Asian Weddings: An Explosive Fusion of Art & Tradition in Leicester

Asian weddings thrive on the concepts of sparkle, color, and extravaganza. The festivities run from a three-day intimate wedding function to a fortnight of unending celebrations. Each and every element and step of our wedding pays homage to deeply rooted cultural, religious, and regional beliefs. The palate of solid hues, shimmering attires, and flashy makeup at Indian weddings symbolizes different meanings. For instance, shades of yellows, oranges, and greens are mostly used in Pakistani Mehndi functions, indicating a blessed beginning of the marital union and attracting good omens. Red is mostly worn by the bride on Baraat/Rukhsati, which is a symbol of love, passion, and virility.

Sari, Lehenga, Gharara, and Sharara are the most commonly worn wedding attire for ladies. Similarly, flowers mean a great deal in our cultural weddings, and they hold great significance on each day of the wedding festivity too. Marriage halls, homes, and even the bride is adorned with yellow flowers like marigolds, yellow roses, and chrysanthemums during pre-wedding ceremonies like Mehndi, Mayun/Ubtan/Haldi, or Dholki.

Red roses and white tuberoses are decked across the wedding venue on Reception/Rukhsati or Bidai, showcasing a tale of love sealing with passion. Even the wedding vehicle i.e. the bridal car is ornamented with wedding flowers and ribbons. Pakistani weddings are an epitome of grandeur and elegance which is mirrored in each activity they hold and every element they include in their festivities, ranging from a wide variety of scrumptious wedding feasts, wedding gifts, jewelry, ornaments, décor, etc.

 Everything You Need To Know About Asian Weddings From the Eyes of an Asian Wedding Photographer

All Subcontinental regional weddings are similar because the traditions, customs, parampara and legacies of such weddings are common. With minor exceptions, each wedding event and day consist of integral rasams and rituals that are a part of the Indo-Pak marriages and their shared heritage.

Asian Wedding Photography in Leicester: A Sneak-Peak of How a Pakistani Wedding is Commenced

A Pakistani Wedding typically runs 3-5 days long (or longer, depending on the number of events). The main events are Engagement, Mehndi, Barat, and Walima. Although Islam emphasizes two events only; Nikkah i.e. the official, legal and halal way to get married, and Walima i.e. the wedding feast for close friends and relatives, it is also the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad PBUH to announce the happening of marriage with a banquet, expressing His pleasure and gratitude. However, Pakistanis have devised some cultural add-ons, some of them are influenced by Indian customs while most of them are a traditional legacy.

A Pakistani wedding prequel starts with a marriage proposal, typically from the groom’s side, when the elders of the family formally ask for the girl’s hand in marriage. When the proposal gets accepted by the bride’s family it is called baat pakki. A small celebration is carried out including the exchange of sweets and gifts, symbolizing a generous and blessed start to the union of two souls. Such intimate moments are beautifully captured by our skilled photographers. As these events are very private, they don’t run more than 3 hours long. To encompass more moments in less time is an art, and it is delivered rightly by our team!

A Religious Element is Important:

After baat pakki, most religious families hold a day of Dua-e-Khair, or Milaad, to seek blessings from Allah Almighty and hold a collective prayer for a happy, healthy, fertile, and prosperous life for the couple-to-be. This event is kept simple and decent to respect the sacredness of God’s words. Surahs are recited, Quran is read, and food is distributed among the poor to please God. Families exchange sweets and delicacies on this day. The sanctity of this pious day is prevailed by our respected team of photographers and videographers, as no music is allowed on this day so the thrill is kept at bay.

Some families take it a bit further and arrange a formal event of engagement, which includes the exchange of rings from the bride’s side of the family as well as the groom’s side, officially changing their status from him/her to fiancé/fiancée. Our team encapsulates all moments from the engagement so later you don’t miss out to see the giddy expressions, the charismatic smiles, the candid eye contact, and relive your best moments all over again!

Let the Fun Begin!

After the engagement, wedding dates are fixed. From then and onwards bride’s side of the family holds a small bachelorette party known as the Dholki ceremony, where close relatives and friends of the bride gather around with a folkloric musical instrument called dholak, and merrily sing cultural songs called tappay. Dholki typically runs every day from formal engagement to the wedding day or is only conducted for a day or two before mayun or mehndi. Mayun is also known as Ubtan or Haldi ceremony which proceeds a few days before the wedding.

This day is yellow-themed, where the bride and sometimes the groom have segregated events. For segregated events, we arrange a team of female photographers and videographers for your comfort and ease. Best captures only happen when you get to be yourself! We aesthetically click moments where the couple-to-be is laughing whilst being smeared with a paste called haldi or ubtan, which is made from base ingredients of haldi (turmeric) baisan (gram flour) chandan (sandalwood powder), and rosewater.

