Celebrating Friendship and Togetherness at My Friend’s Wedding Ceremony

I live in a village in the Kashmir Valley, and here we live as a society. We have strong ties with our neighbours, and the whole village lives as a unit. Right from my childhood days, I have been living beside my friends, who have also been my classmates. The connection has grown so strong that now we cannot even imagine a life without each other. Considering the amount of time and the memories we have spent together, we will stay together for long. We celebrate each other’s moments with great energy and enthusiasm, and we always relate these things to our own lives.

A few months ago, one of my friends got married. He had gone through a lot in his life over the past six to seven years, as he lost his mother, his father became quite senile, and his sisters got married off. Now he was living only with his father and had to rely upon him because his father undertook all the household chores that made their life sustainable. My friend runs a grocery shop where he earns his livelihood. It was actually an ordeal his father was experiencing. Eventually, the stage came when my friend had to get married. Looking at the problems they were facing at home, getting married wasn’t a choice but an obligation and necessity at this stage of his life.

It was back in August when my friend was to get married, and during all those preparations, I was a little involved because many arrangements had to be made, and I had to provide my car for them. It was a responsibility on my shoulders, and I had never done something so meaningful for him before. As we have been living together and sharing our happy and sad moments, I felt that if I wasn’t available for my friend at such a crucial time, I would be of no use. All of my friends were together in those days, and we went shopping, bought different items, and purchased clothes for ourselves to look good at the event.

Eventually, the day came when he had to get hitched. We were quite excited, and right from day one, we enjoyed our time together at our friend’s place. As he didn’t have enough people to look after various matters, we were always there to help him with arrangements, ensuring the guests were served well and the ceremony was conducted according to the norms we have set as a society. It was a happy day for my friend, not only for him but also for his sisters and father.

The ceremony was held on the 16th and 17th of August. On the 16th, it was “Mehndi Raat,” which is meant for applying henna on one of the groom’s fingers. It is a special time when relatives gather around, sing songs, offer greetings, express happiness, and participate in various traditional rituals. My friend was quite emotional that evening as he missed his mother deeply. Not only he, but the people around him also became emotional. We, as his close friends, tried to console and comfort him, and eventually, the evening ended on a happy note before we went to rest.

As we were all together, we barely slept, as usual whenever we met. We spent the whole night talking, sharing memories, and cracking jokes. Toward the end of the night, we finally slept, and very early in the morning, we woke up. It was the actual wedding day — the day my friend was going to tie the knot with his fiancée. It was also the day when guests were served the special Kashmiri cuisine, “Wazwan.” Huge arrangements had to be made, and again we were there to complete the tasks before the serving function began.

It was a late lunch; I had mine around 3:30 PM. Afterward, I went home to make arrangements for the “Nikah,” which is the Islamic ceremony of marriage. I left my car at a service station to be washed and cleaned because I had to carry my friend in that car. Around 8 PM, we left for the bride’s house, reaching there in about an hour, and the actual marriage ceremony began. After an hour, we had our food there, and then the bride was escorted out. Everyone gathered to see the couple off, and it was an emotional moment for the bride’s family. My friend, on the other hand, was excited, as it was his special day.

When we started toward our place, according to our long-standing tradition, women sang songs before the car for quite a distance — about 200 to 300 meters — which slowed our movement out of the colony to the main road. It was around 12:30 AM when we finally reached home, and thus, the marriage ceremony of my friend came to an end.

Thank you for going through my post. Have a great time ahead.