A massage chair and a real road bike stole the spotlight at the wedding ceremony of Bella Astillah and Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman on Saturday, with the items physically wheeled into the venue as wedding gifts instead of being represented by pictures or replicas.
The unusual moment caught the attention of viewers watching the wedding livestream, with many amused by the oversized gifts.
Shairy Hanapiah, who was tasked with pushing the massage chair into the venue, later revealed that he was not originally on the list of people assigned to carry the wedding gifts.
In a post on Threads, Shairy said he received a call from Amira Aisya at 11.25pm on the night before the wedding, asking him to help the team by pushing the massage chair.
“When I received the picture on WhatsApp, I was already laughing to myself. What on earth is Syed Saddiq up to?” he wrote.
Shairy explained that Syed Saddiq had specifically requested the actual items to be presented as wedding gifts, rather than using mock-ups, photographs or symbolic representations.
“He didn’t want a mock model or a picture. He wanted to show the real thing!” Shairy said.
Despite having no time to attend a rehearsal, Shairy agreed to help Amira ensure the wedding arrangements went smoothly.
He jokingly admitted that his biggest concern was getting stuck halfway along the aisle while the ceremony was being livestreamed.
“Everything was completely impromptu! The thought that kept making me nervous was, ‘Please don’t let me get stuck in the middle of the aisle. It’s being livestreamed — how embarrassing would that be?’” he said.
Fortunately, everything went smoothly, and the moment became one of the highlights of the wedding, entertaining viewers across Malaysia.
The massage chair and home gym equipment were among seven wedding gifts presented by Syed Saddiq to Bella. Other gifts included insurance coverage, a dowry and ring, Mount Kinabalu gold, a master’s scholarship, an EPF i-Simpan contribution, a road bike, handbags, shoes and an Umrah package.
Bella and Syed Saddiq were officially married after exchanging their vows in a single pronouncement at a ceremony held at Merdeka 118 Precinct.
