The Sunday Mail
Don Makanyanga
The date is December 18 the venue is Guruve Centre, about 150km away from the capital, and lobola negotiations are underway.
The bride-to-be Spiwe Mudhauya is called to meet her in-laws, and, as is the custom, no words are supposed to be exchanged at this point.
However, one member of the negotiating party from the groom’s side blurts out a statement that leaves everyone in the room in stitches.
“Spiwe talk to me, don’t pretend like you don’t know me,” blurts out the individual.
Under normal circumstances, this alone would have been perceived as a crime of sorts resulting in a fine.
However, this is no ordinary negotiation team, not in the conventional sense anyway, and the misstep gets treated as a teachable moment for the first-time munyai (go-between) and Zimbabwe Chevrons all-rounder Sikandar Raza Butt.
“My sitting posture was wrong, as pointed out by Pommie Mbangwa.
“I wasn’t supposed to be talking to the bride before lobola was agreed and paid, luckily tete (aunt) wasn’t there so I wasn’t fined,” recalled Raza.
He equates his first time involvement in the lobola negotiations to that of his cricket debut in Zimbabwe colours back in 2013 (May 3 to be exact).
“That debut I kind of knew what I was supposed to do and what to expect.
“However, this (lobola) debut I went in blind, and simply went with the flow,” he said.
Given his Pakistani heritage, Raza’s involvement, let alone role as lead negotiator, made this particular ceremony unique.
And, as the saying goes ‘every unique situation, requires a unique mode of preparation’.
As part of said preparations, Raza took to twitter to seek advice on the dos and don’ts of a typical Zimbabwean lobola ceremony.
The feedback varied, with some of it actually turning out to be helpful
“I was excited about the day, and genuinely sought out advice when I sent that tweet,” said the Pakistan-born cricketer.
“To my surprise, I was overwhelmed with responses on twitter and in my inbox.
“I read all the comments, and I really enjoyed the humour that was thrown to me ahead of the day.
After the ceremony, Raza went so far as to give himself a performance report.
One that he has since made public, and can be seen on his twitter page.
“Performance Report : 1. Those who wanted me to hug the mum in law upon arrival if I had seen her then you never know . . .
“2. Brother wanted a goat and I negotiated for “kapenta”.
“3. He wanted shoe size 10, but negotiated to size 5.
“4. He wanted jeans, but negotiated for shorts,” tweeted Raza after the function.
The Pakistan-born cricketer, who is eager to learn the local culture, made his debut in experiencing one of the many Zimbabwean cultures when he was appointed munyai to the lobola function for close friend Kudakwashe Chirume last weekend.
To the Chevrons player, the function was a valuable lesson.
“It was my first experience for a lobola function in Zimbabwean culture,” he said.
“When I was approached by Kuda (Chirume), I accepted the role as I wanted to learn more about the Zimbabwean culture.
“I want to experience all cultural activities and festivals that the Shona culture has to offer.
“Also, Kuda is close to me and there was no way I was going to say no to him.
“This is why I did not hesitate to take up the role, and as a bonus, I got to learn more about the culture,” he said
Raza enjoyed each and every minute of the function.
“I found the lobola day to be full of respect,” said the Chevrons all-rounder.
“There are a lot of similarities with that of Pakistani proceedings, but it is done slightly different.
“I feel if the Shona people are to experience the lobola day in Pakistan, they will enjoy the day the same way I did this.
“To be honest with you, the Zimbabwean culture is very respectful.
“People are still following their old culture and it is very good,” said the Chevron’s all-rounder.
Raza, who is now known as Saki in the cricket circles, revealed how he is also working hard to learn some of the local languages.
“I enjoy learning.
“I did that when I was studying in the UK, and now that I am Zimbabwean I want to learn more about the culture.
“I have been learning the local languages, asking my friends what the Shona or Ndebele words mean,” said Raza.
