Indian Wedding

Bengal, an Eastern state of India, is famous for its sweets, especially the mouth-watering ‘ROSOGOLLAS’. The various ceremonies and rituals followed by the Bengalis during a traditional wedding are as interesting and as coulerful as their sweets.

In a Bengali wedding ceremony known as Adan Pradan (give and take) it is confirmed that the wedding is not between close relatives or persons with the same gotra or lineage. This is followed by ‘Paka Dekha’; a ceremony involves the finalization of the date of wedding. Two days before the wedding the confirmation of the marriage alliance known as ‘Ashirwad’ or ‘Patri Patra’ ceremony takes place.
Pre-Bengali wedding rituals include bringing piris , the seats for the bride and the groom during the wedding, Vridhi ceremony, attended by all family members offering puja/prayer to all the ancestors of the bride and the groom, Dodhi Mangal, ten married women accompany the groom to a nearby pond and bring back a pitcher pond water to bathe the bride and the groom separately, Gae Halud Tattva and Adhibas Tattva , gifts coming from the groom’s and bride’s houses respectively to the bride and the groom and Kub Patta, on the wedding day, to revere Saint Kuber
After bath the bride and groom will put on new set of clothes gifted to them by their in-laws. The bride follows their tradition of wearing Sankha Pola or Conch shell, red and white bangles dipped in turmeric water. It is the ritual for the bride to wear a new sari along with the Sankha Pola after a bath. Now the bride begins to decorate herself in all the fine fabulous bridal costumes, surrounded by her sisters and close friends. The traditional wear for a Bengali bride is a bright red costly Banarasi silk sari, heavily embroidered with golden or silver threads and a matching blouse/jacket that clings to the body. In addition to the usual ornaments she wears Jhumka- a bell-shaped earring made of solid gold having a row of tiny beads along its edge, a favorite among the Bengali women. To support the weight of the earring a string of pearl is attached to it and the other end is hooked to the hair behind the earlobe. The bride’s hair is tied into a bun and is covered with a veil. A beautiful crown known as Mukut is placed on her head and kept in its place by pinning it to the veil.
Mandap, the wedding altar, is decorated with flowers and bulbs and two banana trees are planted at the mandap along with a large alpana/rangoli, a type of design/pattern, made with rice paste on the floor.
At the bride’s house the groom and the relatives are given a ceremonious welcome by ringing bells, blowing conch shells and ululation. An elder female relative of the bride touches the forehead of the groom with the baran dala/plate and then the ground and back again his forehead, as a gesture of part blessing and part reverence.The groom is offered sweets and cool drinks and water is sprinkled on the doorsteps as the groom enters the house to mark the auspicious moment.
In the midst of much revelry, conch blowing and clapping, the bride’s uncles carry her on their shoulders to the mandap/altar.The bride and groom exchange garlands when the purohit/priest who conducts the wedding chants mantras. The Bengalis follow a custom called Sampradhan where maternal or paternal uncle hands over the bride to the groom in marriage.
Post wedding rituals include asar Ghar, welcoming the couple inside the bride’s house, Bashi Biye, looking into a mirror groom decorates the bride’s forehead with vermillion and Bidaai, the couple leaving the bride’s place for the groom’s house.