Report – Vikas Chandra Agarwal
“Marriages are made in heaven, and are only solemnised on earth.”
A different perspective starts flashing in our mind on the mere mention of the word wedding . A vibrant and happening crowded atmosphere filled with music and dance is immediately picturized before us . Once the marriage settles the biggest task is to prepare the list of guests to be invited to the wedding. Besides, shopping, booking a marriage lawn or hotel, caterer, florist, electrician and much more work starts crumbling up in our mind.
During wedding season , there is festive look on the streets in the evening. Well decorated marriage lawns / hotels and the vehicles parked on the roads outside make you feel a little congested . One can feel the joyful mood of baaratis dancing to the tune of the band and DJ. While all this brings the traffic off the tracks for a while, the married people unknowingly revisit the memories of their marriage day while unmarried get a sweet tickle imagining their own big day in future.
In today’s time, attending a wedding has become like going for an outing . It is joyful to meet friends and relatives, get photographed with them, and enjoy a variety of dishes.
More than 80% of the guests return before the arrival of the baarat and after dinner if the baarat has reached on time. There are very few guests who are interested in watching Jaimaal or other religious rituals . What do we discuss among ourselves after returning home – How was the food? How was the decoration? Who amongst our known group attended the marriage? Bride and Groom are rarely a topic of such discussions.
However whole scenario has changed since spread of Pandemic. A message is very popular on social media these days – “Do not dare to compete with me, there were more waiters in my wedding than the number of guests in your marriage.”
It may appear to be a little sarcastic but this is the reality now a days , after the outbreak of Corona. According to current enforced rules, only 50 people can join marriage celebrations combining both sides. On further improvement of situation , this number may increase upto hundred in future . Now, while making the guest list, there is even a greater problem, whom to invite ? In the present situation, the question of who will come to attend marriage from other cities also becomes very pertinent.
You don’t require a big venue to arrange for a gathering of 50 people ? Neither the Band Baja procession will be necessary nor the traffic on the roads will be blocked due to the movement of baarat. Due to strict rules of maintaining social distance and covering your face with mask the beauty of group photography and dancing to the tunes of DJs will be much compromised.
Since childhood, we have been hearing that in the coming times, wasteful expenses on wedding will be curtailed , but the exact opposite happened. Celebrations of weddings by blocking the road of your locality ,gradually shifted to marriage halls and hotels. Event management companies have entered the arena of arranging wedding celebration s. If you are rich , how can you say no to destination wedding. This may not be difficult for those who have lot of money, but the problem is for those who have to join this blind race by spending all the accumulated capital of their lives and sometimes even by borrowings.
We as a society have failed to put curb on such extravagance and show of wealthat weddings, but nature has tried to curtail it by outbreak of Corona.
We have to imbibe this message of nature. We must re establish the sanctity and purity of nuptial rituals and totally stop this extravagance and show of wealth. We have to understand that totality of married life lies within mutual trust and love and not in this wastage of money.