'Shri Ganeshaya Namaha' finds proud place on a Muslim wedding invite in UP's Ballia

Varanasi: Setting a wonderful example of cultural amalgamation, a Muslim family in Uttar Pradesh's Ballia district sent invites to its relatives and friends that carry Hindu religious markings and verses.

The invitation card carried Hindu religious wordings like 'Shri Ganeshaya Namaha'.

Nasrullah, a resident of Pindari village in Ballia, sent the invite to his relatives and friends for the reception feast of his younger brother Serazuddin's wedding with Rizwana.

The reception was held on Thursday.

The invite also had Hindu religious scriptures like 'Mangalam Bhagwan Vishnu Mangalam Garuda Dhwaja, Managalam Pundarikaksha Mangalaye Tano Hari' and symbols like 'kalash' and 'Swastika'.

Talking to The Times of India, Nasrullah said: “Is mein galat kya hai? Hum apne Hindu mitron ki suvidha ke liye hi is terah ka card diye hain. Ismein kuchh naya nahi hai. Humlog sub mil-jul kar shaadi ya tyohar manate hain (What is wrong in it? For the convenience of our Hindu friends, we give such cards to them).”

"We all (Hindus and Muslims) collectively celebrate wedding ceremonies and festivals," Nasrullah added.

He further told the daily, "We are simple rural people and know the language of love and 'bhai-chara' (brotherhood) only. When printed cards were not in fashion in our village, we used to invite people by sending handwritten letters carrying 'haldi' mark."

"We had arranged for cards with Islamic tradition for our relatives. But invites carrying Hindu markings were also sent to many of them. Almost all know Hindi and they are comfortable with such cards. My other family members like Qayamuddin and Kalimullah too had sent similar cards for various events in their families," he added.

Notably, Pindari village has only seven Muslim families.