Big Fat Indian Weddings…
They say
the knots are tied in heaven. And if you are the crazy mushy type like me you
will also believe in the fact “For each person on this Earth there is a
soulmate sent by the creator himself“. You need to find her / him and when you
find that special person you will want to settle down in life and be with her /
him for the rest of your life.
But
before you can settle down in life you need to go through that biggest event
called Marriage to start your new life. As Indians we like everything large so
how can the weddings be not humongous and bigger than the biggest affair. After
all for the guys its the end of their Singledom , end of the care free life and
time to take on the responsibility of his sweet heart , his bride …the family.
And enter the Grihastashram….For the ladies its about leaving ones safe heaven
(her maika) and entering a new household which will be her home hence forth. To
Party to banti hai na yaar….
Getting
hitched is easy but getting married is tough . Ask the bride , the groom and
the immediate family . So much preparations , functions and the food everything
has to be just right. It all starts with the hunt for that exclusive wedding
hall or banquet hall where the marriage is to be solemnized.
In that regard
Matungaites are blessed with many options . For the affluent types you have the
King George School Grounds or the Dadar Parsi Gymkhana. For the upper middle
class you have the newly renovated Napoo Hall – Ramwadi ,The Gujrati Samaj Hall
or the Bhagini Samaj Grounds and for the middle class you have the Palamkot
Hall , the Andra School hall and the Wadala GSB Hall.
As they
say “To each his own”. At the Dadar Parsi Gymkhana grounds the weddings are
like big glamorous events. Orchid lined entrance gate and red carpet entry.
Soft Music played over professional music system over huge speakers placed in
the corners. Huge LED Displays showing live action on the stage or reeling away
events leading up to the wedding like the mehndi or the Sangeets. You could catch
the bride , groom and the whole family dancing away on the screens much to the
amusement of the visitors. But the bride , groom and their family are enjoying
and no one complaining.
The one
complaint that everyone dreads is the complaint of the food being served in
these weddings. Because after all the taam-jham all you remember about the
wedding is the food you ate and the wide variety of options is the talking
point years to come. To this regard the caterer you choose becomes the ultimate
decision which make or mars the occasion.
At the
Dadar Parsi Gymkhana this is managed by one of the specialist in this field M.D
Caterers. On the big day the food court area is filled with live counters for
Delhi and Indori chaats , Italian wood fired pizza’s Cheesy or Penne pasta.
Mexican Taccos , Lebanese wraps and succulent Kebabs.
The main
course is a lavish spread with Mughlai , Indian , Chinese and Continental fare.
The dinner plate feels small when you want to taste the delicacies. You have to
do multiple rounds of the food court area in order to completely enjoy the
food.
Some counters
like the chaat are always busy with all the ladies making a bee line for them
to satisfy their cravings. Others like the Pizza or wraps are crowded with
children and their fathers either loading their own plates or taking orders for
their better halves. The Indian food counters are always a hit with elderly who
are more frequented with the items on display and are sure of the tastes and
quality. For the others there is a lot to explore.
The one
thing that defines such weddings is the number of desserts made available. I
still remember we had like 30 plus sweets kept by our caterer in the Sweet
Khazana a sort of open box displaying the goodies. You had the malai sandwich ,
Rosogulla , Gulab Jamun , barfi’s , angoori rabdi …the list went on. I still find
many relatives and close acquaintance’s vividly remembering the sweets and telling
me and my wife that the Sweet Khazana was the real highlight o our wedding. And
when I tell this to my Father-in-law he beams with pride at having organized
the best wedding that is still remembered even after 10 plus years.
On a
little less lavish scale you can have the wedding of your life at the Ram Wadi
–Napoo AC Hall which is now used as banquet hall on split levels. The main function takes place in enclosed environment at their 1st floor AC
Hall where as the food is served on the ground floor . Here the you can select
from 2-3 impaneled caterers depending on your budget. The Hall itself is
recently renovated which looks great with professional decorations during the
function. Wide enough to hold a guest list of 200 -300 people .
The food
served here is more Indian Cuisine with little chaat and Chinese thrown in for
variety . The traditional fare dished out can be , the all time favorite tawa
bhaji with potatoes , egg plant (bhaingan) , cauliflower etc simmering in the
oil on the edge of the tawa and fried and mixed with the masala to make a great
dish. Then the most liked veg dishes served are the paneer tikka masala or
paneer palak , yellow dal either dal fry or the tadka dal or if some thing rich
is require people opt for dal makhni. To go with all this veg affair you have
the variety of India bread or the tandoori rotis. The standard tandoori roti ,the soft kulcha , seasame sprinkled naans al
serve hot . The sweet counter usually
host the rabdi –jalebi or the hot gulab jamun with vanilla ice cream.
As guest
you enjoy the food ,bless the couple , click some photos and move on . The
couple and the immediate family stays on till the end soaking in the arclights
of the photographers and the video graphers. Eats the last and finally leave
the venue to go home. The bride bids fare well to her parents and immediate
relatives and goes off with the groom to his home to start a new life. The
bride’s parents leave with heavy heart to their empty nest lost in the thoughts
of their cute little princess who grew up so fast.
Long
after the wedding is over the expenses
are calculated while paying the bills of the various service providers , the
caterer , the decorator , the marriage hall manager, the photographer / video
grapher etc . As parents you think what was all this expense for ? But then
again you think of all the smiles that it brought on your daughters face and it
melts your heart.
After all
you live once , you love once and marry also once…..
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