I guess this one was due from long… :)
Marriage is supposed to be an integral part of our life…I can say this not because now I am experiencing this phase but coz a few months back every creature on the planet used to make me realize this fact that I am not married or rather I am STILL SINGLE!
I belong to a country where marriages are still a tradition and still account most of parent’s choices and a hell lot of things beyond just liking each other. It is a process where you tend to make your choices based on star positions, family background, financial health, boy/ girls particulars (which may include any and every thing)…yet all of it has a fun part associated with it too which may not be explicit but definitely an implied one. On the looks of it, it seems one of the most embarrassing phase where you are being gazed at by so many pairs of eyes looking for possibly all the qualities on the planet, and mind you one single mismatch and you are out, yet truly if you start looking towards the other side of the coin you’ll realize that the others are even through similar scrutiny.
Every arranged marriage can be defined by protocol which has to be followed by everyone before their fate is finally decided and of course I am no exception to it. In initial phases I used to just hate these meetings set up for a formal introduction of prospects but eventually my purview for these meetings changed. The beginning/ end of this process may not be great but certainly the middle part was a lot more fun.
In my case most of my friends didn’t face the fun of going through these phases ...not too sure the readers would either have faced such instances but yes those who have had a chance of such meetings would know that they are worth stories to be shared atleast for the fun sake of it after you meet your fate. It might not be funny at times when there are serious and severe cases associated with your meeting.
Every meeting in general is accompanied with a series of activities pre set which starts with the initial talks between the parents, horoscope matching, background check, exchange of email addresses/ contact number/ setting up formal meetings with the prospect. Stages may vary from case to case.
I was watching this scene from the movie ‘Namaste London’ where Katrina Kaif visits India accidentally to meet some prospects and ends up in hilarious events of meetings. Guys talking some all nonsense stuff in non-sense tone. I had some ever memorable hilarious conversation in my case with the prospects. Some have even ended in the first line of the conversation where the guy starts with – Hi, I am Mr. X…So what are your expectations…!! Man! How the hell on the planet can I sum it up atleast in the first line of conversation? Or in some cases one of the parents of the prospect takes the lead…They start, continue and end the conversation by themselves…something like… ‘You did your undergrad from XYZ college, Mastered in ABC topic, Mr. Y was your competitor and your interests are…’…. Is there something about myself which I can add on, provided the other party helps me in saying something! Else somebody is proving that there is ‘No one better on the planet than the party’s prospect’. It may sound a disgrace to those who have been doing it …however you never know what to do in such situations.
Starting conversation and continuing with somebody whom you are meeting for the first time and that too deciding on your life partner in one meeting is tricky. Yet destiny guides you in making your choice to your fate.