Lalitha & I got married, thirty years ago!

Yesterday on our 30^th marriage anniversary we started receiving greetings and best wishes as 9^th May started at 00:00 hours. This happened as we were returning from Bunny’s marriage at Bhadrachalam. We were in the bus bringing us back to Hyderabad and soon after 12:00 midnight; family members and relatives in the bus started shaking hands with us extending anniversary greetings and best wishes. We reached home by 07:30am and later got some special breakfast delivered for us at home. At 09:30am we went to Sri Ganesha temple at Secunderabad Railway Station. On the day of our marriage every year Abhishekam Seva is performed by us to Sri Ganesha. A letter inviting us for the Abhishekam at 05:30am on 9^th May is sent to us by the temple authorities every year in advance. As we were late for Abhishekam, Archana was performed and ‘Theertha Prasadams’ given to us and also packed for us to carry home. On the way back we picked up sweets to be distributed amongst family and friends.

Throughout the day we received best wishes over phone and through SMS from my sister, nephews, nieces, cousins, other relatives and friends. My son Srinath, my nephew Bablu, my granddaughter Tussi and our daughter-like Subha called from overseas. Bunny and his bride reached home around 10:40am. Lalitha joined them after lunch to welcome and spend some time with them. I and Srikanth went out in the afternoon to buy gifts at Croma and Sony world in Banjara Hills and Jubilee Hills area for ourselves. We originally planned to go out to some restaurant for dinner but as everyone was tired with the marriage trip we had to postpone this party to someday next week. In the meantime we decided to have a celebration at home along with my brother’s family and we had dinner together, entirely Chinese food. It was a long and happy day.

As someone said, it is true in our case too “Our wedding was many years ago but the celebration continues to this day!” 

God Bless You! God Bless Us All!

About Bunny's marriage celebrations!

After attending Bunny’s marriage at Bhadrachalam on 8^th May we returned home today (9^th May) safely and with happy memories. After my last blog of 5^th May, I could not post anymore during the last  3 days as I was busy with the marriage related events, travel and celebrations.

Bunny’s Upanayanam function took place on 6^th May from 10:00am to 1:00pm. In our community this function is more popularly known as Odugu. The marriage celebrations commenced with this function. A large festooned Pandal was put up in front of the house and Sannai melam was played almost the whole day setting an atmosphere of festivity and happiness. I have much to say to describe the Odugu ceremony and its significance but that would be a deviation from the main topic. However two events of this ceremony were enjoyed by all and specially the youngsters. One is Bhikshatana, when Bunny went out of the house and sought alms from relatives surrounding him saying Bhikshaam dehi!  And the second one is when he decided to become a Sanyasi and go to Khasi but is prevented by the bride’s brother who pleads with him not to go on such a mission, he requests him to marry his sister and be with the family and then he washes his feet and brings him back into the house. After Odugu, we all had lunch and then Bunny was made Pellikoduku that is Bridegroom. This is done by applying turmeric paste on to him and gifting him with new clothes, gold rings and chains by the family and all close relatives. Many relatives kept arriving the whole day to make him Pellikoduku. It was a good family get-together and everyone was happy to be there.

On 7^th May relatives started arriving from 12:00 Noon to travel to Bhadrachalam for the marriage. The two buses arranged to transport us were originally scheduled to start from Bunny’s house at Krishna Nagar Colony by 2:00pm but instead they arrived at 4:00pm and left with about 90 relatives and friends at 4:30pm. The buses were comfortable and with good Air conditioning. Because of heavy traffic en-route it took us almost 9 hours to travel 330 Km. to reach Bhadrachalam. It was 1:20am, 8^th May, by the time we reached the AP Tourism Guest House, the place of our stay and the marriage ceremony. Dinner was arranged for us immediately on arrival and it was perhaps 3:00am by the time everyone settled down for a short sleep, in the rooms allotted to them. Srikanth who left Hyderabad on 7^th night was to reach Bhadarachalam by 6:00am on 8^th May, but his train was also late and he joined us at 8:00am.

