The thing about Punjabi weddings

As I open the door, I see the mailman impatiently tapping his foot giving me the ‘what-took-you-so-long’ look. “bolo bhaiya” I say, he hands me a large lavish basket and signals me to sign across my name. After he left, I walked over to my bed and opened the delicately packaged basket, it had an invitation accompanied with a champagne bottle and assorted chocolates. The card simply read ‘Prerna weds Arjun’, it was finally upon us, it was our drama queen’s wedding day.

There were a series of functions before the wedding day and it was all taking place in Udaipur. The big fat Punjabi wedding was underway, so without losing and time I packed my bags and departed from Delhi. Upon arrival I was received by a courteous gentleman, who escorted me to an antique looking car. The whole palace looked like a fairytale, much like the image we had in our minds when we used to joke about our wedding day’s back when we were 18.

The thing about Punjabi weddings is nothing is ever average, it’s either lavish or it’s non-existent. The white, gold and red color combination did wonders to the palace. I changed and went to meet a happy yet flustered Prerna, who by now had dark circles under her eyes, was barely eating and couldn’t decide what to wear. The need and want to be perfect took a toll on her and still it made her happy. Arjun, on the other hand was worried about his wife-to-be but nonetheless I had never seen a bigger smile on his face.

I met the brother of the bride, whose main priority was to look handsome and score a few dates, sure he’d miss his sister but he knew she will never be too far away from him. The parents on the other hand seemed happy that their daughter was marrying into a good family but they’ll miss the little chubby girl who ran down the hallway shouting, the teenage daughter who never had enough clothes to wear or the matured daughter, who is now set to be married.

If Punjabi weddings had to be defined in a few words it would be Dance, Daaru and Drama. It’s a 7day affair with, 12 functions, 8 hangovers, 2 fights and unlimited fun. Punjabi weddings are always a class apart with its show-sha.

The sagai, the cocktail party, the mehendi and all the other functions were celebrated at a large scale and midst all the craziness laid the union of two lovers. On the wedding day, which was another grand night, Prerna looked every bit like a princess would and Arjun seemed like the perfect match. The union was written in the stars. The mother and father of the bride seemed happy with the functions going smoothly but inside they felt upset as their daughter was going away, forever. The happiness on the couple’s face as they took the pheras was inexplicable, Arjun was very supportive of Prerna and her parents and similarly Prerna took care of Arjun’s family, it was a serene sight to see both the families being united as one. After all the ceremonies were completed, Arjun held Prerna’s hand and led her to the chair, he looked into her eyes and said ‘if only words could fathom what I feel, Mrs. Prerna Arjun Kapoor.’ With that came the end of a glorious wedding.

The thing about Punjabi weddings is that even with blurry memories, the sore foot and the drama; these weddings show us the celebrations of the unison of two soul mates. The brother running and the parent’s greeting the guests with a smile on their face is a happy memory. I guess that’s what makes a wedding a bit of fun, a bit of drama, a bit of confusion, a bit of emotions, a bit of dance and a lot of love.

Punjabi’s show the world how to celebrate love, lavishly.

Tanya