The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : For their best friend's wedding in Chennai

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, May 22, 2005

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

For their best friend's wedding in Chennai

Prince Frederick

With a new wardrobe, a novel experience

THE COLOURS OF INDIA: All dressed up, in Chennai. — Photo: N. Sridharan

CHENNAI: They came all the way from the cooler climes of Europe and beyond, to attend an Indian colleague's wedding here in the middle of Chennai's summer. And they decided to be Indian during their stay.

When Karthik Ramakrishnan, an engineer with major a telecom company in Munich, came to Chennai to marry Divya, 16 of his colleagues tagged along. They are a motley mix from Belgium, England, Canada, Ireland, Iceland, Scotland and Germany.

They promptly got themselves a new wardrobe. The women scoured the sari and salwar-kameez shops, and the men got themselves kurta-pyjamas.

Unlike as in the case of the men, the saris came with their own sets of complexities. The women invested much time figuring out how to wear them. There was enough time for exercises in trial and error. "We had a tough time getting into our saris," admitted Tinna, an Icelander. "This made for some funny moments." Despite all the practice, some of them got the jitters as they got ready to attend the wedding at a kalyana mantapam in the morning and a get-together at a city hotel in the evening, all dressed up. Yet, it was clear that their folds and falls and pallus were perfect.

"We got Karthik's aunts to help us with the saris," said Mary, an Irishwoman. She also got her hands painted with henna. She opened out her palms to reveal the pretty patterns.

"In order for us to savour the Indian experience fully, Karthik's father hired an interpreter to translate from Sanskrit to English," said Frank Sciferth, from Germany. He relayed to them the meaning of the Sanskrit slokas the priests chanted. Said Mary: "I liked the pivotal verse which said that in marriage two minds become one."

How did they like Chennai, and at this time of the year? "Chennai is a lovely place. The weather is good," said Tinna.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Tamil Nadu