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Coronavirus curfew in Mohali: When masks replaced grooms’ sehra, langar a lavish buffet
The glitzy marriage places were replaced by limiting the wedding celebrations to the gurdwara in Phase 4, Mohali, while the langar prepared at the gurdwara took the place of the sprawling buffet, which was to serve cuisines from across the globe.
Mohali Surgical masks replaced traditional sehra of the grooms and veils of the brides, as two siblings tied the nuptial knot with their partners amid the coronavirus outbreak at the Phase 4 gurdwara in Mohali.
From booking marriage palaces to arranging a lavish buffet for guests, Dharamvir Singh had planned it all for the weddings of his son and daughter scheduled for March 27 and 29.
But much to the family’s dismay, the curfew dented their plans for the typical big fat Punjabi weddings, while also deferring them for want of permissions from the administration.
Dharamvir, a resident of Sector 105 in Mohali, ultimately had to resign to keeping the weddings of his children a simple affair.
The glitzy marriage places were replaced by limiting the wedding celebrations to the gurdwara in Phase 4, Mohali, while the langar prepared at the gurdwara took the place of the sprawling buffet, which was to serve cuisines from across the globe.
Instead of a huge wedding party from all four families, the brides and grooms were accompanied by just their parents, while all other relatives had to give the weddings a miss due to ban on gathering of more than 10 people.
The weddings, which would have otherwise cost Dharamvir several lakhs, thus, came down to ₹20,000 for both ceremonies.
“The district administration allowed us hold the weddings with permission to allow only four members from a family,” said Dharamvir.
His son Vikramjit Singh married Navneet Kaur of Chandigarh, while his daughter Bhupinder Kaur exchanged vows with Ramandeep Singh of Gurdaspur.
Dharamvir said “We were unsure as to when the curfew will be lifted, so went ahead with simple weddings. We had booked marriage palaces for the two weddings and even distributed cards, but the venues were cancelled.”
“We all wore masks and sat at safe distance in line with social distancing. My brother regularly gave us sanitiser to keep our hands clean,” said the newly wedded Vikramjit.
Before taking off for Mohali from Gurdaspur at 4am, groom Ramandeep ensured his car was sanitised. “I always wanted a simple wedding, but this level of simplicity was a different experience altogether,” he said.
“The gurdwara is being regularly sanitised. The weddings were solemnised after taking all precautions,” said JP Singh, president of the Phase 4 gurdwara committee.
MORE APPLYING FOR PERMISSIONS
Even when everything has virtually come to a standstill, the Mohali administration is regularly getting applications seeking permission for weddings. “We are not allowing more than four persons from a family, and permission is given only in exceptional cases. We are discouraging any kind of gathering,” said Girish Dayalan, deputy commissioner, Mohali.
“So far only five families have been given permission in the district, of which four weddings are done. The fifth one is scheduled in Dera Bassi on April 16,” he added.