This ceremony holds great cultural importance as the ubtan concoction is considered a detoxifying agent both metaphorically and physically. It gives the bride a golden glow and the groom a radiance to look their best on their wedding day. This ceremony brings a wave of joy and laughter because not only does it provide healthy skin benefits before the main event, rather it is considered a fun activity before the solemn proceedings of marriage and rukhsati, and we tend to encapsulate that with the best of our abilities!

Asian Traditional Wedding Songs “Geets” and Modern Beats:

The next event is usually considered the most invigorating and refreshing day out of all wedding festivities; the vibrant day of Mehndi. A warm color palette is the main trope of this day including hues of yellows, oranges, greens, pinks, and purples. The bride is festooned with phoolon ka zewar (flower jewelry), and typically wears a lehnga choli, gharara, or shalwar kameez with gotta patti work. Typically, all pre-wedding celebrations (before nikkah) are segregated, and for that our female photography team is ready to be dispatched to your service.

The bride is usually brought in with a kaam-wala-dupatta, which is a heavily embroidered piece of cloth embellished with sequence, gota, crystals, laces, etc. It is usually an heirloom from her maternal side of the family. The dupatta is held over the bride’s head by her sisters, friends, or cousins. The rest of her kin holds trays of mehndi with diya (oil lamps), sweet delicacies, fragrant hair oils, flower gajras, and kaanch ki chooriyaan (glass bangles). The bridal procession reaches the stage, the Dulhan is seated on a couch decorated with flowers and her family and friends proceed with the rasams and rituals.

The bride’s hands and feet are tattooed with henna, her head is massaged with oils, and her mouth is stuffed with sweets! Not a moment slips by our eye and we tenderly tuck in each moment for your keep-sake! The event starts with songs, tappay, dholak beats, and modern mixes. Groom’s friends and family indulge in vigorous bhangra while the bride’s friends and sisters do luddi, you might want to see which side delivered a better performance on this day, for that we got you covered! We film all dances with their soulful rhythm and confine the essence of each move.

This day is a blend of modern and traditional music, art, and dance. Usually, dhol walay is invited for the ultimate wedding drum that thrills the guests to another degree of excitement. The day usually ends with a mouth-watering and hefty wedding feast featuring halwa puri, gol gappay, haleem naan, daal chawal, nihari, live barbeque, zarda, jaleebi, and showstopper aka meetha paan. This wedding banquet is the star of any big fat Indian wedding film!

A Solemn Reality and a Tale of Fantasy:

Baraat is considered the most important event of a Muslim wedding as it constitutes two major happenings; one being Nikah and the other Rukhsati. This event is mostly organized by the bride’s family. Before leaving the house to fetch the bride, the groom’s father or elder does a ritual called Sehra Bandi, where a turban is wrapped around his head and his bhabhis (sisters-in-law) swipe his eyes with kohl (coal) to ward off bad omens. These significant yet poignant moments don’t escape the lens of the camera, we capture the soul of the show and save it forever.

After these pre-wedding rituals, the groom along with his family arrive at the wedding venue where they are greeted by sisters, cousins, and friends of the bride who shower them with rose petals. The delicate flowers caressing the faces of the groom and his family is a sight to behold! The rest of the bride’s family is usually holding flower garlands to put on the groom’s family, where an intimate moment is captured and promises within the eyes are exchanged. The groom is then led to the stage where he sits and waits for the nikah to proceed.

Dulha’s (groom) attire mostly consists of Sherwani with Qulla and Khussa, or Shalwar Qameez with a waistcoat. The bride usually wears a heavily embellished red and gold Lehenga with gold jewelry. She keeps Dupatta over her head and a bindiya and jhoomar or matha patti to adorn her forehead. We make sure to capture the most meticulous detail because “Shaadi ek baar hoti hai” (marriage happens only once) and we do not want to let any moment or element escape. Till Nikah, the bride stays in a separate room with her family and friends, and once it’s done, she is led by her parents on stage to sit next to the groom, our proficient team of female photographers capture the nikah proceedings in the bridal room.

Nikah is the most emotional moment for a bride and her family, where she and the groom sign a marital contract and verbally articulate “Qubool hai” (I do) three times to seal their statuses from bachelor to being married man and wife. After nikah, boxes or pouches of sweet treats are distributed among all guests and relatives to celebrate the blissful union of the couple. These delicacies are called “Bidd”, they mostly consist of dried dates, candied fennels, rice crispies, almonds, coconut, etc. This is the first formal function of a wedding that is exhibited step-by-step as well as spontaneously.

