Giant helium balloons with pictures of the family of mining baron G. Janardhan Reddy bob over the Bangalore Palace. Rising like a phoenix beside them is the gigantic replica of the Purandara temple in Hampi.
The former BJP Minister has taken over the Palace Grounds to celebrate the marriage of his daughter Brahmani to Rajeev Reddy on November 16.
The lavish, almost surreal settings of the wedding belies the chaos that is sweeping the nation in the wake of the demonetisation move. Unfettered, preparations for the wedding are in full swing.
“There is a lot of talk about how demonetisation is not impacting this wedding. Why can’t people realise that the arrangements were entrusted to an event management company almost six months ago?” said a member of the team managing the preparations.
For those who got a whiff of how ostentatious the wedding would be when watching the invitation for the wedding, will not be disappointed. For starters, two structures behind the temple replica are models of Mr. Reddy’s Ballari home, and the groom’s Hyderabad home.
“He had a fear that he may not be able to send off his daughter from his Ballari home. The models of the homes have been made here so that all the rituals that had to be performed in Ballari can be done here,” said the team member.
The “homes” are set to host traditional games such as kunte bille, while the “temple” will be used for all the pujas . Around 40 bullock carts are expected to ferry family members from the gate to the wedding hall to maintain the rural flavour.
A 3,000-strong security team, including bouncers, are expected to keep a close watch on the proceedings until November 16. The expected guests number around 50,000.
According to sources close to the family, State and Union government Ministers will be gracing the occasion.
However, the event management team dismissed rumours of Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan attending the wedding or performing in it. “Sonu Nigam and his team are expected, that’s all,” said the team.
