is usually pretty concerned about the bride. From her outfit to her preparations, dresses, everyone comes forward to help and suggest the best things for her.
Different color combinations are used for the bride's dress to make her look perfect on her big day. Mostly, the color of both groom's and bride's clothes are matched. It makes the colors of Muslim wedding ceremonies pretty vibrant and lovely for everyone in the family. Professional makeup artists are hired to doll up the bride on her big day. Everything about her look is so keenly arranged that there's no space for imperfection.
• Lively Tradition of Dholki
As stated earlier, a Pakistani celebration starts many days before the actual ceremony. Thus, one factor that adds much more fun to the events is the Dholki event. Family members and friends start celebrating the wedding many days before it. They all gather together at the bride's or groom's house, play different games, sing different songs, and perform several dance performances. Usually, the dance practices for the Mehndi (Henna event) are also practiced during these days.
Unlike an American Muslim wedding, people have started celebrating Dholki on a larger scale. They book halls and make floor arrangements with carpets and cushions. Unique dishes are also made for the guests, friends, and family members. Thus, a collaboration of everyone at the event of Dholki brings out several colors and increases the charm of the marriage ceremony.
• Fun at Mayoun/Mehndi
The actual reason for Pakistani marriage ceremonies being so famous around the orb is the fun and rasams (ceremonies) done at this event. This is primarily the function at the bride's side. The close cousins and friends of the bride prepare dance performances for this day. They start practicing their steps many days before the event. Thus, it wouldn't be wrong to say that a Pakistani Muslim marriage is a continuity of events.
The friends and family members gather together and apply mehndi on her hands. They apply this henna on their hands as well. Modern event planners can also name this event the biggest traditional bridal shower for the girl where her friends and family members show their love for her. The color of the bride's mehndi is mainly observed in this event. It is the most fun moment for everyone since the darkness of henna's color is compared to the union between bride and groom in the upcoming married life.
• Dance Practices
In a typical Pakistani Muslim wedding, the dance practices are prominent in all events. These practices are responsible for adding much more fun to the whole environment. Before tying the knot, the couple’s friends and relatives start practicing on different tracks. Mainly, lively and cheerful songs are selected from both families. The majority of the families also hire professional choreographers to make their dance performances top-notch.
Other than Pakistani Muslim weddings, critical competitions are held between the bride's and groom's families in an American Muslim wedding. The cousins and friends perform alternatively on different medleys. These dance performances boost the fun nights of the marriage series both in Pakistan and other countries, where marriages are celebrated in a typical way.
• Dudh Pilai (Drinking Milk) at Barat
In addition to all the fun moments, let us tell you another fantastic yet memorable thing in the Pakistani ceremony. This rasam involves the bride's sisters bargaining in return for unique and rich milk made with love and effort. The groom's sister-in-law presents him with a glass full of milk along with nuts, almonds, etc. In return, the groom is supposed to bless her with gifts and money.
This rasam is mainly done after the Nikkah ceremony. It brings many smiles to the guests present at that moment. This light-hearted bickering brings fun and liveliness to the atmosphere. However, the primary purpose of doing this ceremony is to enhance the love and relationship between the two families.
• Joota Chupai (Hiding the Groom's Shoes)
Another playful Pakistani tradition is stealing the groom's wedding shoes. Usually, the bride's sisters and friends do this. The groom gets played in the jokes and tricks while the girls take his shoes away. It's basically defined as a back-and-forth act among the bride's sisters and groom's posse. A light-hearted tone full of jokes is mainly adapted to negotiate the deals between the two families.
The bride's sisters return the groom's show only when he pays them a certain amount. Girls from the bride's side demand a certain amount of money from the groom. If he approves and handles the decided money, they return his shoe right at that moment. This rasam is also one of the things that make Pakistani Muslim weddings distinguishable from others.
• Aarsi Mashuf
Another cheerful thing that brings colors to the Pakistani celebrations is Aarsi Mashuf or the mirror Rasam. When talking about the origin, it's not a typical Punjabi Rasam but a Sindhi Rasam in Muslim weddings. It brings so much love and affection between the groom and the bride by revealing their first look. A scarf is held both on the bride and groom, and a mirror is placed underneath.
They see each other through that mirror. It creates some romantic yet lively moments for the couple. Seeing each other's reflection through the mirror is pretty overwhelming for the newlywed couple, especially when you see your better half for the first time. In many other Pakistani families, the bride is supposed to cover her face through a thin scarf and take her veil after the Nikkah ceremony. However, every family holds different traditions.
A Quick Wrap Up!
Now that we have discussed the significant fun moments and rasams that make Pakistani gatherings so enjoyable, you must be dying to attend a wedding this season. So, don't delay as a Pakistani marriage can bring the real enjoyable, fun person out of you.