{"id":17454,"date":"2021-03-25T18:04:47","date_gmt":"2021-03-25T15:04:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/?p=17454"},"modified":"2021-03-29T17:49:48","modified_gmt":"2021-03-29T14:49:48","slug":"chameleones-manager-bijou-husband-talk-falling-inlove-working-together","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/?p=17454","title":{"rendered":"Bijou converted to Islam for love, adores the islamic dresscode"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>By Edgar R. Batte<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>It was through work that Islam Kigongo and Bijou Fortunate met. They were both contracted to offer services at Abryanz Style and Fashion Awards although they were working for different companies. Bijou was in charge of table reservations while Islam supervised and coordinated the event.<\/p>\n<p>As they share their love story, Islam and Bijou cannot help but smile at what destiny has served them; a love so beautiful that has not only bonded them in wedlock but also led them to share the same working space and workstation. They complement each other as the lead marketing and publicity duo at Cask Lounge, one of the top hangouts on Acacia Avenue in Kampala.<\/p>\n<p>As a side hustle, Bijou runs Mochachos, an events management company while Kigongo runs Eventix Uganda, which mainly handles digital marketing. Even on a personal business front, their companies support each other and clients have come to appreciate that each or both of them serve to offer solutions when it comes to events.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Dating<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-17468\" src=\"https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/123602515_2783310628612919_3544443623025250065_n-1-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/123602515_2783310628612919_3544443623025250065_n-1-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/123602515_2783310628612919_3544443623025250065_n-1-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/123602515_2783310628612919_3544443623025250065_n-1-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/123602515_2783310628612919_3544443623025250065_n-1-750x500.jpg 750w, https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/123602515_2783310628612919_3544443623025250065_n-1.jpg 1080w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/strong><br \/>\nAfter their initial meeting at the fashion awards, the two kept meeting at different social events at Sky Lounge and Guvnor Bars. Naturally, they grew from merely being \u2018hi friends\u2019 to real friends. They also discovered that they had a number of mutual friends.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThen on December 29, 2017, my birthday, I had dinner with my friends and this is the first time Islam and I first talked quite a lot,\u201d Bijou recounts. During the conversation, he confessed his love for her and although the feelings were mutual, she was not about to reveal her feelings to him.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe hesitated to say yes. She actually gave me a headache for a few months. I was patient knowing that easy come, easy go. I just kept convincing her that my feelings were genuine and honest,\u201d Kigongo recalls.<\/p>\n<p>To Bijou, it was important to take her time to observe him and his intentions lest she fell in love with a joker. But as she took her time, she discovered things about him, traits that partly spoke to her aspirations and her heart.<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-17467\" src=\"https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/123821597_366002647944659_3275013908734020880_n-2-1024x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1024\" height=\"1024\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/123821597_366002647944659_3275013908734020880_n-2-1024x1024.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/123821597_366002647944659_3275013908734020880_n-2-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/123821597_366002647944659_3275013908734020880_n-2-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/123821597_366002647944659_3275013908734020880_n-2-768x768.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/123821597_366002647944659_3275013908734020880_n-2-75x75.jpg 75w, https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/123821597_366002647944659_3275013908734020880_n-2-750x750.jpg 750w, https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/123821597_366002647944659_3275013908734020880_n-2.jpg 1080w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>Lovable qualities<\/strong><br \/>\n\u201cHe was so prayerful. He would go to the mosque for all prayers, which I found unique for someone his age and into the \u2018nightlife,\u201d Bijou explains. In addition, she was happy to see a hardworking man who would leave his home so early in the morning for work no matter how late he had worked the previous night. She finally gave in to his advances.<br \/>\nIn working together, she feels their work becomes easier since they share goals. Plus, decision-making is easy. \u201cWe easily agree on investment plans,\u201d she adds.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Religion<\/strong><br \/>\nSince Islam is Muslim, Bijou converted to Islam when they got married and adopted Bushira as her new name.<br \/>\nShe says one of the reasons she loves Islam is the dress code. \u201cI love covering my head as the Islamic way of dressing. It is very easy, and takes little time to get ready compared to the secular dressing codes of matching colours, and looking for different things that go well together such as a skirt, blouse and shoes,\u201d she observes.<\/p>\n<p>Initially a Catholic, Bijou says she is learning to pray, noting that Arabic is still a bit of a challenge but she is willing to work at improving and fully adopting. To help her learn, Islam put her in touch with a sheikh as a mentor.