An ode to Benazir: Bakhtawar Bhutto pays homage with her engagement outfit

Bakhtawar Bhutto Zardari exchanged rings with Mahmood Choudhry last month in an extravagant affair at the Bilawal House. The 30-year-old looked stunning in a pastel pink ensemble and a gorgeous Nida Azwer shawl. The drape soon became the talk of the town, as onlookers try to decipher the patterns on the heavily worked shawl!

It was earlier speculated that Bakhtawar will recreate her mother, slain premier Benazir Bhutto's nikah outfit. But the former chose to pay homage to her late mother in a rather innovative way. Sharing details of her embellished shawl on Instagram, Bakhtawar shared how it combined her childhood and a new chapter of her life that she has just begun.

Sharing three posts about the same, the elder Bhutto daughter penned, "Wanted to showcase shawl details beautiful craftsmanship in fabric and thread by Nida Azwer and her team of very talented Pakistanis who specialise in fine handcraft."

She went on to add, "I really wanted my mother to be part of this very special moment. The design of the shawl is divided into three chapters (two pallus) telling two different stories. One side is embroidered with images and childhood memories of us growing up in Islamabad and the other side captures the start of my next chapter in life where a scene is set where the groom can be seen arriving with a ring and preparations are in place for the engagement event. The central panel is etched with the sun and the sky, with beautiful birds flying on it holding together the two chapters of life."

In another post, she shared a clip of showing the patterns of the shawl she adorned on her engagement to her father, former president Asif Ali Zardari.

Talking about the inspiration for the outfit, she continued, "We took inspiration and inference from old Mughal miniature paintings depicting moments of life and scenery, but we translated everyday life with a lot of fun and relevance - the groom is seen in a window ready to March but the bride is on the other side preoccupied with her phone/Instagram/music."

Earlier, Bakhtawar shared an image of the engagement ring she gave her fiancé to reveal the story behind it.

"My mother had her father’s wedding ring copied and made for my father when they got married," she wrote. "I had the same ring duplicated and made for Mahmood Choudhry," added the bride-to-be.

The couple is rumoured to tie the knot in January next year. We can't wait for her wedding looks!