An Inter Caste Wedding of A Tamilian and A Punjabi

The weddings in Tamil are very simple affair, unlike those followed in the northern India. There are no show offs and the community believes in traditional rituals which are religiously followed during the weddings. The rituals and customs followed in a traditional Tamil Brahmin wedding different as compared to other communities.

I attended a Tamil wedding of one of my very good friends. The bride was Tamilian and the groom belonged to the Punjabi community. The rituals followed at the wedding involved the rituals from both the bride and the groom. Earlier, there was lots of confusion regarding the customs, but later on everything went very smoothly and followed the Tamil Matrimony rituals.. The groom’s family behaved very elegantly and allowed the bride’s family to follow their rituals and created a peaceful atmosphere.

Since we all know that Punjabi cuisine includes a number of lip-smacking and sumptuous non vegetarian delight, but taking care of the bride’s family’s religious sentiments, they compromised over the food. Being the Tamil Brahmin family, the bride’s side was purely vegetarian and the food served to us was vegetarian and included south Indian food mainly. However, to my surprise, I also saw stalls of north Indian food, which served paneer tikka and other north Indian food, but everything was purely vegetarian.

The bride was wearing an off white sari with gold border, while the groom wore typical Punjabi Paithani suit. The combination of the dresses of the bride and groom was extremely contrasting, but it represented both the cultures very beautifully. Even the groom’s family members wore very flashy and gorgeous dresses, for which Punjabi are famous. The bride’s family wore Kanchipuram and other south silk saris, while the male members were dressed in Dhoti and angavastram. Overall, it was fun to attend an inter-caste wedding, where we got glimpses of both Tamil and Punjabi Matrimony

Author: Rashmi Karan

Delighting Experience at a Punjabi Matrimony

A wedding is a true reflection of the Indian culture. Though the rituals vary in every community, still the motto is same, the bride and groom promise each other to remain bonded together for the whole life. Hindu culture is dominant in India, though other communities like Muslim, Sikh, Christian, Jain, and others also stay in harmony in India.

I got an opportunity to attend wedding of one of my Sikh friends, where the Punjabi Matrimony rituals were not that different from others.

Punjabi Matrimony

The wedding took place at the bride’s home, where the groom reached with a procession, which included a large number of people. The groom looked royal with the bright coloured turban, carried a sword, which made him look like a king, and reached the bride’s home on a white horse.

Wedding Ceremony

  

The Groom reached the bride’s house, where he was welcomed by his mother-in-law by doing an arti, and he was taken to the wedding place, which is known as Mandap. The bride's family took care of the guests and made sure that everyone is enjoying the wedding. During the wedding, the bride and groom exchanged garlands and later the parents of the bride gave away their darling daughter to the groom, wishing for their blissful and happy married life.

Post Wedding Ceremonies

After the wedding rituals of the Punjabi Matrimonial concluded, the bride bided adieu to her parents, and left for her husband’s home with heavy heart. When the bride reached her new home, the groom's mother performed an arti with a pitcher of water to welcome the newlyweds. And on the very next day, the couple visited the bride's family for Phera Dalna. Finally a grand reception party was arranged at my friend’s home to welcome the new member to the family, who is the bride.

Author: Rashmi Karan

Feast of Punjabi Dishes at a Wedding

Punjabi Dishes

Punjabi cuisine is known for lip smacking delicacies. Whenever you think of Punjabi food, delicious dishes come to the mind, which have loads of butter and ghee in it. At the time of wedding of my friend’s sister, who was the Punjabi bride, we all friends gorged on such tasty and delicious food, without bothering about the oil and butter. The wedding was a very lavish one, but the concentration of our group was only on food, so I would like to discuss only about the food that we had in the Punjabi matrimony, all thanks to the Punjabi brides

I had eaten Dal Makhni so many times earlier, but the taste, which I got there in the Punjabi matrimony, was incomparable. The Paranthas, stuffed with seasonal vegetable and served with chunks of white butter and curd, tastes like heaven. Among the vegetarian dishes, I loved to eat paneer tikka, which is cottage cheese roasted over mild fire of tandoor, with some spices and veggies.

Buttermilk mixed with saffron (lassi), almond and pistachio milk, exotic sherbets, kulfi and Panjiri were there for sweet tooth.


Fried and baked fish, tandoori chicken, kebabs, butter chicken, pulao, and a number of mutton and chicken curries were there as the non-vegetarian delights. Extensive use of spices and herbs were used in the dishes that enhanced the taste of food, and also imparted a very rich aroma to them.

Not only non-vegetarian dishes, there were so many vegetarian delicacies for vegetarians in that Punjabi matrimony. “Sarso da saag” and “Makki di roti” were cooked on demand, as people wanted to have the original and sumptuous taste. Kadai paneer, cooked in thick gravy, butter naan, paneer butter masala, amritsari chole and a lot many vegetarian food items were there that made my day.

After gorging on such delicious servings, all I can say is that Punjabi cuisine is awesome, avoid the calories it contains, and indulge in the savoury flavours.

Author: Rashmi Karan

Chooda - The Most Appealing Feature in a Punjabi Bride

Punjabi Wedding

Weddings in Punjab are known to be celebrated with great pride and enthusiasm. From the very starting of life, wearing a chooda is the fantasy of every Punjabi girl. There is a separate charm and a glamour that a Punjabi bride carries along with her chooda. Bride is the most attractive part of the wedding and being it a Punjabi Matrimonial, bride steals all the attention. The whole attire of the bride is very pretty, which adds to her beauty. There are many options for a Punjabi bride to wear on her wedding day. Salwar- suits, saree, lehenga, are few of the outfits, which the bride can wear.

Wedding chooda is available in various patterns, other than the traditional one, which are maroon and white. The combinations of ceramic white and maroon bangles are usually made of ivory. These days, many plastic set of bangles are also used for wearing, due to the high cost of ivory bangles. These bangles differ in price, depending on the material used for making bangles. The count in the bangles set for Punjabi bride can differ from 21 to 31 to 51 bangles. The count depends on the choice of the bride, how much she can carry easily. Other option like engraving the name of the husband is also done by many brides these days.

Now-a-days, not only Punjabi matrimonies witness choodas, it has become a fashion in the brides. Wearing a chooda is a style statement among married women; they love to show it off. Also, it looks amazing and is the best accessory in her wedding attire. The grace and the glamour added by the chooda is all the more thrilling and cheerful, than any other jewellery. No doubt, it is the most appealing and attractive ornament worn by a Punjabi bride, which makes her look doubly beautiful and gorgeous.