20 Reasons why Delhi Weddings are Cool

So after all the tall tales of how Delhi weddings wag tails, I finally got to experience one. Alas it was not some distant relative (i.e. my uncle's great uncle's daughter, or my grandfather's second cousin's grandson...invitation for such events are always more than likely)...it happened to be my grandfather's brother's grandson...that's not too distant right? Anyways, a marvelous excuse to go to the capital of India if you ask me, and land right in the smack of extravagance. The city was exploding with weddings, they usually happen in heaps, early spring and around the first-second full moon in November. Awesome that the lunar calendar still bares a mark on modern civilizations. So around this time of year, many strange and extraordinary events can be witnessed around India (mind you this is shortly after Diwali, so it more or less seems like the fun just never dies).

Drawing from the experience within the wedding of my lovely dermatologist cousin and his fantastic dentist wife, and from the streets of Delhi itself, I have compiled a list of "20 Reasons why Delhi Weddings are Cool":

1. There are gallant white horses running the same red lights as you
2. The fireworks just never stop, the acoustic alarm clocks are ever present
3. Mehndi (Henna) tattoos are noticeable on 5 of every 8 women
4. The men seem to be wearing deodorant
5. Brass bands fill the street, costumed. At the end of the night, 15 men with brass instruments usually pack into a 3-wheeled autorickshaw built for 5 people
6. Hello random elephant
7. You can either be wearing a tuxedo or pajamas (aka kurthas = oversized shirts and somewhat tight fitting cloth pants -- with an oversized waist ... I think the original Indian men must have looked something like a tall Homer Simpson)...oh, did I mention curly toed slippers?
8. Women get to wear their most colourful and closeted saris
9. If an aunty who you haven't seen in 20 years appears and recognizes you, you get your cheeks pinched
10.Uncles insist on doing alcoholic shots with their kids and their grown up friends
11.Everything is significant and symbolic during the ceremony: from throwing sandalwood and herbs into the fire, to putting a veil of pearls around the groom's eyes (whoopsy baby: you can't see me!!)
12.When you ask a man (who you will usually call uncle, whether you don't know their name or have forgotten it) "how are you doing?", you sometimes get responses like "A-1, First-Class, 150%"
13.There is usually secret matchmaking going on behind your back if your cousins or aunts find out you are a bachelor
14.It's the one time of the year that servants and drivers get to party with everyone
15.Every secret Indian recipe comes out of the closet and get thrown into the buffet, and for good measure Italian salads, Chinese noodles and American ketchup can usually be found nearby
16.If you are meeting someone for the first time, it's fun to put your stopwatch on and time it till when they ask you "So ______ (<- your name here), what do you do?" ...then give a prize, like a dessert from the buffet, at the end of the night to the person who discovered where you work the fastest
17.People aren't afraid to dance
18.There are usually recognizable dance styles on the dance floors, themes/influences if you will: Indian Classical (Kathak, Bharatanatyam), Bollywood, Drunk fusions, and line dancing generally
19.The brides have about 50 pounds of jewelery on, it's a "clink" "clink" fest wherever they go
20.You feel more Indian after you left the wedding than before you walked in...like an A-1, First Class, 150% Indian.

Diwali in Bombay

Diwali, also known as the celebration of lights (Sanskrit: दीपावली Dīpāval), is a wondrous 5-day celebration important for the Sikhs, Hindus and Jains of India, and abroad. It's an official holiday in India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Mauritius, Guyana, Trinidad & Tobago, Suriname, Malaysia, Singapore, and Fiji (thanks Wikipedia!). To many, it is the mark of a new year (always starting on a new moon mid-October/November), an occasion to welcome wealth into the home, sweets into the mouth and goodness to the heart. The latter explains why oil lamps and candles are placed at the doors of houses, a welcoming of goodness into the home. What Christmas/New Years is to the West, Diwali is to the East. Among many deities, the Goddess Lakshmi (goddess of wealth) is worshiped on this day.

