Blind imitations burden today's groom

April 10 - Evolution and progress in life are inevitable, and it touches all aspects of life, including wedding trends. It is not only the way of meeting the spouse that has changed, but even wedding details have taken a totally different path due to globalisation, the Internet and mixed cultures. In the past, preparations for the wedding were simple. A small amount of money was paid by the groom’s family to the bride’s side to equip their daughter for the big day. Weddings used to be held inside houses or suburbs and guests were served with home-made food, which were only rice and meat. Once the engagement was announced, women of the family had the task of telling people about it and the date of the wedding. All this has changed now. Blind imitation and love of appearances have put extra burden on the groom’s shoulders. “Instead of only dowry, now there is the bride’s gifts which come in big mandoos; large local wooden containers (now available in metal as well), filled with clothes, shoes, bags, accessories and even pieces of gold jewellery. In most cases, four to five mandooses are given as gifts to the bride along with the dowry, costing an extra three to four thousand rials. Even the invitation methods have changed. Phone calls have given way to specially designed cards with groom’s and bride’s names,” Laila al Maqrishi, a critic, said. “Engagement parties are no more held in houses among family and friends. They are now held in big halls, being pretty much costly as the wedding itself. Wearing traditional clothes in this important occasion is old news now. As every girl wants to be a queen on her day, they are not concerned about the price of the dress. From RO 250 to RO 300, dresses of today cost from RO 800 to RO 2,000,” she continued. As far as food matters are concerned, people look at traditional meals served in weddings today (rice and meat) as stinginess on their host’s part. For that, big buffets costing thousands of rials are a must. “Wedding details used to be captured with a normal camera by any one of the family’s members. Nowadays, a full crew of professional cameramen is booked to film the big day. Not to mention the priceless decoration of the hall, which is done by wedding planners,” Afraa Ahmed, a student, commented. To add a generous touch to the event, perfumes, chocolate, body lotions and frankincense are given to guests to make the wedding memorable. “A friend told me once that she attended a wedding where they distributed gold necklaces to the attendees. It is crazy,” she said.