Markundi/Sarbaala, the youngster

“Sarbaala” in hindi, “Markundi” in odiya is the younger brother, cousin or nephew, who accompany groom on the marriage date. Presently, this is the most prominent way to involve younger kids as a part of the marriage celebration.

Origin: I spend enormous time on books and internet to know the evolution of this concept. Hardly, there is any mention about role of  “Markundi” in marriage. The following sentences, collected from web, carry the best meaning:

 Original word could have been derived from Sanskrit. Seh-baala...Associate groom. Or Sir-baala...replaceable groom (in case the groom disappears). Many weddings in old days used to happen amidst a feud and fight between two sides with a very good chance of Groom getting his head chopped by someone. Seh-baala will take his place and bring the bride home for tribe's honor no matter what. I am sure originally groom used to be 12 or 14 yr olds while Sarbaala few years younger but oddly grooms have grown older(sometimes 35 yr:-)) with time but sarbala have become even younger with the tradition turning into only a tradition without any practical use with time.

This tradition is practised in many parts of the sub-continent but almost religiously in north and eastern states. Anyone can go through below points, to make it more attractive.

·         Go for the same style of dress for Groom as well as Markundi. The only difference will be visible as size of the wearable.

·         Going one step ahead, choose shoes, turban and other accessories with similar to groom’s collection.

·         Spend some time with the Markundi and tell the youngster what you have in mind ahead of time, and explain what is expected of them on the day. Explain what a wedding is all about and why it’s an honour to get this special role.

·         Give a thought, how messy children can be, especially at the reception. It’s a wise decision, to investing some extra, on alternative wear for when they want to start skidding around the dance floor.

·         You’ll probably also want to invest in a gift to say thanks for their services. Bear in mind that all children want to play with gifts now, if it’s a new toy. So make sure it’s something that can keep them amused during the reception and not intrude on the reception, like a vuvuzela.

Save the Date, a teaser...

Teaser, a well known word for advertise industry. Have you ever thought, why movies, campaigns, ads have always teaser and why not a marriage event. Don’t worry. Now, read the article carefully and get a fair idea about creating a teaser for your marriage.

 

Lets the audience know something big is coming. After all, you had walked long years to be the lead protagonist of the movie sponsored by your dad.  This teaser is the single opening gambit that gets your friends and relatives attention and gives them a heads up as to what is coming their way.

Save the Date: A save the date is a notice stating the date of a significant event such as a wedding. It is typically sent to those likely to be interested or affected by the event and states the planned date of the occasion so that recipients who wish to attend know to keep that date free. For weddings, save the dates usually take the form of a card. They are generally sent out at least six to twelve months before the wedding date, and are usually followed by a formal wedding invitation.

You can send a card, as a part of traditional way. However, I will suggest going for an online update, on a social site used by your fraternity, with a simple image carrying bold letters “SAVE THE DATE” and the numerical date itself. Otherwise, send the same image to your friends mailing box. Publish the image at your own wedding website, dedicated for each and every update about the special day or send the “Save the date” card to their postal address followed by a marriage invitation. To add more twist to story, you can write, “HOLD THE DATE” with keeping other attributes as same as “Save the Date”.

Wedding Websites

Now, the world is all about internet and social networking. To keep pace with the time, “Wedding Website” is a must have option to choose before marriage. It has become important to announce important life events and information about you through a social network and online to keep your friends and family aware of what’s going on in your life. Getting married is no exception, so go for a wedding website that you can use to add details and information about your wedding. Share it in a really fast and unique way.

Couples use personalized wedding websites as a convenient and paper-free way to share the news of their upcoming event with the world. A wedding website is especially important for out-of-town guests making travel arrangements. Users can easily provide their guests with important info like route map for drive, group hotel rates, special attire, or anything that will be helpful for their guests before they arrive!

With the help of internet services, even the least tech-savvy create a semi-custom site with ease. You choose a design from a variety of templates and color schemes, and personalize it with your photos and event details. Beyond the basics, it's nice to include a brief story about how you and your fiance met or to recount the proposal. Your journey from day one to till date, his/her likes, any special moment etc...

