Recently Robinhood Bill was proposed by Ranjita Ranjan stating that if a family spends Rs 5 lakh on a wedding, it should contribute 10 per cent of the expenditure for marriages of poor girls. One would find that today a marriage is not a ceremony anymore; it is an event, and event managers have stepped in to make it the greatest show on earth. Sangeeth’, ‘mehendi’ and ‘haldi’ ceremonies followed by extravagant receptions attended by the whole world have become part of the wedding festivities in India. Irrespective of religion, caste and class, we are able to showcase our gold power in marriages. Marriages of today, many of them preceded by an elaborate betrothal ceremony, have thus transmogrified into events spread over a few days. It will be a nice step if we curb extravagant weddings by placing a limit on the number of guests invited and dishes to be served. An occasion like wedding should remain sacred by minimum spending and may be carrying out welfare measures to the society.
(The views expressed by the author in the article are his/her own.)