On 8^th May, during the day almost all relatives were busy, they visited Sree SitaRamachandraswamy temple, Godavari River and Parnashala which is 35 Km. from Bhadracalam. My brother-in-law, Y.G.K. Murthy, is an Excise Superintendant in Khammam district and Bhadrachalam is in his jurisdiction. He organized special darshanam at all local temples and arranged a very special lunch for about 12 members of our family. After a refreshing nap we joined the marriage rituals at 5:30pm. It started with Edurukollu during which time there was a pleasant drizzle. After a hot and sultry day it was a refreshing rain. After Edurukollu at the Guest House we all moved to the Kalyana Mandapam attached to the Guest House. Jheelakarra Bellam ceremony took place on dot as per Muhurtham at 7:30pm, followed by Mangalasutra dharana and Thalambralu. Dinner arrangements were made in the lawns adjoining the marriage hall.

We left Bhadrachalam at 10:45pm and reached Secunderabad by 7:00am on 9th May. After hectic activity in the past one & half day everyone was tired and managed to relax and get some rest during the return journey. Everyone was happy with the arrangements and the marriage celebrations. I have posted some photos of the journey and marriage in orkut and facebook, especially for my son Srinath, nephew Uday Bhasker, niece Sravanthi who are all abroad and ofcourse for all friends and relatives.

  

I once became a 'Marriage Purohit'!

My nephew, Udaya Bhasker’s marriage with Hina Narayan was solemnized on 8^th February, 2007, at Lucknow. The marriage was performed in an orthodox, meticulous and elaborate manner as per the Srivatsav family customs. The Purohit who performed the marriage is a Sanskrit Pandit and the Principal of a local college. As he chanted the Slokas and Mantras, he also explained the meaning and significance of them in Hindi, for all of us to understand and appreciate. The wedding ceremonies commenced at 5pm and lasted up to 11pm that is for 6 hours.

Before leaving for Lucknow, we discussed the various stages and customs of the marriage ceremony and found majority of them to be similar with that of our family. However the following four important practices of the South were communicated to the bride’s family and it was decided that we would include these rituals as the marriage ceremony progresses. These practices were of the bride and groom applying Jhilakara-bellam on one another’s head, the groom adorning the bride’s neck with a Mangala Sutram by tying it with three knots, the bride and groom pouring rice mixed with turmeric - called Thalambralu over one another’s head and lastly the bride and groom playing a best of three game to find a Gold ring immersed in a pot of water. While some of these rituals were supervised by the ladies in our family the Managal Sutra Dharana Sloka was recited by me and its significance and meaning explained. I had practiced well for this part of mine and it went off well. That is how I claim to be a marriage priest for once; by conducting the most important ceremony of Mangala Sutra Dharana.

A week of celebrations!

Today is Monday, the starting day of another week.  And this is the week we have been waiting for some time! It is a week of many events and celebrations that are going to keep us busy. It is a time to meet a number of relatives and friends. My nephew, Kamal Nayan is getting married on Thursday, 8^th May ’09. The long countdown has now come down to 5 days. There is hectic preparatory activity at my brother-in-law’s house. The enormous task of distributing the wedding invitations has almost come to a close. Shopping of garments and ornaments for the bride, groom and close relatives is completed. The above two statements seem as simple accomplishments but they are not.  With summer in full swing at Hyderabad it was not easy for the persons extending invitations. And the shopping was in installments and extended over few days. On one particular day the family members went out for shopping at 2 pm and returned home at 11 pm. Kamal’s Upanayanam and Pellikoduku ceremonies are on 6^th May, that is day after tomorrow. The wedding ceremony is on 8^th May, Sri Sathynarayana Swamy Vratham on 10^th May and the reception on 11^th May. The marriage is taking place at the bride’s native place - Burgampahad/Bhadrachalam, 330 Km. away from Hyderabad. We would be leaving for Bhadrachalam on 7^th May by two private buses and returning back to Hyderabad on 9^th May morning. In time to celebrate my marriage anniversary; on the evening of 9^th May. Few other invitees would be travelling for the marriage on their own. My eldest son Srikanth would attend office on 7^th May and travel separately that night by train and join us at Bhadrachalam on 8^th morning and return back to Hyderabad along with us. Srinath, my youngest son who is at Birmingham for the last 8 months pursuing higher studies will not be able to participate in these celebrations. He has already missed quite a few family get-togethers and festivals. As usual this time also he is insisting on large number of photos of the occasion to be emailed to him immediately after the function. This request will keep Srikanth and me busy with the camera. We are all eagerly looking forward for the ceremonies!

