An Intercaste Punjabi-Marathi Wedding

The next morning was the chooda (seen all those Punjabi brides wear a broad set of red and white bangles? that!) and the haldi ki rasam.

It was to start at 9 in the morning because we had early pheras. Everybody put in their bit to get things ready in time. The bride and I had to keep reminding aunty that I was the photographer and would not be able to help around too much with her chores. Though I did, off and on.

This was an inter-caste wedding and following the Marathi custom the boy's mother, sister and aunts came with the haldi (turmeric-gram flour mix) to the bride's house.
 

Curious Chrisanthi

Between all this, I locked myself up in a secluded room for some time to capture the bride's wedding dress and jewelry. 

What a lovely, dazzling neck piece, you must think? Call me or write to me and I'll tell you where she picked it up

After all the ceremonies were done with, it was time for us (the bride, 2 of her close friends and the photographer) to leave for the hotel because the make-up artist was going to reach there soon and it would take the bride 2-3 hours to get ready for the evening.

 

She didn't look like her usual self all decked-up in that bridal attire, even though what she chose to wear was very simple and light as compared to what we see most Punjabi brides in.
 

 

 "Is that really you?" was the question everybody kept posing

 

Come the wedding day and Santa sent all the fog he could in a single shot, along with heavy cold winds (thank God, we were done with the pheras in the evening!). If you have experienced Dilli ki Sardi (Delhi winter),  you know what I'm talking about. The dance floor, the entire chaat (snacks) section and the 'stage' were set up outdoor, which was a fiasco, thanks to the wind.

The bride and the groom, finally, had to be called inside the dining hall, where their couch was moved, and, where the studio guy had to manage rest of those conventional photographs with the guests had to be taken. The only person that wouldn't come in was this little 3 and a 1/2 year old girl, who just couldn't stop dancing to 'Radha teri chunri…' and kept running back to the dance floor in the freezing cold.

It was a long day and everyone was tired. Plus the weather. The groom's family left the venue to get to their hotel as soon as possible because they had a flight to catch the next morning; the couple was spending the night at the Marriott Courtyard itself. It was now time for the family to eat dinner after all the guests had left. I was forced to leave too because the fog was only getting more and more dense. There was no Bidai (send-off ceremony) as such.