Ain had always dreamt of a man who’d be halal, i.e. genuine, warm and accepting of her. Sarmad too had a dream woman in his mind – someone down to earth, simple, and not materialistic. It was a sheer stroke of destiny how these two, who had met at the birthday party of a mutual friend during college, kept in touch and separated, only to meet again, years later!

Though Sarmad had shown his interest in Ain during college itself, she had remained focused on her studies and the distance grew them apart. Flash forward to a few years later, a friend asks Ain about Sarmad’s marital status for herself, which leads to Ain inquiring him. The two get talking, sparks fly and they decide to get married in turn!

When we received the news of them getting hitched, we were beyond thrilled. This meant covering another wedding in the valley, after Ain’s sister, Hafsa’s Wedding, which we had covered four years ago and kept in touch with them ever since. From then on, Ain loved our work, always encouraging us and stating that when it would be her turn to marry, she’d definitely hire us. And true to her words, she did!

We were in Kashmir during the communication shutdown situation, we were challenged. Nonetheless, we persevered and witnessed, as well as captured, a beautifully done Kashmiri Wedding. Following is their love story, in shots. Before you scroll down to check them out, catch some glimpses of the god’s paradise that is Kashmir!

You might have noticed that we put up a picture of Ain’s decked-up home in the post as well. That’s because the beautifully decorated home with its humongous size and architecture had us so bowled out that we couldnt help but be awed. Legend has it that homes like these can accomodate close to 200 people in the living room itself! For this very reason, we couldn’t resist capturing it and decided to let you have a look as well!The wedding, or Nikah, took place in the evening at Moghal Mahal. It was an Asalatan Nikah, which meant that the bride and all her female relatives were on one side while the groom and all his male relatives were on the other with a curtain placed between the two as a partition.  Ain’s entry was marked with Wanwun, which were traditional folk songs sung by the womenfolk in the room, to honor the occasion. The Qazi recited Quranic verses, asked for the consent from both sides and then prayed for the newlyweds.  Looking back, we realize that our bride’s wedding ensemble was nothing short of artwork! Ain was truly pretty as a picture in an ensemble that was encrusted with beads, pearls, and sequins. She paired the cream-colored outfit beautifully with stunning blue jewelry set, complete with meenakari and polki work. Just as handsome was our groom Sarmad, who wore a black sherwani and grey churidars, accessorized with an embroidered pashmina with intricate Kalamkaari work and a grey sehra. The final Ceremony, called Satim Doh was held on the seventh day of the wedding. For this occasion, Ain wore a teal blue gharara with a lemon-colored dupatta, hand-embroidered in zari and dabka work. Sarmad went with a deep bottle-green kurta from Vikas Makhija with white churidars and a printed Nehru jacket. Guests from the bride’s family were invited over for a feast at the groom’s house and Wazwan was served here as well. Scroll down to see this beautiful wedding set 🙂