Wazwan Feast Sequence — Kashmiri 36-Dish Wedding Tradition (وازوان)

Kashmir valley; the wazwan tradition traces to the Central Asian feast tradition brought by Timur's invasion of the 14th century, fused with existing Kashmiri culinary culture

Wazwan (وازوان) is the Kashmiri Muslim wedding feast: a formal multi-course meal of traditionally 36 dishes served by the waza (واز, master chef) whose lineage is as important as a sommelier's. The meal begins with the presentation of the trami (ترامی, large copper plate): a mound of rice topped with the first meat preparations (tabak maaz, methi maaz, seekh kebab) is placed before every four guests who eat from the communal plate with their hands. Subsequent dishes are brought in sequence by the waza's assistants, arriving at precise intervals. The sequence ends with gushtaba, signalling the meal's completion.

The wazwan is more than a meal — it is a social institution. The flavour progression (fried → sauced → yoghurt-braised → gushtaba) represents a deliberate build-and-resolve of flavour intensity.