If you are an Indian growing up in the West, not observing any other holiday, you probably still celebrate Diwali. However to get a taste of Diwali in India is a different story.



The days leading up to this Diwali, have been packed with non-stop clamor in the streets of Bombay. Stores and street-side dealers have been opened extra late. Colourful powders of vibrant indigo, yellow, greens, orange are sold to garnish the front entrances of homes. Sari shops and fabric stores are busy and booming with women. Whole families can be seen on the street making orange and green flower garlands to adorn temples and cars. New clothes are a must, so every retailer seems stocked to the brim with new knickers. Not to mention incense sticks, cap guns and fireworks, toys and every other imaginable good thing in the commercial world lies somewhere on the street waiting to be bought and brought to a loving home.

Garland Making


Street Fireworks


I had the privilege of spending my Diwali doing a Puja (prayer ceremony) with a couple of Bollywood's most beloved sisters: Kojal and Tanisha. My father had acted with the sister's mother Tanuja in his first movie, and since then have been the longest of friends. Thus my mother and I were invited to a small gathering at Thauja/Tanisha's apartment where the ceremony was held. Tanuja is one of my favorite aunty's in the world: bright, vibrant and full of sass...yet tremendously down to earth. This was a thread that rang through her daughters too. Very happy to give a hug and share their warmth. Kajol's husband Ajay Devgan (also one of the top actors from the current scene in Bollywood) was also present along with her two daughters. Sweet couple they make.

Tanisha


Tanuja


President Obama made his way to this city today to join in on the celebrations. The past few days amidst all the pre-Diwali preparations, one could see the additional effort expended in his honor. The street curbs were repainted black and yellow, the roads had been re-tarred, blockades that read "Mumbai Police" lined certain street corners, and extra security was everywhere in the downtown core. This packed the streets with traffic, twice-so because of the Diwali is already the busiest time of the year. Road closure are everywhere this weekend. Ghandi's old residency was being retouched and rewired to accommodate the President's honorary walk through.

Ghandi's Residency


Walking through a night market is the quite the sight and sound, its bright like daytime! The locals seem all too exuberant. Men walk in big groups. Women laughing in small circles. Kids playing with fireworks causing sonic eruptions practically everywhere. Everyone was anxious to have me take their photos, thinking I was from the press. Even the cows looked like they were smiling. A light of cheerfulness illuminated every nook of this city it appeared...

Celebrating the Flavour

In the time of Halloween, most people choose to celebrate the idea of feeling different, being a person from a new culture, existence, background. That's pretty much the feeling I experienced coming from Canada and placing my bare feet on the grounds of this city. Halloween or not, when your whole life is spent hearing stories about your culture, meeting people who speak the language, and trying to assimilate with ideals that you know are real for the natives of this land -- undoubtedly you feel like you've just put on a costume and are standing out. Despite this, I chose to go out for halloween garmented. It's funny because only 1 out of 100 people seemingly get dressed up here, and the others choose to stare awkwardly into your taxi, some, baffled when they beg for change.

I partied with people I could only describe as the cool kids of Bandra, a sprawling suburb on the south side of town. It's expensive to party here -- 500 rupees to get into the club, and another 500 for every additional drink. That's about 20 bucks just to get your night started, which in Indian standards, is a full day's wage for a common man. Nevertheless, I didn't take to drinking in more than just the oddity that I was in a club in India on Halloween! Bumble bees, police guards, the Joker, butterflys were some common costumes, still again half the people were happy just dressing their day to day.

The night floated by with remixes of common North American pop and rock songs (not to mention Queen and Blur) and I eventually went to an afterparty at a common friend of Charlie's flat. Everyone has a clique here, and there is a clear sense of brotherhood and sisterhood that unites people, whether it be from youth, school, family ties, or common interest. I was just happy to know anyone at all, knowing that most of this trip I will be lone drifter. A couple of drinks and some spiced chips and my night was spent, only to end up at a friends tiny apartment in a condemned and cobwebbed building.