Sunday, December 6, 2009

The Big Fat Indian Wedding


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Wedding bells rang again.. Now it’s my friend Kirti Kumar’s marriage. I went, along with my friends, to Narasapuram to attend Kirti’s marriage. We were accommodated in a beautiful Dindi guesthouse, on the banks of river Godavari in Konaseema. The boat rides, view of a bridge on the river, dexterously decorated ponds around the guesthouse, dense flora with coconut trees and accommodation adjacent to a beautiful village reflected the scenic beauty of Konaseema.
    Later, we went to Kirti’s house where he started to marriage function hall. Have you started imagining that he is getting into a car? You are wrong. He got into a majestic chariot drawn with white horses. It took us some time to come out of this shock and believe that we were still in 2009. We participated and in fact danced as the procession proceeded with colorful crackers towards the functional hall.
    As soon as I entered the marriage functional hall premises, a beautiful girl greeted me with a red rose. I was wondering, God! Where am I? What is happening to me? Later I came to know that she was a part of an event management team that is organizing the marriage. As I moved on, another girl gave me a pamphlet that has the entire menu. Though it read fruits counter, chat bandar, sweet counter, tiffin counter, etc, I did not get enough time to visit all the stalls. How do I visit? It was crowded with approximately 12000 people. Yes, it reminded me of a fair rather than a marriage.
    The marriage was held in their own college grounds, Swarnandhra Group of Engineering Colleges grounds. In parallel, there was a cultural fest, with Gemini TV and Zee TV anchors hosting the show. In the meantime, my family members, friends and I were asked to have dinner in VIP section with the politicians. The thirty six feet stage was decorated with exquisite collection of flowers. While one half of the stage was occupied with the priests who came to perform marriage ceremony, the other half was occupied with eager photographers. But, numerous screens put across in the grounds and the live video captured through a rail track system facilitated guests. I think I might never get another chance to see twenty three priests performing a marriage ceremony. They gifted me a big silver glass and a dinner set to commemorate the marriage.
    In one line, this Great Indian Big Fat Wedding is the superlative of grandeur. I attended many of my friends’ marriages. Every marriage I attend is very special to me because it is one of the biggest moments in my friends’ life. Knowing Kirti personally for more than twelve years made this marriage even more special to me.