Wedding bells ringing loud

The economic downturn has weighed down everything except for the glamour of North Indian wedding. The naach gaana, loads of khana, and suitable degree of showing off remains as it is…Fully foodie! The big fat North Indian wedding is incomplete without delicious delicacies. However, if the trend is to be believed, main course has taken a backseat and it is the wide range of starters that are making rounds Geeta Das South Delhi The marriage season is in full swing, with almost everyone being invited to attend at least one party or ceremony. On one such auspicious day, a very insignificant person like me was invited to as many as ten places in ten different parts of the city. I wonder how many people there are of marriageable age in one city! Apart from the flashy dresses and the beautiful decorations, the one thing I noticed was the range of mouth-watering starters that roll out as soon as you enter the venue, often even before you get a chance to greet the host. The presence of starters lures you in. Both vegetarian and non-vegetarian hors d’oeuvres with tasty spices and chutney, either steamed, deep fried or baked, are visible in every nook and corner of the venue, sometimes served by a person who does not even know the name of the snack being served. Chaat and fruit stalls are the other distractions from the main course. And who can forget the multicoloured welcoming drinks! All this munching helps to chat with the guests and kill time before the final dinner or lunch arrives. And it is not by chance that the food generally appears ages after the starters have done umpteen rounds, with lingering smells tempting you to take a bite.

One cannot help but notice the motive behind this: the caterers intend to fill you up with starters so that there is less space in the tummy for the main course. However the point remains that for a business to be successful, one must be smart enough to understand that starters are finishers. I am also reminded of what cookery author Rosamond Richardson once said: "Food can make people feel good, bring them together, inspire romantic feelings... At its most basic, it is fuel for a hungry machine". Bon appétit!

The making of ‘happily married ever after’ A visit to a wedding and all we see is a picture perfect couple, a movie set like marriage hall and everything aptly in place. But what we never see is the amount of hard work that goes behind it. Here’s a glimpse into the behind the scene intricacies of a successful marraige Khushboo Jha South Delhi Marriages may be made in heaven (and that’s the easy part), but preparations for the gala event are certainly done on earth.

Marriage teaches you patience, or so it is said, but marriage preparation teaches you, fund management, time management, labour management, marketing& haggling, and last but not least people management (what with the preaching aunties, grinning grannies, blaming pundits all working at cross purposes to each other). Add to this the complexity of geographic distances, when the bride is working in Delhi, the Groom works in Bombay, Bride’s parents are in Bihar, and Grooms parents are in Bengal. Now that’s a national integration wedding, and the wedding song should be "mile sur mera tumhara". Long story short, M.A. (Marriage Administration) would be the toughest course to crack were it taught in the university. So much goes into the making of each ’happily ever after’ , that in this season of weddings , Delhi is abuzz with its razzmatazz

Pre wedding preparation starts with the engagement ring, and that’s when South-Ex market suddenly starts getting frequented a little too often. While there is the entire jhing-bang of jewellers at Ansal Plaza and South-Ex market the bigger question is how does the bride in Delhi decide the ring size and design for a fussy groom in Bombay. Technology to the rescue, online catalogue is referred to. The rest of the shopping procession follows, to include sarees, shoes and purses. Pre-wedding haggling however is best practised at Karol Bagh , where, the actual price is so elusive that the settlement price is as uncertain as the next number called in a kitty party tambola. Shopping however is quite a drain on the purse this season, as anything with the pre-fix bridal has its value increased manifold.Technology not just eases work load, it adds to it as well. So, while in older days, red coloured ganesha wedding card was good enough, now, the bride & the groom need to prepare an e-card, a power-point presentation, and run a website to announce their weddings. It’s a tough job, thinking about each other and deciding what to share with friends & family without causing much embarrassment.

Selection of the traditional card is also a daunting task. While the elders in the family have already given a list of pre-requisites, the do’s & the dont’s (far more than the do’s) , the market right from , Sarojini, to Nehru Place , and to Chawri Bazaar is crammed with all possible manifestations of a divine invite. Reaching these markets is an adventure in itself.The economic downturn has weighed down everything, except the Delhi wedding glamour. The beeline of travel agencies in the Connaught place circle are laughing all the way to the Bank, while they sell, not just destinations, but dream holidays.All set and done, this is only the beginning of the marriage preparations. What follows, is the selection of the wedding planner, deciding the wedding theme décor, wedding venue arrangements, guest accommodations and so on.