Henna Decoration or Mehendi is the most important part of the
traditional Indian weddings. While weaving Mehendi on the hands of
both bride and groom, the henna artist must weave the name of both
bride and groom on each other’s hands. Then, the bride and the groom
must find their names in their beloved’s henna design. According to
the rituals, Indian brides cannot do any household work until her
henna completely fades away.
There are numerous little ceremonies that last around a week. It is
difficult to understand the reasons behind all the ceremonies, games
and role-plays that occur during this weeklong period or to follow
how all of these customs originated. However, it is something so
beautiful and fun-filled that everyone should experience it once in
their lives.
The Baaraat
Baaraat is one of the most fun-filled parts of the Indian weddings.
During the baraat, the family members and relatives of the groom
gather at a destination which is around a mile away from the venue
and hire a horse for the groom, while everyone else walks and dances
on foot until they reach the marriage venue. This may not sound very
cool but the wedding band and dhol wallahs accompany them and
sometimes they have an entire DJ console on wheels. There are always
a few cars which carry booze for the baaratis so that they can have a
drink while dancing on the road.
The Food and The Venue
Indian weddings without food is like a cart without wheels. In fact,
90% of the people who come to attend the wedding don’t even know
the bride and the groom; yet they come to have the sumptuous Indian
as well as international cuisines that are on offer. There are so many
varieties in the food section that even if you taste just small quantities
of each dish, you won’t have enough space in your stomach to have
them all.
Indian weddings always have gorgeous decorations strewn everywhere
in and around the marriage venue. There are huge LED lights, and
flowers – mainly lilies, marigolds, and roses. Buildings and reception
The Photo Diary
Mumbai, India
areas are festooned with LED lights while flowers and petals are strewn
everywhere, with streamers.
The Fun Part
One of the most interesting and enticing rituals of Indian wedding
ceremonies is the ‘Juta Chupaai’ (hiding of groom’s shoes). The groom
has to remove his shoes during the vow ceremony or ‘Pheras’. It is then
that the sisters of bride steal those pair of shoes. After the completion
of the ceremony, the groom is asked to pay a ransom or a ‘fee’ for the
safe return of his shoes. The groom comes prepared for this and tries
to bargain the amount to get his shoes and offers cash or traditional
trinkets, called kalicharis, gold for the bride’s sisters and silver for her
cousins.
The Vow
The bride and the groom are supposed to welcome each other with
garlands before they take the marriage vow. The altar where the couple
has to take the ‘seven holy vows’ has four poles adorned with flowers
on the four corners with the holy fire burning at the centre. The couple
is supposed to hold each other’s hand while taking the ‘Pheras’ where
they walk around the holy fire seven times; each ‘Phera’ symbolizing a
vow.
The Doli
Doli is the time when the bride has to finally leave her parents’ home
after completing all the rituals to start a new life with her groom. It is
one of the most emotional parts of a girl’s life where she bids farewell
to her old life, old home and her family to start a new life with her
husband. The whirlwind of emotions that surround the scene makes
even the most hard-hearted people misty-eyed.
Rahul Batra RB
[email protected]
Rahul is a culture based writer who left his engineering job to pursue a career
in writing. He is a flaneur who thinks that the ideas brewing up in his skull-
sized kingdom can transform this world into a better one. He wishes to write a
psychological thriller one day.
The Moment Of Happy Sadness
Canon EOS 5D Mark III 50mm F/1.4 1/100s ISO400