Mysterious occurrence!

Once in a while, I experience some uncanny event that stuns me and leaves me wondering. One such occurrence, with a possibility of 2:9999, became true in my case.

When I bought a new Car a few years ago, the Vehicle dealer/Showroom took up the responsibility of vehicle registration. They collected the required payment and application papers from me and pursued the matter with the Regional Transport Officer. On one day; I was asked to visit the RTO for some time, for verification of the vehicle. Subsequently, they collected the registration papers from the RTO, readied the two Number plates required and asked me to get the car for the fitment of Number plates. On seeing the Number plates I was surprised. The new Car registration number is AP10 AH 0221, while my old Car number is ADL 2210. I neither demanded nor wished for a 2210 or its closest match 0221 for my new Car. Both numbers appear similar and according to Numerology add up to 5. I do not know Numerology but mysteriously it seems to know what is good for me and has tried to ensure that!

Why this urge to travel?

My uncle travels a great deal, a little for business and more for pleasure. He is now 53 and is as enthusiastic to travel as he was in his teens. His love for travel is for the process of travelling rather than the place of visit. He prefers to travel by his Maruti Van, Maruti-1000cc Car or Chevrolet Tavera Van. Train and bus journeys are his next preferences. His love for travel has taken him to far off places like Nepal, Srilanka, Singapore, Thailand and many places of interest in India and almost every place around Hyderabad and in Andhra Pradesh.

Every week starting from Monday he plans and looks forward for the coming Sunday’s travel programme. One holiday, a short trip and two holidays a longer trip is a principle he holds close to his heart. If a plan for a regular long drive does not come through he has the Sunday Newspaper to help him.  He goes through the advertisements of Farmhouses and Plots for sale and any type of Exhibitions or Sales in and around the city and passes the day driving and visiting some or all of these places. His anxiety to travel is so immense that one-day he reported at the Airlines check-in counter well in time, to be told that his ticketing is for the next day! 

You may ask me how does he find so many new places, which he can travel to and return within two days. It is not a problem at all, my uncle does not get bored by driving to the same town, city, temple, monument, picnic spot etc., which he has just visited last week, last month or several times last year.

He normally goes on these weekly trips with those who are closest to his heart, consisting of some selective like-minded friends and relatives. Astonishingly he does not move out much with his family, which is quite opposite to the universal norm for a person of his age. Well, in this regard I have a special and unique uncle. This coterie of selective friends and relatives sometime play an important role in the weekly travel plans. They influence him to take them wherever they would like to go and he accepts the request as a command, as long as it involves a long ride that would keep him away from home, his busy business and city atmosphere. His trips, even after commencements are unpredictable. He may start on an exclusive pilgrimage to say Srisailam but once he is there and feels unsatisfied with the drive, he would change plans or get influenced by the coterie to extend the journey to Brahmamgari Matam, Tadipatri, Srikalahasthi, Tirupathi and back to the city via Vijayawada. This means travelling a distance six times to what was originally planned.

