U Can't Touch This

After topping Alishba's nikkah off with a six-hour snooze, Nick got his first taste of a Pakistani mehndi. This is a racous, celebratory event that, so far, has borne the most conceptual resemblance to an American wedding (music, food, dancing). The rest of it blows our weddings right out of the water.


As with their nikkah, Samia and Jawad's mehndi was held at Samia's parents' home. We walked in the front gate and were totally blown away by the setup: a huge purple velvet tent with Chinese lanterns and lush seating arrangements taking up their entire yard. [Nick says: Brendan, Bill, Damian and I could have knocked it out, GR-style, in two days -- but it would not have been fun.]
































The lamp? Made of fresh flowers. And there were easily a dozen inside the tent. MADNESS!



Before the mehndi (usually the preceeding day), the bride, her friends and female relatives will have henna applied to their hands and feet. Here's a shot of Samia. This work took five hours, and is done entirely freestyle without templates or guides. [Nick to Brendan: Could you have done this?]

After dinner, the center of the tent is cleared and everyone sits down for the main draw of the night: a good old-fashioned Justin Timberlake-style danceoff between the bride's side and the groom's side. The groups will hold dance practice for roughly a month, and although we saw the groom get dragged out onto the floor a few times, it's all for the newlyweds' entertainment.

After about an hour of choreographed dancing (note to self: bring the video camera next time!), the entire gang got in on the fun. We recognized lots of Desi remixes of American songs, including Pretty Woman and My Love.


And of course, the requisite family photos -- since we all underwent costume changes!








L-R: Nick, cousin Farrah, niece/2nd cousin Raiza, cousin Saira, half-sister Malika and stepmom Rabia.