SRINAGAR: Kashmir’s traditional chefs, popularly known as wazas, have unanimously decided to stop serving wazwan at weddings after 10 pm, citing long working hours, delayed arrival of grooms and inadequate arrangements for their rest.
The decision was taken at a conference held at a marriage hall in Srinagar, where chefs discussed what they described as inhuman working conditions while preparing and serving the traditional Kashmiri multi-course feast at weddings and other functions.
Kashmir Waza Association president Ghulam Nabi said the community had endured difficult working conditions for too long and deserved dignified working hours.
“It takes several hours to prepare the dishes, and usually we work late into the night. Then we are expected to start serving lunch from around 1 pm till 6 pm, which is followed by dinner, which starts well into the night,” Waza said.
He said the situation was particularly difficult when chefs were engaged at the bride’s residence, where they had to wait for the groom and his entourage to arrive before serving the feast. Their arrival, he said, often took place past midnight.
“There have been incidents where the maulvi left without solemnising the nikah because the groom did not turn up till 1 am. We are also humans. So we now set the 10 pm deadline,” he said.
Waza said arriving late for wedding feasts had become fashionable and appealed to people to abandon the practice.
“There are so many people attached with the wazwan, and they too have the right to dignified working hours,” he added.
Several chefs also raised concerns over alleged mistreatment by clients, particularly the lack of proper accommodation and resting facilities during wedding assignments.
One of the chefs said they were often not provided with a proper place to sleep despite working long hours. He urged wedding hosts to make adequate arrangements for their rest before they resumed preparations for the following day’s functions.
Wazwan, a centuries-old Kashmiri culinary tradition, is an elaborate multi-course feast and an integral part of the Valley’s wedding culture. A traditional banquet can comprise up to 36 dishes, prepared under the supervision of a master chef known as the Vasta Waza.
