KUANTAN: The 'istiadat bersanding' (sitting-in-state) ceremony was grandly held to celebrate the wedding of Tengku Puteri Raja, Tengku Puteri Afzan Aminah Hafidzatullah Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah, and her partner, Fd Idzham Fd Iskandar.
Decked out in her all-white wedding attire complete with a long veil and tiara, Tengku Puteri Afzan was the first to step into the Balai Mahkota, Istana Abdulaziz here at 8.35pm.
Fd Idzham's motorcade arrived at the palace compound accompanied by the beat of the kompang before he was ushered into Balai Mahkota some five minutes later.
He held the 'sireh lat-lat', prepared by the bride's side that signifies that she is ready for the ceremony.
He took his position on the elegantly decorated royal dais alongside Tengku Puteri Afzan.
The ceremonies began with the 'menyuap nasi semangat' by Tengku Puteri Seri Lela Wangsa Pahang, Tengku Tan Sri Meriam Sultan Ahmad Shah.
She placed 'pulut kuning' (turmeric-infused glutinous rice) on the palm of the bride and groom before they fed each other.
This was followed by the 'merenjis' on the newlyweds, led by the Sultan of Pahang Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah who was smartly clad in royal blue baju melayu followed by Tengku Ampuan Pahang Tunku Azizah Aminah Maimunah Iskandariah.
This was followed by the Sultanah of Terengganu, Sultanah Nur Zahirah, Tengku Mahkota Pahang Tengku Hassanal Ibrahim Alam Shah and Tengku Arif Bendahara Tengku Muhammad Iskandar Ri'ayatuddin Shah.
This was followed by Siti Hediati Hariyadi Suharto, the daughter of former Indonesia's second president who was among the dignitaries present.
Others were the bridegroom's father, Datuk Seri Fateh Iskandar Mohamed Mansor and mother Datin Seri Hafizah Mohd Zakaria, Pahang Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Wan Rosdy Wan Ismail and his wife Datin Seri Burhah Mohammed, and the groom's grandparents Tan Sri Mohamed Mansor Fateh Din and Puan Sri Zainun Yaacob.
The sitting-in-state ceremony ended with Al-Sultan Abdullah and Tengku Ampuan Pahang performing the customary ceremony of placing the 'pancabicara' on the groom and bride as a symbol to bless the marriage.
Pahang Mufti Prof Datuk Dr Asmadi Mohamed Naim later recited the doa to mark the end of the event.
The newly-wed couple, along with the royal family members, took pictures at Balai Inderapura before the cake-cutting ceremony which was accompanied by fireworks.
Tengku Puteri Afzan tied the knot with FD Idzham with the akad nikah (solemnising of marriage) performed at the Istana Abdulaziz on Aug 22 followed by the traditional 'istiadat berinai' (henna application ceremony) the following day.