The beauty of the Mzansi Magic's reality show 'Our Perfect Wedding' is that viewers are exposed to different cultures every week.
On Sunday viewers were transported to KwaZulu-Natal's Pinetown to witness the beautiful union of 24-year-old Mellisha Naaido and 27-year-old Ryan Naaido.
The couple met in 2014, and it took Ryan six months to convince Mellisha to date him.
Ryan and his brother were dating the same girl at that time. So when he saw Mellisha, Ryan said that he knew she was what he needed.
"When I saw Mellisha, there were no other girls that could match the image I had of her," he explained.
Ryan never gave up and used every method to try and woo her into a relationship, even getting his driver to drive around their local neighbourhood looking for her house to deliver truckloads of ice cream, chocolate and milkshake.
Tjo! A whole van load of ice cream and chocolate, eh Ryan!? Levels! 😜 https://t.co/dqz9LwmWeB #OurPerfectWedding pic.twitter.com/k0Zxi2CsvD
— Our Perfect Wedding (@OPWMzansi) August 12, 2018
"I did give up a few times but there was something that told me to go back each time."
Their wedding was planned within one month and Ryan wanted OPW to showcase that there are no restrictions on culture.
Mellisha and Ryan's wedding. Picture: Twitter
Their mixed culture wedding included the isiZulu culture alongside their Hindu culture. She wore a red African inspired dress with isicholo (a traditional hat that is worn by the married Zulu women).nb
The Africa theme was also translated into the decoration, that also carried the Indian theme.
"My African roots are very important to me," explains Ryan whose favourite cultural dish is uphuthu and dumbling, he said.
Their two-day celebration kicked off with an evening celebration for the bride, with blessings from other women being said onto her and celebrating's her wedding eve. The night was also used to perform the gift exchange ceremony that symbolises the acceptance into each other's families.
Mellisha and Ryan's wedding. Picture: Twitter
On the wedding day, Mellisha was dressed in her full Indian attire bought by the groom's family. Ryan also looked sharp in his traditional golden groom suit with red details, paired with a red turban.
At the temple, everyone was requested to remove their shoes to show respect on holy ground, where they would have their Indian rituals performed.
Mellisha and Ryan's wedding. Picture: Twitter
"As I am seeing my future wife, I am more amazed. She looks more beautiful," commented Ryan.
Regarding the ritual, Mellisha said, "there's a lot of things that happen in our culture that I think we don't even know the meaning of. But they are all to join us together."
After their lengthy matrimonial ceremony, the exchange of rings, the time finally came before guests were moved to the reception area. Another interesting thing was the breaking of the coconut at their family home to symbolise the breaking of their fast at the same time.
Mellisha and Ryan's wedding. Picture: Twitter
At their reception area, the couple even had traditional Zulu dancers to tie in with their traditional themed wedding. It was also lovely to see how the couple adhered to a lot of the Zulu culture rituals like this attaching of money onto the bride's hat and eating traditional food.
In the end, Mellisha said the best part of her wedding was seeing everyone embrace their theme and seeing everything work together.
IOL