This is a fabulous idea for making your marriage special. The best part, it comes under “Do it yourself” category. Neither the parent nor the friends will do it for your marriage. Don’t waste the time reading till the end to get more idea, open www.google.com on a new tab and type Wedding Websites....

Weeding Speech

Weeding speeches can be traced back in history as far as ancient Greece, where Choricius of Gaza, a Greek philosopher, became famous for his beautiful speeches delivered to brides and grooms.

Wedding speeches have definitely evolved through time. They used to be nothing more than blessings given by the fathers of both the bride and groom. Modern speeches often include humor as well as well wishing blessings.

Though it’s a tradition in western culture, can be a part of Indian marriage celebration. However, it allowed with the * condition of “GLOCAL” theory. “GLOCAL” means, Being global but acting local. The speech should follow local touch, as per our culture and traditions with the prescribed rules or frame of global standard.

Go for googling on internet, especially on You Tube. Definitely, you will get some good videos and have a fair idea about this concept. There are so many sample speeches available on internet and easily anyone can go for copy and pest, with a must “Edit” option to give own emotional touch.

Check the following video, one of the best speeches by bride’s father.

 

 

An Unique Way

Oriya  Actor  Sritam  Das  got  Married  to  Punam

Oriya actor and director Sritam Das got married to Punam from Indra Nagar, Rayagada on Wednesday (07/12/2011). The marriage took place in Gita Jnana temple situated at Biju Patnaik circle of Cuttack.

This marriage function happened in a unique way. Sritam came to the marriage place by riding a bullock cart and the baryatris by rickshaws. Many actors from Oriya album and film industry attended this ceremony.

How  Sritam  met  Punam ?

Acoording to Punam’s elder sister, they met eachother online four months ago. After they sent their photos to eachother by chatting. Then they informed their families and finally got married with both families’ wishes.

Source: http://incredibleorissa.com/oriyafilms/oriya-actor-sritam-das-got-married-to-punam-riding-bullock-cart/

 

Bachelor party / Mehendi:

 

Let’s plan something to make your bachelor party or Mehendi occasion memorable, for years to come. But one new, well versioned, dictionary. Put it on a prominent place or pass it from one friend to another.

Request your guests to circle words in a dictionary to remind you of their wedding day. Then ask them to write a message on a bookmark to explain why they picked each word. You'll always need a dictionary in your home, and you'll cherish this one forever.

Change the “Engine Oil”, to make the ride better

My friends still smile at me when i tell them about this thought and i in turn smile at them. One thing that i wanted to say, it’s not necessary to be a genius for making people happy. The only skill you require “Commonsense”. It depends on you, how smartly you can “Copy” the thoughts from other’s life, from book, from movie etc. and how smartly can “Pest” in real life with the "Midas touch" of personalise "Edit".

Just think of the last time, you had change the engine oil of your bike? I agree, about your petrol expenses like going for shopping, dinner, parks; etc with spouse but this thought is all about changing “Engine Oil” to make the ride better.

Now, come to the thought directly, (Intro narration, already finished). I was watching the movie, “Bunty Aur Babli”, and the particular scene at Taj Mahal, can act as engine oil for your bike of relationship. They take their marriage vows in front of the Taj Mahal, promising to see each other through life and death, promising to think about each other first, promising to take care of one another, promising to increase the “Love Meter” velocity day by day, promising not to bother about public, promising not to cheat each other bla bla... And then they go right back to doing what they like best.

Yes, one more Vow Ceremony can be done for both of you, you & only for you. Watch the movie and specifically the particular scene, remember those lines or write something similar to that with your own mother language (to make it different). Choose a place, select a particular time, and start taking vows for each other. These words, promises, thoughts are your own, for you only. It’s not for the society, not for family not for the sake of rituals.

Capture the memory with beautiful snaps and be happy. I am sure, a day will come and you will be glad to narrate this incident to your grand children and the cute will reply, what an Idea Grand Paa/Mummy????