My beautiful sister, Hijabee in DC, had a post concerning family and it talked about a certain Hindi movie- I used to watch them ALL the time and my first intro to Bollywood films was thru my husband (wasn't the hubby then) and being as sweet as he is, MashaAllah, he translated the entire movie, Devdas.
When I thought of Devdas, I thought about the weekend we got married and how I ran around looking for a beautiful lehenga that I knew would please my hubby... now of course, I'm not Desi but I knew it would bring a smile to his face to see me dressed in the traditional garment of his culture... and he had no idea!
So, if any of you know anything about New York, the best place to shop for traditional bridal wear is in a place (area) called Jackson Heights in Queens- you can always go there and find brides and their sisters and Moms checking out lehenga cholis, salwar kameez and saris... all heavily beaded and quite exquisite! Now, me being a big girl and tall, the quest wasn't an easy one as most bridal shops carry no sleeve, cap sleeves, mid section exposed, back out lehengas- and not in ample plus sizes! I didn't want to go the salwar kameez way- felt funny with wearing pants to the masjid... so I searched and searched until I found the perfect one!
I ended up with a VERY beautiful soft powder blue one nicely beaded with long sleeves- it was meant to be! I thought of my husband's face when he would see me- and it made the mad hunt worth it!
We were married on a Friday after prayers and there was a nice gathering at the nikkah- then we went home to a few friends and family to have a nice lunch. We had established before we married we wouldn't get crazy with the expenses (it's not like we were 18 anyway... lol) so we could put alot of money to the side for something else. My walimah was the next day- and it was fabulous, MashaAllah! I left home hours before him to go to the mall in Long Island to have my makeup done at M.A.C. and I took my dupatta so they could see what I was wearing to use complimentary colors on my chocolate brown skin... and the end result? Simply stunning if I say so myself, MashaAllah... it all turned out better than expected!
When I arrived at the masjid, everything was in place in the sister's section and the guests was arriving in a steady stream and next thing you know, the place was packed! Everyone had a wonderful time and my family and friends (who are all Non-Muslims) had a great time as well... you should've seen everyone's face when they saw me! It was nice to play "dress up" since we can't do such things everyday... but we sisters have worn ours lehengas to our all-girl Eid get-togethers- all of us modelling our finest Desi wear... I'm gonna miss that *sigh*
Later that day when my hubby wanted to speak to me, I met him by a door and when I opened it he said, "Wow..... MashaAllah!"- and it made the running around in the freezing cold worth every second! I'm obviously not Pakistani but I was his Pakistani bride that day- only a chocolate version! I thank Allah (SWT) for my hubby... he was my friend, introduced me to Islam and became my other half... what more can a girl ask for?
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