MARRIAGE SONGS
‘Song and Dance’ , are an inseparable ingredients of Indian
Marriage ceremony . Cutting across community and caste lines.’Sangeet’ ceremony
which was once restricted to ladies only has wider participation now and an
evening prior to marriage is invariably
reserved for the function.
But my intent is not to highlight the above; it was just a
backdrop. My purpose is to express how happy I felt recently when I attended
the marriage of my colleague’s daughter at Delhi. How tradition and modernity
were in display to my delight.
At the right time
the ‘Baraat’ arrived and the Groom was received with the traditional ‘Aarti’,
but what attracted my attention were the Sanskrit ‘Hymns’ being sung
collectively by the immediate family members. It was rhythmic, melodious, pious
and perfect. The Groom in Sherwani and pagri stood smiling. It was over in less
than ten minutes but gave the occasion its solemnity and standard. Well! This
was contribution of the elders. Thereafter the Groom was escorted to the hall
where most of guests were waiting for ‘Jai-Mala’ ceremony. The Bride arrived
and they stood facing each other. Just them their group of friends broke into a
song, “ baharon phool barsao mera mehboob aaya hai….”( Mohammad Rafi from ‘Suraj’). This was a
pleasant surprise for me as mostly during such times the pundit again takes
over or is hovering close by. But here the modernity was in control. The song
was of sixties when the parents of the couple would be in school, but the young
connected to the song. And the there was another,-“ do sitaron ka zameen par hai
Milan aaj ki raat…”( Mohamad Rafi and Lata from ‘Kohinoor’). Which was
made for the occasion .
What struck me was the familiarity of this young
generation with the old hindi film songs even when they may not be aware of the
film to which they belonged. Perhaps this is one link through which we can
relate to them better!
कोई टिप्पणी नहीं:
एक टिप्पणी भेजें