Terror fears keep people away from marriage halls

[Naveed Yaseen]

* Banquet hall owner says fewer guests attending marriage ceremonies
* Marriage Hall Association president says people prefer to arrange celebrations at home

By Nauman Tasleem

LAHORE: The trend of conducting marriage ceremonies at banquet halls has decreased in the city in recent days, as people are scared to leave their houses in the prevailing security situation, owners of various banquet halls told Daily Times on Saturday.

In addition to a reduction in the total number of reservations, the numbers of guests attending weddings has also decreased, they said, adding this was very bad for business. They said their business was already under tremendous pressure due to rising prices and limited budgets and the recent wave of terror attacks had only added fuel to the decline. “Inflation has squeezed the purchasing power of the people,” said Mahboob Ahmed, the owner of a private marriage hall. He said his hall used to entertain 10 to 12 functions on a weekly basis, in addition to at least 25 to 30 inquiries. However, following the terror incidents throughout the city, the number of weekly bookings had reduced to six or eight. “I have incurred at least a 30 to 35 percent loss of business,” he said.

Less people: Ahmed said the number of guests at the marriages had also decreased. “If there is a booking for 300 guests and only 200 attend the function, the host invariably tries to force us to charge them for the 200 only,” he said, adding this created a lot of problems. He said the banquet hall prepared food according to the guest list and if the host was unwilling to pay for the non-attendants, there were huge losses. “The restrictions imposed upon us by the government are also playing havoc with our business, as we are forced to close the halls by midnight, which is far too early for most people,” he added.

Another marriage hall owner, Jamaal Khan, said the reservations at his hall had decreased by 40 percent. “The prices of poultry products, electricity and kitchen utensils have increased drastically, decreasing our profits, and the recent terror attacks have caused people to fear organising any function in marriage halls,” Khan said. He said it had also become routine in recent weeks for a fraction of the guests to attend any particular wedding ceremony. “If a host has booked the hall for 400 people, only about 250 or 300 guests come,” he said, adding the hosts then force the marriage hall to give them a concession.

No cancellations: Marriage Hall Association President Mian Muhammad Ilyas confirmed that the number of marriages at banquet halls had decreased in recent weeks. He said that people had not yet started to cancel their previous bookings but several people who were considering organising their marriage ceremonies at the halls had started to change their minds. “They are preferring to hold functions at their homes instead of coming to halls,” he said.

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp...009_pg13_1