The wedding season is here, and the would-be brides and grooms and their families and relatives and friends are all excited for the grand ceremony. Wedding in India is considered to be a sacred ceremony as it involves promises to take care of each other for their whole time and based on the faith of two people and two families binding together. Marriage also gives you a partner for your lifetime and to have a family of own. The marriage binds the two families together, and they share everything and stand by each other in the time of difficulties. As India is a large country of different sects and religion, and diversified culture, so the marriages in India are also different based on sects, religion, based on region or the community. It is to say all these ceremonies are different customs and rituals; nevertheless, the underlying factors are more or less the same as the ‘Kanyadaan‘ or ‘Bidaai‘. As earlier mentioned marriage is considered as sacred in India, so it is the rituals that make the Indian marriages are so amazing.
1. Gathering and Reunion of the Whole Clan
Indian marriages are amazing because it is the time of the family reunion. Marriage in a family makes all of your long distance relatives from distant land come and helping in chores and rituals of marriage. As Indian marriage is grand affairs, it is often seen that elderly relatives usually come to advise on the rituals. It is one time where you get to meet your long distance relatives and get to meet each other. It’s a reunion of the whole of the family that also involves a lot of emotions. Marriages not only is the unification of two people, but marriage united many relationships, many memories and even makes you feel very nostalgic to see your loved ones after a very long time. Surely, the reunion is one of the most amazing and emotional parts of an Indian marriage.
2. Unique Pre-Wedding Rituals or ‘rasam.‘
Indian Marriages is special as it is not a one-day affair, it takes months to prepare, and there are so many rituals to follow, which surely makes it amazing. As India is a land of diverse culture, the rituals are also varied from each other. Rituals also include involving and gathering of friends and relatives and full of fun. It starts with simply ‘Tilak ceremony’ before marriage, then the engagement ceremony. Rituals like ‘Haldi‘,’Mehendi‘, ‘Sangat‘ involves lots of fun and dance together with the huge gatherings of family, friends, relatives, colleagues and neighbours etc. The rituals also involve relatives preparing a grand feast for the bride or groom for their new lives, which is another very fun and unique bachelor party of Indians. So, Indian marriage is not only a day affair. It involves lots of work together with fun.
3. Fashion Parade
Indian wedding means the season of fashion as you can choose your dress for different rituals and flaunt your style. Not only the bride or the groom but the whole guests get adorned with beautiful dresses and jewellery. The Indian wedding dress like traditional saree or Banarasi saree for brides holds a unique tradition of Indian marriages. Although there has held no unique dress code and the bride and groom are free to choose their fashion in ethnic dress apart from traditional attire. Surely, an Indian wedding is no less than a fashion show. Marriage means get pampered yourselves and present you in your best forms for the bride and groom and also for all the guests.
4. Arrival of groom
The groom is arriving for marriage and Indians are making it a great or grand fun ritual. The arrival of the groom with family is one of excitement. Sometimes there involve silly games with the groom to make the atmosphere, ease and tension free. Sometimes there involves grand entry of groom in the house, depicting the royal-ness of Indian culture, involves fireworks and marching bands. It’s also the unification of the two families and relatives.
5. Marriage Ceremony
The day of marriage yet another fun and frolic moment that itself holds many rituals, some types of them like Kanyadaan, Varmala, Pheras, and Sindoor Daan in front of the Fire God (Agni). It likes unification of two souls and promise of each other to take care of each other and stand by every difficulty in future. It’s a vow to protect each other. The ceremony is itself beautiful. It takes place in front of all of your near and dear ones, and it is a very grand ceremony. The sad part of the ceremony is the ‘vidaai‘ when the girls go to her in-laws her leaving her parents. It involves emotions and heartbreaking of the girl’s family.
6. Food
Indians love food and food in marriage is very specials. It is the time when you have to forget all your diet plans and to have food you like. It’s also nice to have food with the families, friends and relatives on the day of marriage. The variety contains almost everything starting from starter to the main course to desserts to drinks. The food usually consists of an Indian dish along with others that may include some Chinese dishes. Fashion combined with food in Indian marriage is the best thing ever.
7. Gifts
Here you can get lots of gifts that are not limited to only flowers and bouquets. Indian marriage involves guests, giving gifts to the newlywed of many items ranging from household items to dress to cooking items to utensils to expensive jewellery or cash, not limited to a specific thing. Gifts are considered as a token of blessings by the elders or a token to congratulate the newlywed for their new lives ahead. There also involves exchanging of gifts from the bride’s house to the groom and groom’s house to the bride’s or exchange of gifts between the relatives. Gifts are just exchanging of love and blessings between the families.
An Indian marriage is such a grand affair that even people outside India used to come to witness the grand affairs. Indians marriages are truly unique irrespective of its diverse culture. It involves lots of emotions along with fun in the marriages.
