Inside the Iman Ali-Babar Aziz Bhatti wedding
Celebrity guests included Farhan Saeed, Urwa Hocane and Alizeh Gabol
Early this year, we broke the news of Iman Ali getting engaged. Last week, the supermodel and actor officially tied the knot with her beau, Babar Aziz Bhatti, in what proved to be the ‘star’ wedding of the season. #Baiman was trending on social media.
The run-up to Ali’s big day was marked by a series of ceremonies — dholki, mayun, and shehndi — that have become part and parcel of modern-day Pakistani weddings.
The ‘Shehndi’, which is ‘shaadi’ (wedding) combined with ‘mehendi’ (pre-wedding event), and an equivalent of ‘Sangeet’ (dance and music pre-wedding event) in traditional Hindu weddings, was the highlight of the week-long affair.
The venue had been decked up in marigolds and chandeliers, courtesy of noted event manager ‘Qasim Yar Tiwana’ (aka QYT).
Ali looked radiant in a bright mustard lehenga-choli, designed by her longtime friend Mehdi, which she had paired with bottle-green bangles and a choker.
While the celebrity guests including Farhan Saeed, Urwa Hocane and Alizeh Gabol, took their turns to dance on popular Bollywood numbers, the temperature inside the wedding hall shot up as the bride stepped forward and shook a leg on ‘Deewani Mastani’ (from ‘Bajiro Mastani’).
The bridegroom wasn’t one to lag behind, and joined in the performances animatedly. Also spotted were Ali Zafar and his wife Ayesha, Sarwat Gillani, Nilofer Shahid, Shahzad Raza, HSY, Mehdi, Umair Jaswal, Qasim Ali Mureed, Iffat Rahim, Uzma Khan and Munib Nawaz.
It all culminated in a grand Walima reception at Bhatti’s lavish farmhouse on Bedian Road, Lahore.