What Catrin did next.: I Think I Wanna Marry You, in Garwahli Fashion.

Sunday 10 February 2013

I Think I Wanna Marry You, in Garwahli Fashion.

Did you know that January is an auspicious month in the Hindu calender? Well, had you been awoken by the 'Wedding drum' at 5am for 1/3 of your mornings in Sainji, I think you (like Flo and I) would have learnt this very, very swiftly. We have spent 5 weeks in Sainji and are due to leave in the next few days, but we have attended 6 weddings - 3x as many Hindu weddings than Western weddings that I have attended in my lifetime! We soon learnt how one goes about Garwahli style weddings - apparently weddings vary from state to state, as I noticed when I may have accidentally walked into a wedding in Agra... - dance lots, eat quickly and well, and dance some more.

The dancing style (the link goes to a youtube video of the dancing!) was tricky for both of us to master, but after a few dance lessons at the school in preparation for Savitri's wedding, we both got the hang of it. Sort of. Not really at all. The colours, the sheer vats of food, the families, the friends...it was all so beautiful and wonderful to be a part of.

Two teachers at the school, Shayum and Savitri were seperately getting married, and knowing either the Groom or the Bride made the experience all the more special and memorable. Savitri made a beautiful bride, dressed in a chiffon red Sari embellished in the most gorgeous sequins and sparkles, and her Henna party the night before gave us a chance to try out our amateur Henna skills on the villagers! We may have felt like Wedding Crashers but we were welcomed at every step of the way at all the weddings we attended and I loved it. While the culture surrounded romance and love was different to ours, in played no part in appreciating the festivities and it was wonderful to watch a life long commitment being formed.