1. Home
2. Front Page

Kashmiri weddings turn grand, bring revenue

BISMAH MALIK. Dated: 7/12/2012 11:59:35 PM

SRINAGAR, July 12: Alongside, a good tourism season Kashmir valley is witnessing a booming wedding spell generating huge profits for related businesses.
Weddings in the valley have picked up since past few weeks especially when the month of Ramadan draws close.
The rush for weddings is also due to the delay and postponement in the marriages which were slated to happen during Dastageer Sahib’s shrine fire incident.
Consequently, the businesses related to marriages are earning huge profits with rates in almost all commodities and services having gone up.
An average wedding celebrated costs anywhere between Rs 10- 15 lakhs which seems to be going beyond the budget of a common man.
Right from food preparations, elite Shamiyanas, tailor- made buffets, catering services, the musician teams and even the security -the weddings in Kashmir are seeing a sea change in terms of trends as well as the budget.
Experts opine that the way weddings in Kashmir are approaching a show off and high budgetary mode, it does not seem to cast a positive impression on an average middle class or limited financial resourced family.
Furthermore, the societal pressures put more constraints on families who wish to go for low profile weddings.
A common metaphor which one hears is – What are people going to say? As if, that particular wedding is the first and last parameter on the basis of which
the societal pressures add to the worries of people who wish to organize simple weddings.
“What are you going to tell your relatives, neighbours who usually look forward to lavish weddings. It is usually the host, who has to bear the huge monetary expenditures and even run into debts. There is no escaping. You either follow the societal norm or you are an outcast,” a wedding planner says.
The earlier government set rules regarding a limited course meal in Wazwan as well as observing austere weddings seem to have gone for a toss.
“That concept has pretty much failed now as the people seem to be in a mood to spend whatever money they have got on weddings. After all, it is a point of prestige for everyone,” Muhammad Sadiq, who has his wedding coming up expresses.
There have been some add-ons from Punjabi and Pakistani cultures too which make the Kashmiri weddings flashier and expensive.
There has been for instance fixation of marriage halls as venues, splendid lightning, music and sound arrangements, hiring specialised catering services instead of local chefs (Wazas) which have only added to the splendor.
“In these times, marriage is only about affordability. Hence, if one could afford all the luxuries, he could afford a Kashmiri wedding too,” the wedding planner holds.