Spicezee Bureau
Hyderabad: Bollywood biggies have been gearing up to attend Sania Mirza-Shoaib Malik’s wedding reception at Hotel Taj Krishna in Hyderabad.
According to insiders, Sania’s family has invited about 1,000 guests, including film personalities and sportspersons. The high profile reception has been the talk-of-the-town ever since tennis ace Sania Mirza got married to cricketer sweetheart Shoaib Malik after a lot of brouhaha over Shoaib’s marital status.
Actors Salman Khan, Shah Rukh Khan and Shahid Kapoor, Tennis stars Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupati, and ace shuttler Pullela Gopichand are among the guest celebrities invited for the same. Amitabh Bachchan has sent a bouquet to the couple with warm regards.
Pakistan Population Welfare Minister Firdous Ashiq Awan, cricketer Sohail Tanvir and singer Waris Baig reportedly looked excited as they arrived here to attend the wedding reception. Talking to Spicezee, singer Waris Baig said, “I am going to sing a new song at the reception. Sania and Shoaib have spread the message of love through their marriage. It is commendable. We received a warm welcome by Sania’s family and both the families are very happy.”
Awan, who landed in Hyderabad Wednesday night, hoped that the marriage of the two celebrities would help strengthen the ties between India and Pakistan. “I am here to attend the wedding reception and I am confident that this marriage will help in the peace process,” she told reporters at the airport.
The minister, who would represent the Pakistani government at the reception on Thursday, said that she would present a gold crown to Sania as a special gift from the people of Sialkot, Shoaib’s home town. The minister also comes from the same town.
Awan, who is on a five-day visit to India at the invitation of union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, will also hand over gifts from Pakistan President Asif Zardari and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani to the couple.
Meanwhile, the Hyderabad Police have said it could take a week for the bridegroom to get back his passport as he would have to complete legal formalities with regard to the closure of the case filed against him by his first wife Ayesha Siddiqui.
Ayesha withdrew her complaint against Shoaib after the latter divorced her. But the cricketer’s passport, seized by the police after grilling him on April 5, is still with the court. The Pakistani cricketer married the Indian tennis ace on Monday.
