Punjabi wedding jewellery: the tikka, the jhumka, the kara and the mehndi

A Punjabi wedding in Pakistan usually runs through a sequence of functions, dholki, mayun, mehndi, baraat and walima, and each has its own jewellery. The bride's baraat look traditionally centres on a maang tikka, often a jhoomar at the side of the head, a nath, heavy jhumkas and a necklace set, with bangles on both wrists; the mehndi leans to fresh flowers, colour and glass bangles.

Families differ a great deal, by city, by village and by generation, so read what follows as the common pattern rather than a rulebook.

The functions, and what each one asks for

The pieces, one by one

• Maang tikka: a pendant on a chain that runs along the parting and rests on the forehead. Bridal tikkas are large and heavy; smaller ones are worn by the bride's sisters and friends at the mehndi.
• Jhoomar, sometimes called a passa: a fan-shaped ornament worn on one side of the head. It is closely associated with Muslim bridal dress across the subcontinent and is one of the most recognisable parts of a Pakistani bridal look.
• Nath: the nose ring. Traditional bridal naths are large and often attached by a fine chain to the hair or ear. Many brides now choose a smaller one, or a clip-on if they are not pierced.
• Jhumkas: bell-shaped earrings. Bridal jhumkas are heavy enough that a small chain looped into the hair is often used to take some of the weight off the lobe.
• Necklace set: commonly a close-fitting choker or guluband with a longer rani haar below it, worn together for the baraat.
• Bangles and kara: glass churiyan in the colours of the outfit, often with gold or gold-toned kangan or a kara at each end of the stack.
• Paranda: the tasselled ornament braided into the hair, strongly associated with Punjab and a favourite at mehndis.
• Haath phool: a ring joined by fine chains to a bracelet across the back of the hand.

The kara, for brides and for men

In Punjabi usage a kara is a single, rigid, usually plain bangle, heavier than a glass churi. For a bride it often bookends a stack of glass bangles. Outside weddings, plenty of Punjabi men wear a plain steel or silver kara every day, as a simple, sturdy piece of jewellery that suits shalwar kameez and jeans alike. Its meaning varies between communities, and for most Muslim men in Pakistan it is simply a bracelet.

Mehndi customs and their jewellery

The mehndi is the function most tied to Punjabi tradition: dholak songs, dancing, the two families teasing each other, and henna applied to the bride's hands and feet. Its jewellery is correspondingly light-hearted. Brides often wear flower and gota jewellery, gajray of motia or roses on the wrists, and bright glass bangles, with the heavy metal saved for the baraat.

• Rings go on after the henna has fully dried. Put them on wet paste and the stain sits unevenly under the band.
• Guests wear bangles in the colours of their outfits, and a dozen thin glass bangles on each wrist is entirely normal.
• Jhumkas and parandas move when you dance, which is the point of wearing them to a mehndi.
• Anything genuinely valuable is better left at home. Mehndis are crowded and energetic, and small pieces go missing.

Bari, jahez and who gives what

Bridal jewellery traditionally comes from more than one direction. The groom's family often gives jewellery as part of the bari, the bride's own family may include jewellery in the jahez, and heirloom pieces pass from mothers and grandmothers. Haq mehr is separate: it is the bride's right in the nikah and belongs to her, whether it is paid in cash or in jewellery.

Old traditions at today's weddings

Most brides now mix. A grandmother's gold necklace for the baraat, a hired or fashion set for the walima, flower jewellery for the mehndi. Lighter tikkas and smaller naths are common, partly for comfort over a long night and partly because the photographs are close-up now in a way they were not a generation ago.

Zayr does not make bridal gold sets. Our women's rings are rhodium- or gold-plated over a hypoallergenic base and set with cubic zirconia, and they are made for the bride's sisters, cousins and friends across the other four functions, where a good ring and a stack of bangles do most of the work.

For guests at a Punjabi wedding

Go bright and playful at the mehndi, restrained at the nikah, polished at the baraat and walima, and never heavier than the bride. A pair of statement earrings and a handful of bangles in your outfit colour will carry you through a whole shaadi season. The baraat is the one function where it is easy to overdo it.

The tikka, the jhoomar and the nath are for one evening. The bangles turn up at every function, which is why there are always so many of them.