Page 52 - Urban Kapital Magazine Autumn 21

CULTURAL WEDDINGS

INDIA - BY SHUBHANGI DUA

The Haldi ceremony is a “ritual holy The bride’s entry is the high-
bath” where the bride and groom’s light of the ceremony where
family apply a mixture of Turmeric, she is led to the groom on
water and a base oil on the arms, stage with her band of broth-
face and feet of the bride that is ers holding a red ‘dupatta’
known to infuse an extravagant lu- over her head.
minous skin texture before for the
main event. “Jay maala” is the next ritual
in which the couple adorn each
Sangeet is an event where the star other with flower garlands. Fi-
couple’s family members often de- nally, the wedding havan be-
pict choreographed gins, a sacrificial ritual with a
performances and sometimes the flamed ‘kunda’ at the centre
Big Indian Weddings two sides have a showdown. around which the bride and
Every wedding in India is in its own The sangeet evening’s highlight is groom take seven rounds to-
way, a big fat culturally enriching ex- usually the bride and groom’s gether called, “Mangal Fera”,
perience. performance. the first four led by the groom
and the last three by the bride.
Weddings in India are individual, and The main event, the wedding -
they differ according to a couple’s occurs the next day beginning with According to the Hindu tradi-
family home, regional and religious rituals like the groom’s tion, seven rounds are imper-
backgrounds. “Sehrabandi,” where the groom is ative, and they complete the
adorned with a traditional headgear, wedding, formally and legally
The diversity of weddings taking then takes the reign of his horse for announcing the marriage of
place across the country today in- the “Baraat,” and finally ascends to the two people.
clude Muslim weddings, Parsi the wedding venue with his family
weddings, tribal weddings ranging members dancing while also
from region to region, Sikh weddings, leading him to the final ceremony.
Christian weddings as well as Jewish
wedding ceremonies.

This article focuses on our recent
family wedding on South India, where
some noteworthy wedding traditions
still exist such as: Hindu Wedding
traditions which are determined
through astrology by a priest or a
professional astrologer, whose job is
to check the “Janam Kundli,” a kind
of birth chart of the bride and groom.
It is interpreted using numbers from
the bride and groom’s time of birth,
then connected with the map of the
sky and aspects of the couples’ future
MAGAZINE // 52 My family practice some rich cultural
is predicted.

traditions that involve many colourful
and meaningful ceremonial rituals.