Day 2 at the big wedding house

Choora or the bangle ceremony is another important Sikh pre-wedding ritual. The occasion is organized at the bride’s home, wherein the maternal uncle and aunt of the bride adorn her wrist with white and red bangles. Ornaments made of silver and gold, known as kalira, are tied to the bangles. The third pre-wedding custom followed by Sikhs is ‘maiya’, according to which, the bride and the groom are not allowed to leave their house for few days prior to the wedding. Gana is a pre-wedding ritual wherein an auspicious red thread is tied to the right wrist of the groom and the left wrist of the bride, at their respective homes. It is regarded as a sacred thread that protects the bride and the groom from ill omen.

Vatna is a ritual celebrated a few days before the wedding ceremony. According to the tradition followed by the Sikhs, vatna, a scented powder consisting of barley flour, turmeric and mustard oil, is smeared to the bride and the groom.

During the celebration, relatives and friends play the dholki and sing ghori, which is a traditional folk song. This is one enviable feature of Punjabi weddings that has all the relatives and friends of the family rejoicing and joining into add the color of the occasion. All are invited in this evening of jubilation, irrespective of age and gender. Jago is traditionally performed by the maternal side of the groom’s or bride’s family. This is a chance for Pavan’s maternal relatives to take over the wedding functions.

Literally, jago means “wake up!”. When there’s a marriage in the house, girls dance through the streets carrying a pot (gaggar) decorated with lightened candles and singing jago songs. Function will start with Dal and Amarjit’s carrying the jago while all the rest of maternal guest sing. She will be dressed in a really traditional colorful Punjabi Ghaghara (suit). Eventually, jago will be passed to other maternal relatives and possibly to paternal relatives. The theme of song in the ‘jago’ is social and typically a lot of teasing goes with the song. This is a time when using songs any one is a fair target for friendly insults and no one minds.

Then the party really gets started, with everyone on the dance floor showing us the latest moves to the latest bhangra songs!