Mass wedding ceremony: An economical mode of marriage.

KARACHI -- The joyful feelings on faces of eighty newly wedded couples were worth watching who were about to enter into a new phase of life during a mass wedding ceremony held last week in the city.

A collective wedding or mass wedding referred to a marriage ceremony in which several couples are married at the same time in one venue. It is one of the preferred modes of marriage for economic and social reasons to make the costs of venue, decorations, and celebrations affordable for the low-income families.

In Pakistan, the financial support for such noble cause is often provided either by different charity organizations or individuals to bind the deserving couples into families.

It is not easy to afford the expenses of marriage even for the well-off families in terms of dowry, bedroom accessories, foods and rituals. Therefore, for some parents, it is only a dream to be realized.

However, last Sunday, Pakistan Hindu Council, has made the dream of hundreds of parents possible when it organized an elegant function of mass wedding ceremony for eighty Hindu couples to tie their nuptial knots.

The ambiance wore a festive look while joy was written large on the faces of the decked-up brides and the well-dressed grooms escorted by equally excited parents, relatives and friends.

In order to make the occasion memorable for the guests and new couples, the venue was extensively decorated. It was almost full to its capacity with many invited guests who were ensuring their presence to see the real spirit of the rituals which could otherwise be watched only in movies.

The large number of community members who were reaching the site from cities and towns other than Karachi, turned the event more exceptional with the presence of a sizable number of guests representing Muslim and Christian communities.

Talking to reporter, Ahmed Ali, the next door neighbor of the groom, Preetam, a resident of Ranchore Line said, "We are here to extend our good wishes to the newly wedded couples."

Member of the National Assembly, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, Dr. Ramesh Kumar Vankwani, the man behind the initiative, said, primarily the idea was to facilitate those couples who were unable to arrange the ceremony due to resource constraints as it involved extensive rituals.

He said, "The most righteous act was to help the couples who could not afford the charges of wedding ceremonies to tie their knot." Like any other religion, marriage was an important component of dharam...