J&K: Blockade forces many to postpone weddings

SRINAGAR: The sky is a brilliant blue. The sun is sympathetic. But as one steps out of the under-construction Srinagar airport, one can sense unease in the air. There is no taxi at the airport. Even the houseboat and hotel reservation counters are empty.
But Ashiq Ali is determined to be happy. The 29-year-old mechanical engineer, who runs an international metal trading business in Bahrain, has come to his hometown for ten days to get married.It isn't easy getting married in Srinagar these days. Since Kashmir has been back on the boil, wedding cancellations are common. Locals estimate around 800-1,000 marriages have been postponed due to the recent spiral of violence.
August is part of the peak wedding season in these parts. Kashmiri weddings are well-known for elaborate wazwan feasts. Locals say it is pretty regular for around 500 kgs of mutton to be cooked and consumed during a single wedding. The feast means amiable employment to many mutton sellers and hundreds of cooks who work in groups of 20-30.
Mutton seller Mohammed Ashraf says that at least 25 clients cancelled their orders since last week. But this has been a season of cancellations. Local newspapers have carried stories on it. Local television channel tickers announce it.
But Ashiq Ali is keen not to cancel his wedding. He has come for 10 days and doesn't want to alter his plans. In fact, there are four more weddings in his family in the coming days.
However, he points out, that amidst the violence and the death, the fun has gone out of weddings. "In normal circumstances, many relatives would have come to the airport to welcome a would-be-bridegroom like me. But with the recent curfew and violence they have avoided coming," he says, "In fact, many relatives from nearby districts won't be turning up for the marriage."
With the deaths due to police firing, his elder brother says, there is no mood for celebration. "We had initially planned to invite at least 500 people. Now that would be down to 200," he says. "My friends from Bahrain, Delhi and Bangalore are not coming," Ashiq Ali says. He is keeping his finger crossed. "I hope everything passes off smoothly," he says.