The cue card
Describe a wedding or family celebration that you attended.
You should say:
- whose celebration it was
- where it took place
- what happened
and explain how you felt about the event.
You have one minute to make notes, then speak for one to two minutes.
Band 8–9 sample answer
Written by Abroadway as a model of natural, high-band speaking (not an official IELTS sample).
I'd like to talk about my cousin Nadia's wedding, which took place in Chattogram the winter before last. Nadia is the daughter of my mother's elder sister, and since we grew up only a few streets apart, she's always felt more like an older sister than a cousin, so there was never any question of our family missing it. Like most Bangladeshi weddings, it wasn't a single event but a series of them spread over about a week. It began with the gaye holud at my aunt's house, where the whole courtyard was decorated with marigolds and strings of fairy lights, and the main reception was held a few days later in a large community hall in the city.
What I remember most vividly is the gaye holud evening. My younger cousins and I had been rehearsing a dance for weeks, mostly over video calls, and although we got the steps hopelessly wrong halfway through, the guests cheered as if we were professionals. Later, the older women sang traditional songs I'd only ever heard on recordings, and my grandmother, who rarely sings in public, joined in. The reception itself was the usual happy chaos: hundreds of guests, plates of kacchi biryani and borhani, and an endless queue of relatives waiting to be photographed with the bride and groom.
As for how I felt, it was a mixture of emotions, really. I was thrilled to see Nadia so happy, and it was wonderful to have three generations of the family under one roof, which happens far less often now that some of us live abroad. But there was a bittersweet moment at the end, when she left for her husband's home and my aunt broke down in tears. It made me realise that a wedding marks a beginning and an ending at the same time.
Useful phrases from this answer
- there was never any question of
- it was certain; nobody had any doubt about it
- under one roof
- together in the same place or building
- bittersweet
- happy and sad at the same time
- broke down in tears
- suddenly started crying because of strong emotion
- compared unfavourably with
- judged to be worse than someone or something else
- social cohesion
- the feeling of unity and connection among people in a society
- a backlash against
- a strong negative reaction against a trend or idea
Part 3 follow-up questions and answers
How are weddings in your country different from weddings in the past?
I'd say the biggest difference is scale and spending. A generation or two ago, weddings in Bangladesh were mostly held at the bride's family home, neighbours helped with the cooking, and the whole thing felt like a community effort. These days, particularly in cities, families tend to book a convention hall and hire caterers, decorators and professional photographers, so it has become a far more commercial affair. There's also a stronger influence from films and social media, which partly explains why events like mehendi nights have grown so elaborate. That said, the core rituals, such as the gaye holud and the religious ceremony itself, have survived largely intact, so I'd argue the form has changed more than the meaning.
Why do some families spend so much money on weddings?
Mainly, I think, because a wedding is seen as a reflection of a family's status and reputation. In a society where relatives and neighbours will talk about the event for months, there's enormous pressure not to appear stingy, and nobody wants to be compared unfavourably with the family next door. For many parents it's also an emotional matter: they may have been saving for years and want it to be a day their child never forgets. Social media has arguably made this worse, since every lavish decoration ends up online and raises everyone's expectations. Personally, I think it's a shame when families go into debt for a single day, but I can understand the motivation behind it.
Are traditional festivals still important to young people?
To a large extent, yes, although the way young people celebrate them has changed. Pohela Boishakh, for example, is still hugely popular among students; on the first morning of the Bengali year you see crowds of young people in red and white saris and panjabis filling the streets. What's different is that for many of them it's as much a social occasion as a cultural one, and taking photos to share online is part of the fun. Some older people see this as a sign that the deeper meaning is being lost, and to some extent they may be right. Even so, I'd argue that participation matters most, because a festival that young people stop attending altogether will eventually disappear.
What are the benefits of celebrating festivals together as a community?
The most obvious benefit is that it strengthens the bonds between people who might otherwise hardly interact. In big cities especially, neighbours can live side by side for years without really knowing each other, and a shared celebration, whether it's an Eid gathering or a local fair, gives them a natural reason to talk. Festivals also bring different generations together, so children pick up songs, recipes and customs from their elders without being formally taught. On top of that, there's an economic side, because street vendors, artisans and small shops often depend on festival seasons for a large part of their income. So I'd say community celebrations support both social cohesion and the local economy.
How do you think celebrations will change in the future?
I suspect they'll become more digital and perhaps more personalised. We've already seen relatives who live abroad joining weddings by video call, and I can imagine that becoming completely normal, with whole family events streamed to people in different countries. At the same time, there may be a backlash against extravagance. Some young couples are already choosing smaller, simpler weddings and spending the money on a home or travel instead. Environmental concerns could play a part too, for instance by reducing food waste and plastic decorations. However, I doubt the essential rituals will disappear, because people seem to hold on to tradition most firmly at the major turning points of their lives.
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