The Big Fat Indian Wedding

Everyone has varied opinions on weddings. Some love the little traditions and rituals that come with weddings. Some get bored sitting through the long ceremonies. Some are simply grateful for the food! Whatever a person’s opinion might be, one cannot argue with the fact that a wedding packages all the traditions and culture of a country in it.

Indian weddings, like in any other country, vary from state to state, even city to city. And each state brings with it a new tradition, a new ceremony.

A traditional Indian wedding, in its most basic form, consists of three phases. The pre-wedding ceremonies suck as the ‘mehndi’ and ‘sangeet’. These ceremonies build up to the wedding in a way. You’ll always hear brides saying they don’t really feel like they’re getting married until the day of their ‘mehndi’. The point of the pre-wedding rituals is to simply set the ball rolling. Families get together and have fun. Dance and music is an essential part of these festivities.

After the pre-wedding phase, comes the actual wedding day. The wedding day brings with it the ‘baraat’ that is, the groom’s side of the family being welcomed to the wedding venue by the bride’s family. The ‘varmaala’ stage of the wedding is the exchanging of garlands between the bride and groom. Towards the end of the wedding ceremonies one will see the ritual of ‘satphere’, that is the seven rounds around the fire by the bride and groom, each round; a vow between the two.

The third phase is that of the ‘kanyadan’ and the ‘vidaai’. The ‘kanyadan’ refers to the ritual wherein the father hands his daughter to her groom. The ‘vidaai’ is the sad part of the wedding, where the bride leaves behind her family, as she becomes the part of a new one.

Yes, the Indian wedding is full of small rituals. They’re the key to a memorable wedding!

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