23 Comments
As of 6 p.m., the annual Pakistani mock wedding, Hangama (which translates roughly to “hoopla”), is still going strong on the steps. The “dance floor,” also known as College Walk, is abuzz with Bollywood quick-stepping and colorful saris, and has been since about 4:30, when the groom rolled up in style on a white horse.
The bride, meanwhile, appeared on Low Steps aboard an elaborate palanquin. Once the couple was settled on the matrimonial seat, members of the wedding party showered them in flower petals, adorned them with robes made of money, and stuffed their faces with laddhus and other sweets.
A couple hundred people then clapped and sang along in Hindi and Punjabi for the next two hours as dance groups entertained the mock couple. First, some erstwhile Rais and Khans did a dance number to “Yeh Larki Hai Allah,” then CUBhangra and Raas busted out their competition
moves, the bellydancing troupe entranced all assembled with their gyrations, and the Bollywood dance team Dhoom (Bwog was most surprised to hear it existed!) performed some cute numbers. Finally, drawing cheers and some jeers, two NYU boys and the groom did a choreographed medley of hits from the silver Hindi screen, beginning with a hilarious “Mast Kalandar.” Meanwhile, patrons clamored for dishes from the Chicken and Rice stand, which doesn’t look like it’s going anywhere anytime soon.
Bwog apologizes for the crappy cellphone pictures.
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23 Comments
@alum 07 this is one of the most gorgeous things that ever happens at columbia. i’m so sad i missed it!
@Paki honestly, the different languages are not such a big deal. and the celebration is a way to showcase our culture. a real wedding obviously involves religion and in no way were any religious customs as part of the event. cultural, yes, but not religious.
@Baby Protector Finally, a group of people who don’t eat babies and only kiss them. Now we just have 2 stop everyone else.
@I heard some ignorant white person going into his cell phone “Yeah, there are Indian people everywhere!” as he left his dorm. *headdesk*
@ANONYMOUS first of all, Hangama translate to CHAOS not HOOPLA.
Secondly, it was SHALWAR-KAMEEZ, not saris
Third, the songs were bollywood, but as every south asian knows, the songs mostly use URdu words so that people in Pakistan and Afghanistan can understand it as they have a huge audience from there.
Fourthly, as everybody knows, the two languages can be understand by each other, but are not the same – urdu has persian and arabic words, and a different script while hindi incorporates sanskrit and has a different script. The two languages are similar, but not the same – i would advise u to refer to wikipedia.
I say all this as a native Urdu speaker.
and whoever wrote this article needs to get his facts right.
@psch sanskrit. represent.
@i side with URDU!
@Anonymous ahh..the internet. where a simply typo leads to anger and petty insults.
yeah…hindi’s the language. we know. stop being so sensitive.
@WTF I think it is sacrilege to hold a mock wedding, not to mention . Can’t they find some reason to celebrate?
It’s totally disgusting and disrespectful that they’re faking a wedding.
@ffdd did you just say do you speak hindu? i think you’re really retarded..hindu is a religion not a language dimwit.
@A WRITER OF NOTE Yes, the cart that was there today was totally off its game.
@OPS? The words ‘organization’ and ‘Pakistani’ simply do not fit together in the same sentence.
@honestly I tried the chicken and rice from the famous cart, and was hardly impressed. It was good, but one place on the medical campus is WAY better. it’s right outside the PH building, if anyone cares to take the free shuttle up there and confirm this.
@hmm i believe i’ve eaten at the place you’re referring to, and i prefer 53 & 6th’s stuff. but of course it’s literally a matter of taste.
@A WRITER OF NOTE “The bride was, meanwhile, appeared on Low Steps…”
Truly a shameful mistake. You call yourselves writers?
@#1.... i’m sure its katie reedy….
@Anonymous Hindi? HINDI?! URDU, MOTHERFUCKER; DO YOU SPEAK IT?!
@... actually, most of the songs were from hindi-language films…
@Anonymous It’s a joke. The two languages are often mutually comprehensible and were one language until political considerations forced their separation relatively recently.
@No... they were never one language. There is a good deal of overlap, but the script is different.
@Anonymous i believe the comment was “urdu, motherfucker…do you speak it?”
if you speak urdu, you’re speaking hindu. regardless of their separate scripts.
@No, you are not. Many of the words are different, some sentence structure, and many pronunciations. And “Hindu” is not a language.
@... who’s the bwog reporter for this? nice job knowing the songs!