DUBAI: The flower arrangement was done, the cards were distributed, the cake arrived but the Dubai-based bride could not make it in time for her wedding in Colombo due to travel restrictions.
However, the Sri Lankan couple – Nadeeka and Gayan – who had spent years planning their wedding, did not let their D-day fall victim to any lockdown, quarantine or other COVID-related restrictions and got married virtually on the exact day and time on which they had planned.
While Nadeeka was in Dubai and her fiancé Gayan in Colombo, the duo tied the knot as per Sri Lankan traditions on June 10 on Zoom call in the presence of their family and friends. In keeping with the tradition, the new bride also moved into her husband Gayan’s apartment in Dubai.
“Big or small weddings don’t matter, what matters is people who love you should be with you. We were connected virtually. I had some friends who came to my apartment on my wedding day. My parents, fiancé, his parents, family and friends were all there online when we exchanged vows online. Our parents performed some rituals on camera and then my parents went to his place in Colombo. And I kept my promise and moved into Gayan’s apartment that is now my new home as his wife.”
Nadeeka has also taken two weeks off from work and has assumed her duties as a wife at Gayan’s apartment. “I have started cooking and cleaning his apartment as my own and I am now waiting for one of those incoming flights to bring him back to Dubai soon,” she told Khaleej Times.
“We are from different religions – Christian and Buddhist – and we came to Dubai five years ago for love. We planned to work hard, convince our parents, get married and lead a happy life here. And we were lucky that things worked in our favour,” said the new bride.
© Khaleej Times
