Not just a wedding…

The bellow of the trumpets pierced through the frenzied air in the streets. As the townsfolk gathered and the red carpet was rolled out, the minister assembled at the fore and pulled out the King’s scroll. He announced in a shrill voice the would be union of the royal couple. Drum roll, feasts and fanfare followed across the town. The subjects ate, drank and danced to the rhythmic clank of the cymbals. The liaison was celebrated thus with every bit of grandiosity for many days to follow.

Marriages were a celebration almost always, at least in India.

My parents would often narrate their own marriage ceremony back in the early 80’s in South India. It took a village to see the girl off. The wedding pandals would be erected in the courtyard by the village folk. The mis an place would be an all night endeavor with family members near and far and village elders chiming in. There would be people taking turns to stir the huge cauldron of kheer while the kids frolicked around in the new found freedom from tutelage that the pre wedding chaos allowed.

It literally in every sense took a village.

Certain cultures even today make it mandatory to announce the union publicly…