JOIN USThe scions of two royal families from India and Pakistan have tied the knot at a lavish wedding ceremony in Jaipur, marking a unique cross-border matrimonial alliance.
Padmini Rathore, daughter of Thakur Man Singh of Kanota, married Karni Singh Sodha, son of Rana Hamir Singh and Rani Nalini Prabha of Amarkot district in the Sindh province of Pakistan.
This is the same royal family of undivided India in which Mughal emperor Jalaluddin Muhammad Akbar was born and brought up when his father Humayun fled after military defeat at the hands of Sher Shah Suri.
The marriage ceremony took place at Narayan Niwas Palace, a heritage property owned by Thakur Amar Singh of Kanota where films like “Zubeidaa” and “Lal Badshah” have been shot. Over 500 guests from Pakistan came to Jaipur to attend the wedding.
The huge marriage procession was an epitome of royalty, consisting of decorated elephants and horses decorated with gold ornaments that were used after 200 years. They had been in the royal family's museum for all this time.
The marriage took place as per the typical traditions of the Rajput community. The ceremonies followed included the week-long stay of guests and the royal family from Pakistan.
The royals' kin said this was the second marriage between the two families within a fortnight. On February 10, Dhruv Singh, younger son of Gaj Singh Alsisar, married Kiran Kumari, daughter of Vikram Singh Sodha, a senior official with Civil Aviation Authority of Pakistan.
Members of the Kanota royal family said the bridegroom's father, Rana Hamir Singh, had been a member of the Sindh province's assembly, while his grandfather Chandra Singh was a member of Pakistan's national assembly.