A virtual ‘nikah’ ceremony was held between two families in Himachal Pradesh, with the groom in Türkiye and the bride in Mandi. Adnan Muhammad from Bilaspur could not make it to India for his wedding because his employer in Türkiye refused to grant him leave. To fulfill the wish of the bride’s ailing grandfather, who wanted her married soon, both families agreed to adapt and arranged a unique virtual ceremony.

On Monday, two families came together with the bride's relatives sitting in Mandi, and the groom's in Bilaspur. They connected with a video call to make that possible. The wedding continued as an old-fashioned nikah while a qazi led the rituals remotely when Adnan and his bride exchanged their vows by saying "qubool hai" three times.

The groom's family members traveled from Bilaspur to the bride's family at Mandi on Sunday, thus creating a symbolic 'baraat' despite the virtual nature of the marriage ceremony.  “This wedding wouldn’t have been possible without advanced technology,” shared Akram Mohammad, the bride’s uncle.

Virtual weddings have become the new norm for the region where families have been discovering innovative ways to celebrate such occasions despite separation. Just last year, Ashish Singha from Kotgarh and Shivani Thakur from Bhuntar also exchanged their wedding vows through video conferencing after landslides and flash floods halted their baraat journey toward their destination.

This wedding is proof of how families must learn to deal with difficulties by being amiable and accepting of any distance love and commitment can bridge.