"Two Weddings In One Lane"

Good afternoon!

We say "Marriage is made in heaven" as an idiom for those who have a happy marriage or partnership. The love marriage versus arrange marriage debate is always going to be an ongoing process. For liberal-minded, they will stand for love as an expression of one's independent and choice. On the other hand, the conservative will go for the arrange marriage. However, arrange marriage can be individual choice or by family obligation. Between the love and arrange marriage, there are also those falling in love first and arranging the marriage with the approval of family from both sides. In case, if both the families disapproved based on disparity in social status, caste and creed, religion, wealth, etc., thus, the lovers may opt for love marriage after eloping or get married in court with their friends as witness inspired by William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet love saga.

In India, wedding is a mainstay in the social Calender and one of the most celebrated families event which may continue for several days. The wedding rituals and celebration vary based on the resources of groom, bride and their families. In Hindu culture, the wedding date is decided by Pandit in order to perform the wedding rituals and ceremonies in auspicious day unlike the western culture wherein the wedding date is decided by both the bride and bridegroom. In my community, usually marriage ceremony take place before the Christmas season and after New year. Also, in the month March or April but before Good Friday. I'm not sure about the Muslim wedding celebration although I have heard about "Nikah" but not all the preceding ceremony. Like Hindu, Punjabi wedding also has many rituals and ceremonies that has evolved with time.

The last Monday, I were not surprised by the fact that there were two weddings in one lane and also two weddings facing opposite to each other. Besides the mentioned four weddings, there were also couple of other wedding processions on the road. I guessed they were proceeding towards the direction of their respective weddings venue. Unfortunately, I felt like my ear drum was bursting because of the very loud non-musical sound of the drum beats followed by the wedding band in uniform, the break-dance (literally) by friends and families, and the use of crackers announcing the arrival of the groom in chariot. I was really amused with the guys who were dancing will actually break their bones with their unique style of break dancing. I bet Michael Jackson would have love to join the dancing... :)

Because of the dozens of wedding I came across that day, I believed it was definitely an auspicious day. However, for those who are commuting on the road and at the same time where the wedding processions were there, it was definitely a bad experience with the slow traffic movement. Ultimately, I were late by nearly one hour when I reached home. I can't deny the fact that I mouthed a couple of curse words from the back seat of my cab silently. Even if I have bad mouthed loudly, I'm sure the noisy drum beats would have distort it. Adding up to the woes of commuters are the wedding guests vehicles parked on the side of the road where it is actually not a parking zone. No offence intended; it was really unkind of the groom family towards the commuters on that day...:) Anyway, it was a very important day for both the bride and the groom starting their journey together as one. I hope they will all enjoy their married life.

I understand the value of wedding rituals and ceremonies. The importance of marriage in our society is not simply a marriage rather the forming of strong bond between the two families, i.e, the bride and the groom family. Besides all the good things, sometimes the wedding venues are questionable when it is located nearby the main road. I'm not sure how the authority has approved the venue as appropriate for marriage ceremonies and parties. Any type of wedding venue right next to main road can cause any kind of nuisance especially when it comes to parking of vehicles by invited wedding guests in NO PARKING zone. Often, it leads to unnecessary traffic congestion which is very inconvenience for public.

You and I cannot simply stop the marriage ceremony underway. And obviously, it will also be very rude and unpleasant if you and I had to walk into a wedding venue uninvited and requesting the invited wedding guests to move their respective vehicle parked outside. Of course! A commotion may erupt among the guests which can definitely pause the flow of the wedding ceremony. In this type of situation, any individual actions may backfire. However, the unpredictable repercussion from the bride or the groom family is worth analyzing before taking the bold step. After all, we are more inclined towards maintaining our social status to fulfill our whims with no regards for other people. 

But I believed it will be more sensible if we can include a line in every wedding card informing the invited guests that there is no parking facility at the wedding venue. I'm sure it will create a convenience for the commuters as well as the wedding organizer. Even if the guests arrived with their respective vehicle, it will nice gesture if the wedding organizer can arrange a parking zone at appropriate place.

"By all means, marry. If you get a good wife, you'll become happy; if you get a bad one, you'll become a philosopher." Socrates.

Thank you. Have a good evening!