Tashkent Mayor Seeks To Tone Down Extravagant Weddings

Tashkent Mayor Seeks To Tone Down Extravagant Weddings

Planning a lavish wedding? Then it's best to avoid the Uzbek capital.

Tashkent's mayor has imposed strict new regulations on weddings, funerals, and other family celebrations.

The rules, outlined in a September 10 decree by Mayor Rakhmonbek Usmanov, aim to limit the cost, number of guests, and duration of such events, which he says have become increasingly "pompous" and "extremely wasteful" -- and need to be toned down.

“The parties should therefore be smaller, cozier, and conducted in an orderly fashion," Usmanov wrote in the decree, which was published on his official website. "It is very important to make them smaller and more formal."

Across Central Asia, lavish weddings and funerals are the norm, with families often spending their entire life savings on them.

In Kazakhstan, for example, wedding parties can last up to seven days and sometimes cost tens of thousands of dollars. Even a "chapan," the traditional overcoat that Kazakh families are expected to present as a gift to their new in-laws, can cost as much as $5,000.

In Uzbekistan, the smallest of weddings typically involves at least 300 guests.

But that's about to change, at least in the country's capital.

Under the new decree, families holding weddings in Tashkent will only be able to invite a maximum of 100 guests. The rule will also apply to funerals and other gatherings.

Families will be obliged to sign a contract with the owner of the venue, settling on the price and number of guests prior to the ceremony.