On the day of the wedding ceremony, the bridegroom, dressed like a sultan in a turban with a floral veil (sehra) tied on the forehead, leads the marriage procession to the bride's house.

The groom stops at the mosqueto offer prayers and seek the blessing of Allah. The groom is attended throughout the wedding by a serbala, the youngest boy in the family, usually a sister's son. The family gifts money as salami to the groom for good luck. He and the serbala are then fed laddu, a sweet food made from chickpeas, sugar and butter, immediately before departing for the marriage ceremony.

The Muslim Wedding Ceremony

The nikah or marriage service usually takes place at the bride's home. The groom and serbala are garlanded on their entry at the bride's home. The bride's brother offers the groom hot sweetened milk, or sherbet, as a gesture of a sweet start to his married life. The Qazi or law officer conducts marriage, by reading from the Koran. Two men are appointed as witnesses on the groom's behalf to receive orders for the nikah from the the bride's family. The elders of the two families negotiate the amount of mehar (compulsory amount of money given to the bride's family by the groom's family).

The bride and groom sit separately during their marriage, possibly on opposite sides of the room. The bride's father and two witnesses ask the bride if she agrees to the marriage, after which the Qazi asks the groom if he has agreed. After both agree, the Qazi completes the nikahnama, the Muslim marriage certificate.

The Wedding Reception

After the civil and religious ceremonies, a reception follows at the bride's parent's house. The groom's family hosts another reception to honour and welcome the new bride called the Dawat-e-walima.