After the arrival of the bride, her sisters, cousins, and friends perform a number of entertaining wedding rituals from doodh pilai to joota chupai, and bag some monetary rewards like cash or jewelry items for that. This is one of the most enthralling, enticing, and exciting rituals of Barat, again capturing it from every angle is the job of the expert of the field, who has knowledge of perspective and a creative sight to squeeze these jovial moments into one frame.

Next comes the time of a scrumptious and delectable feast that is the “ronaq” of marriage, and we kid you not, half of the Pakistani awaam attends the wedding solely for food! The wedding banquet mainly constitutes of mouthwatering dishes of palak gosht, chicken korma, steam roast, chicken tikka, seekh kebab, pulao, naan, and salads.

Gajar ka halwa is the most popular dessert in a Pakistani wedding in winters, and kheer or fruit trifle in summers. After this elaborate dinner comes the most difficult time for the bride and her family, aka the time of her departure; Rukhsati. Eyes laden with tears, hearts beating with longing, chest heavy with the yearning for the beloved daughter, who is baba ki raani, ammi ki Saheli (friend), her sister’s bestie, her brother’s support system.

The wedding vehicle awaits outside to escort the newly-wed couple towards the home of the groom. Our cameramen are trained to capture each tight hug, each fallen tear, each solemn expression, each hearty smile, and each bright smile! For us, each instance counts when it is captured at the right minute, so you will be able to recall and do a little catharsis over the moments of the union as well as parting.

Finally, it is done!

The final event of a Pakistani wedding is Walima, which is an integral component of martial alliance in Islam. Walima is mostly arranged by the groom or his family to announce his wedding consummation, and he arranges a wedding feast to showcase his gratitude. It is also a formal event with a delicate and soft vibe. The bride mostly flaunts a maxi or lehenga in pastel and neutral colors and the groom usually rocks a tuxedo. It all comes to a good end when the newlyweds embark on their journey towards a happy, healthy, and successful marriage life.

We usually advise to capture these beautiful moments in broad daylight as sun rays create a kaleidoscope of colors, bursting with a vibrancy that adds life to the mundaneness of the function After walima, it is customary for the bride and groom to visit the bride’s parent’s house. The groom leaves his sparkling new bride for a day or two at her parent’s place, then brings her back.

The day when the groom comes back to fetch his wife is called Muklawa, it is done in a relatively less grandeur, our team of female photographers is up for this job as well.

All’s Well That Ends Well:

The events that proceed after walima are either very intimate like Muklawa or very exhilarating like Qawali Night. Qawali night is an evening of mystical music and sufi tunes, where qawwal (qawwali singers) put a trance on the audience through the magic of harmonium and the sensual sufi songs. This night is all about glamour, glitters, good food, and a good mood! The shy bride and excited groom love to keep the attention all to themselves on this day as well, and we give it to them!

We capture the mysticism, sufism, and soulfulness of the qawwali night, making the colors sparkle under the moon’s glory with our keen eye and craftsmanship of clicking away all beautiful moments. Of course, we don’t undermine the presence of the guests, the family, and the star of the show, “the qawwals”, who are typically showered with currency notes as they create hype by showcasing their sur and taal.

Pakistani weddings are all about elegance, joy, and extravaganza! Again, the procession of events depends on how luxurious or lavish a couple wants it to go. If you are a Pakistani trying to find some Pakistani Wedding Photographers in Leicester, we are more than willing to provide you with the best of services, you will not regret choosing us!

A Sweet Experience with Loveliest Clients:

Covering a Pakistani wedding in Leicester is always a pleasure to uphold, even more so when our clients become our family and trust us to handle the biggest day of their lives and deliver cinematic services to the best of our abilities. We have known the uncertainty that comes with choosing a wedding photographer who might resonate with the client’s needs and wants. It is indeed hard to find photographers and videographers in the UK that don’t undermine the sanctity of wedding rituals and understand how to capture the soul of a wedding.

Clients with a Pakistani background are most fun, loving, and easy people to work with. We tend to make a friend with our patrons, making them comfortable to share all their expectations and requirements that they seek from our team of photographers and videographers. With their hopes and thoughts laid on the page, we carve a way where their dream wedding photoshoot is done, leaving them happy and satisfied.

Our customers hold meetings regarding some pre-wedding planning in terms of finding the perfect wedding venue that suits their needs. It takes up to months to organize everything from catering to dress and makeup trials to photography and filmmaking. TLG team makes it their maxim to accommodate our valued clients and offer them the best support and photography facilities that they seek, making us the most credible and proficient Asian Wedding Photographers in Leicester.