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No ordinary wedding, this
RUPA SRIKANTH
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The bride and bridegroom were there with all the paraphernalia. So what is new?
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AUSPICIOUS: Recreating an ancient practice where two dolls are married off.
Just before ’Rahu kalam’ at 9 a.m. on a Monday morning last week, a group of women dressed in traditional wedding finery assembled at the venue for the Mappillai Azhaippu or the ‘Bridegroom’s Welcome.’
As the groom’s side was ushered in, the auspicious music of the nagaswaram reverberated inside the wedding hall.
The wedding ceremony got under way with the long-forgotten practice of’showing the bride to the groom’ that was accompanied by laughter and light-hearted banter.
As both parties mingled freely, one noticed the complete absence of protocol; rather unusual in a traditional setup onemight think. However, this was no ordinary wedding, it was a Marapaachi wedding, marriage between two wooden dolls.
The ceremony was organised by Kalavardhini, centre for the preservation of Indian culture and heritage, with a view to re-creating an ancient practice followed in villages where women and children participated and performed Bommai Kalyanam together. It was believed that ‘Marapaachi’ weddings brought luck to the house it was performed in and to those who attended it.
Redsanders wood
The dolls themselves come with an auspicious tag attached. Made of redsanders wood that has medicinal value as well, they can be sourced in Kalahasti and Tirupati though they are traditionally handed down generations.
Every South Indian bride is gifted a pair when she gets married. These dolls, which signify the divine couples Siva-Parvathi or Vishnu-Lakshmi are then richly adorned and made centrepieces in her Navarathri kolu.
The various relationship roles having been assigned earlier, the wedding ceremony of ‘Siva’ and ‘Ambika’ was a smooth flow of events peppered with explanations in between.
‘Kasi Yatra,’ Maalai Maatruthal or the exchange of garlands and Oonjal, were not omitted. ‘Mangalya Dharanam’ witnessed the oldest married woman (Sumangali) tying the sacred yellow thread around the bride’s neck.
The ritual of the groom placing the bride’s foot on the grinding stone was gone through. The last was the fun event — the Nalangu, in which the bride and groom break pappads over each other’s heads and challenge each other to ‘find the treasure’ in a pot of coloured water.
Appropriate wedding songs were included, every attempt made to give the event an authentic flavour.
Verses from the Thevaram were sung after the Thirumangalyam was tied with their relevance explained. Miniature Paruppu-Thengai cones, representing the male and female concept were made and displayed as was the seeru of miniature sweets, savouries and utensils.
The wedding feast and the thamboolam, the take-home package of a coconut, betel leaves and betel nuts along with bangles and eatables, were the other traditions followed meticulously.
The emphasis was on the social aspects of a marriage rather than on the religious angle, so lively participation was the key. While it brought out the child in every adult, it also gave a better understanding of wedding ceremonies. The many Marapaachi guests can stand testimony to this.
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Friday Review
Bangalore
Chennai and Tamil Nadu
Delhi
Hyderabad
Thiruvananthapuram
|
