Strange Things people are Doing in the Name of Marriage Today

Mrs. Adejoke Olawepo, a 62yrs old petty trader, was confused as screams and claps went all around her while on a journey all the way from Oyingbo in Lagos to Sango, Ogun State to see her daughter last Tuesday. She couldn’t understand why the train she was travelling in suddenly refused to move again after dropping off some passengers at Agege, Lagos.

Screams and claps from people in the train who could see outside, aroused her curiosity. Leaning over a seat to peep through the window beside her, the woman could not believe the sight before her.

“I was afraid; I thought the train had crushed somebody,” the elderly woman said. “But when I peeped through the window, I saw that it was a young man kneeling and making gestures to a lady in front of him as if he was proposing to her. They were right on the rail track, just a few yards away from where the train stopped. I have never seen anything like that in my life.”

Lewis Omike and Ebi Boleigha, the pair Mrs. Olawepo came across, chose the Agege end of the rail line as part of a series of photo sessions to usher in their wedding later this month. Apart from the shot, the soon-to-be-married lovers also took amazing photographs on the Lekki Bridge and other places.

In a chat with Punch earlier in the week, Omike, the groom, said they decided to embark on such unusual act to spice up their love affair and also be in tune with modern trends.

He described the experience as simply exciting and unforgettable.

“We just wanted something special, me and my fiancée,” Omike said. “Our love story is not what words can describe in a few lines, so to express this feeling we chose to do something really remarkable to make the days leading up to our wedding interesting,” he continued. “The two of us came up with the entire concept and in fact if not for the bad weather at the time, we could have had more shots at other unusual places.

“On one of those days, we had to leave the Island where we stay for the rail track around Agege just for that particular shot. Though my fiancée was shy, for me it was a moment of pure joy and excitement. A lot of people looked and waved at us while some others clapped excitedly. Many of them urged me to hold on to her very well and always ensure there was a smile on her face throughout our lives. It is one of the moments I would cherish for the rest of my life,” he said.

In the build up to their own wedding in August 2016 in Abuja, the nation’s capital, Ndubuisi Obi and Jessica Okoli have visited more than 10 different locations across the country in an attempt to create the perfect pre-wedding photo.

A geologist and nurse respectively, the pair have been lovers for around five years now. 

Also, the shot of Obi pushing a visibly excited Okoli seated inside a canoe towards what looks like paradise has since got the entire internet and social media buzzing. It has been a busy and thrilling few weeks for the young lovers.

An increasingly rising trend, the two young couples are not the only ones now enacting some truly amazing and sometimes bizarre scenes in different photographs in the country today – they are only a fraction of the dozens who have since been bitten by the bug. Determined to add colour to their wedding ceremony in the best ways they can, embarking on all kinds of photo sessions have become a common feature for many lovers these days. While some have been quite scary, others have been splashed with humour, providing viewers with moments of comic relief.

For example, photograph of a young man whose hands and legs are bound while his lover standing next to him holds a cutlass and a cardboard with the inscription ‘The hunt is over’, has since become one of the most circulated images on the internet in recent times. While some described it as bizarre, the couple and their friends label it one of the most interesting parts of activities put in place to usher in their big day later in the year.

In yet another unique and unusual shot, a young lady was seen standing over the boot of a car where her lover whose hands and legs are tied and mouth also covered, was inside. The lady could be seen smiling like a warrior who had just conquered a feisty battle.

A certain couple took their love affair to another level when they decided to go back in time by appearing in a secondary school uniform.

In other attention-catching photographs, young lovers on the verge of getting married who have embraced this rising trend can be seen taking different shots inside commercial buses, at open markets, busy roads and even underneath popular bridges across the country while assuming all kinds of funny and sometimes scary positions.

For instance, a man and his wife-to-be were captured in one particular photograph doing push-ups on a road while wearing a military vest. Another pair was seen carrying each other on the back under a popular bridge in Lagos. A different set dressed up in Indian attire, playing and dining inside a garden. The location and expressions have indeed been endless.

For example, a former Speaker of the Imo State House of Assembly, Hon Ike C. Ibe, and his beautiful bride, Uche, have continued to enjoy massive attention after photographs of them buying roasted corn by the roadside just minutes after leaving their wedding service earlier in July, surfaced on the internet.

Decked in a fitted navy blue jacket and a glowing white wedding gown respectively with a black Sports Utility Vehicle parked behind them, the newly married couple chose the unusual location to add colour to their special day. They have received praises from many quarters.

In December 2015, Benjamin and Blessing Okelue stunned many across Nigeria and beyond when they rode to their wedding venue in Enugu in a power bike.

Interestingly, while the new craze in town has brought many couples tremendous joy and happiness, it has equally left several others smiling as well. Photographers, make-up artists, fashion stylists, wedding planners and several others providing some of the essential services needed to make these occasions colourful, have been raking in cool cash in the process.

Relationship and marriage counsellor, Nike Olaniyan, said, “No matter what some people may think, I feel it is a healthy development that will bring about a lot of understanding and appreciation in marriage.”