Indian weddings are famous all over the world. The amount of money we spend on clothes, food, wine, invitation cards, decorations, venues and on the various ceremonies involved makes them most talked about globally.
In India, it all starts when the groom and the bride agrees to tie a knot with each other. The groom and the bride agrees to tie a knot by exchanging rings with each other in the ceremony called the Ring Ceremony. This ceremony is usually accompanied by a tea party or a dinner. In India a gap of 3-6 month is kept in between the ring ceremony and the wedding. Within this time frame both the families prepare themselves for the wedding.
The preparation involves:
- Selecting and fixing the menu for the wedding dinner.
- Booking the venue/s for the wedding party.
- Getting the invitation cards printed.
- Mailing and inviting guests.
- Arranging a place for the guests to stay.
- Arranging clothes, photographers, jewelry, gifts, wine etc
On the arrival of the wedding day, groom reaches at the brides place for the wedding function. He reaches at the decided venue in a group of his friends and relatives which is called the Baraat. Dhol, fireworks, dances etc are some of the highlights of the Baraat. The guests or the relatives who accompanies the groom are the Baraatis. On the arrival of the Baraat, starts a ceremony called Milni. In this ceremony the relatives of the bride and the relatives of the groom both meet each other by exchanging gifts and blessings. Jai Mala, is the next ceremony. In this ceremony the bride puts a flower garland around the neck of her groom and vice versa. Followed by Jai Mala, starts the lavish dinner. A good food and a good wine not only leaves a good impression on the guests but it also makes the entire wedding a memorable one. These days North Indian, South Indian, Chinese, and the Continental cuisines are quite common in the Indian wedding. Followed by the dinner starts the ceremony named Phere which takes 2-3 hours and is performed by a Pandit. The last ceremony is the Vidai. In this ceremony, bride takes a leave from her parents.