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Is it easy to work with your wife?<\/strong><br \/>\n\u201cI think it is okay given the scenario that there are times when we get different assignments and if she cannot be in two places at the same time, I can stand in and do a good job and the other way round. We have built our brands as a couple so clients know that we work together, so if either of us is not around, the customer will rest, assured that whoever is there will do a good job,\u201d Islam says.<\/p>\n<p>The couple plan to start a family as they mutually grow their business entities.<br \/>\nOne of their ground rules is to separate business from personal relations so if they disagree or are faced with challenges at work, they have agreed to divorce them from their personal affairs.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Leisure<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-17466\" src=\"https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/123655947_816863202479835_2017471948509557266_n-1-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/123655947_816863202479835_2017471948509557266_n-1-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/123655947_816863202479835_2017471948509557266_n-1-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/123655947_816863202479835_2017471948509557266_n-1-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/123655947_816863202479835_2017471948509557266_n-1-750x500.jpg 750w, https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/123655947_816863202479835_2017471948509557266_n-1.jpg 1080w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/strong><br \/>\nOut of the work environment, Kigongo and his wife go to the gym and also cook together. She respects the fact that before they met, he had his life and there are things he enjoys so at times, she lets him be. She also has time to enjoy what she likes. Her advice for couples is to occasionally let each other enjoy things they individually love so as not to choke or suffocate one another.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-17462\" src=\"https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/133761977_2141979052604872_8292828031595633862_n-819x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"819\" height=\"1024\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/133761977_2141979052604872_8292828031595633862_n-819x1024.jpg 819w, https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/133761977_2141979052604872_8292828031595633862_n-240x300.jpg 240w, https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/133761977_2141979052604872_8292828031595633862_n-768x960.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/133761977_2141979052604872_8292828031595633862_n-750x938.jpg 750w, https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/133761977_2141979052604872_8292828031595633862_n.jpg 900w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 819px) 100vw, 819px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Edgar R. Batte It was through work that Islam Kigongo and Bijou Fortunate met. They were both contracted to offer services at Abryanz Style and Fashion Awards although they were working for different companies. Bijou was in charge of table reservations while Islam supervised and coordinated the event. As they share their love story, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":17536,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":{"source_name":"","source_url":"","via_name":"","via_url":"","override_template":"0","override":[{"template":"1","single_blog_custom":"","parallax":"1","fullscreen":"1","layout":"right-sidebar","sidebar":"default-sidebar","second_sidebar":"default-sidebar","sticky_sidebar":"1","share_position":"top","share_float_style":"share-monocrhome","show_share_counter":"1","show_view_counter":"1","show_featured":"1","show_post_meta":"1","show_post_author":"1","show_post_author_image":"1","show_post_date":"1","post_date_format":"default","post_date_format_custom":"Y\/m\/d","show_post_category":"1","show_post_reading_time":"0","post_reading_time_wpm":"300","show_zoom_button":"0","zoom_button_out_step":"2","zoom_button_in_step":"3","show_post_tag":"1","show_prev_next_post":"1","show_popup_post":"1","number_popup_post":"1","show_author_box":"0","show_post_related":"0","show_inline_post_related":"0"}],"override_image_size":"0","image_override":[{"single_post_thumbnail_size":"crop-500","single_post_gallery_size":"crop-500"}],"trending_post":"0","trending_post_position":"meta","trending_post_label":"Trending","sponsored_post":"0","sponsored_post_label":"Sponsored by","sponsored_post_name":"","sponsored_post_url":"","sponsored_post_logo_enable":"0","sponsored_post_logo":"","sponsored_post_desc":""},"jnews_primary_category":{"id":""},"footnotes":""},"categories":[524],"tags":[],"ppma_author":[1784],"class_list":["post-17454","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-real-stories"],"authors":[{"term_id":1784,"user_id":1,"is_guest":0,"slug":"weddingadmin","display_name":"weddingadmin","avatar_url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/cd3996c46efafdc40969010bfd78c8e4dda9d99318e7dd6403983ea0dadbcfce?s=96&d=mm&r=g","author_category":"","first_name":"","last_name":"","user_url":"","job_title":"","description":""}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17454","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=17454"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17454\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":17538,"href":"https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17454\/revisions\/17538"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/17536"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=17454"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=17454"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=17454"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mywedding.co.ug\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fppma_author&post=17454"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}