Talking about planning, most of his train journeys are finalised hours before the departure of the train or a day before the journey resulting in waitlisted tickets. Further to this, on his last minute encouragement, some members of his group join him for the travel without tickets. He enjoys taking care of such tough situations and tries to make the trip an unforgettable experience. Same is the case with Hotel accommodation, he loves spot reservations and living with any type of instantaneous solutions. There is another unique food related specialty with my Uncle, while travelling. Whenever he has to stop for lunch or dinner en-route or at destinations he first visits the local market to buy chicken and then takes the live fowl to a Dhaba to get it cooked under his personal supervision to suit his taste. He enjoys and boasts of such exploits. Don’t you think my uncle is very very special?

The Coterie I am talking about is always encouraging him to go on such trips. These trips are full of fun for them. Perhaps because they don’t have to care about getting the Car prepared for the trip, worry about train reservations, bother about driving, think about availability of accommodation, drinks and food en-route and so many other travel related conveniences. It is like winning a lottery of an all–paid holiday in a chauffeur driven Car.

Another episode that took place recently is equally interesting. My uncle along with his eldest son went to Goa on a five-day trip, surprisingly with confirmed - to & fro train reservations. On reaching Goa they could not find Hotel accommodation as per their expectations. Without second thoughts they forgot Goa and got into a Konkan Railway train and traveled about 400 Km. south to Udipi. They stayed there and visited local temples, Manipal, Malpe beach etc. and instead of returning to Hyderabad from there – as it is much closer, they once again went to Goa to board the return train to Hyderabad.  I cannot understand the logic behind all this travel in the name of Goa, can you?

Once back in the city, with last week’s travel wish fulfilled, he seems happy for a few hours. But from the very next moment the urge for yet another trip commences and with that - restlessness, to move out of the house once again.

About Sudhiksha's career!

This pretty child with a charming smile is Sudhiksha. She is the granddaughter of Dr. Lakshminarsu, my elder brother.  I am writing this blog to consider the possibilities of Sudhiksha becoming a Dental Surgeon, like her grandfather.  At the outset, I think if the choice of her career is left entirely to her or to my brother, she would certainly graduate to become Dr. Sudhiksha, yet another Dental surgeon in the family. Even now, as a child she loves going to brother’s Dental Clinic and spends considerable time there. Many patients are her friends. She goes to two play schools every day, to ‘Cubs’ in the morning and to ‘Roots to Wings’ in the evening. At ‘Roots to Wings’ she must have talked a great deal about her grandfather and his clinic and this prompted the teachers to seek permission and bring all the teeny-weeny children on an excursion to the clinic. She was proud and happy with this development as her mother and grandfather was explaining about brushing techniques and dental care to her friends and classmates. I know that it is too early to discuss Sudhiksha’s career, but for many in Andhra this is a big pastime. As soon as a child is born; schools, colleges and careers are chosen and even plans of American education and Green Card are made.

My brother is the first Dental Surgeon from our community in the twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad. When he established his clinic in Secunderabad, his clinic was the fourth in the city. Several years later, when the eldest of his two son’s Sudheer appeared for the Medical and Dental college admission test ‘EAMCET’, he scored a good rank. He was eligible for a seat in MBBS but due to my brother’s desire and Sudheer’s interest; B.D.S., was opted. Later Dr. Sudheer did his Post-graduation at the prestigious A.I.I.M.S., New Delhi. He is an Oro-Maxillo-Facial Prosthodontist & Implantologist. My brother was particular that his daughter-in-law also should be a Dental Surgeon. So Dr. Sudheer’s marriage was solemnized with Dr. Lavanya a Cosmetic Dental Surgeon. Sudhiksha is the daughter of Dr. Sudheer and Dr. Lavanya.

In a similar fashion, brother’s youngest son Dr. Udaya Bhasker studied B.D.S., and then M.D.S., from All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi. He is an Endodontist and Conservative Dentist. His wife Dr. Hina, you might have already guessed! is also a Dental Surgeon! and in specific a Periodontist. By now you must have lost count of the Dental Surgeons I have mentioned so far; there are five in the family.

Now I don’t have to tell you about Sudhiksha’s career, you already know what she is going to be, unless God wills something different. May God bless her richly and fulfill all her wishes.