Indian wedding ceremonies have many interesting rituals and customs before the wedding ceremony. Seldom do we know their significance. When it comes to marriages, Haldi Kumkum (turmeric and vermilion) have a special place. This post brings you the know it all of Haldi kumkum in Indian weddings.
In Indian weddings we have a ceremony called ‘Haldi’ where fresh ground turmeric paste (a mixture of turmeric, sandal, rose-water) is applied on the brides/Groom’s body by relatives and friends. It is said that applying Haldi enhances your skin tone. In olden days the brides followed this to look pretty on the wedding day unlike modern era where we do pre-wedding grooming sessions. But the ritual of applying haldi is followed even now apart from our grooming sessions. The ‘haldi rasam’ makes our Indian bride more beautiful 😉
“Haldi”, the hindi word for turmeric in itself has a lot of goodness. We all use turmeric powder for cooking. Apart from this turmeric is considered as a powerful medicine as it has a lot of healing properties.
Kumkum or vermilion powder is made of saffron or by mixing dried turmeric powder and lemon,which gains its red color. As per Hindu culture, on the wedding day groom applies kumkum on the bride’s forehead and this practice is continued to show her marital status. Devotees apply kumkum on the forehead of Hindu goddesses. In some parts of south India the mangalsutra is dipped in Haldi-Kumkum mixture.
Haldi-Kumkum is a ritual conducted by the married women who exchanges haldi-kumkum to show their marital status and to wish long life for their husbands. Also, when a newly married bride visits her relatives, haldi-kumkum is offered as a good omen.In some regions the wedding cards are marked with haldi-kumkum paste after the pooja (ritual) being conducted.
Big fat Indian weddings are rich and unique with such traditions. We @theknotstory will try our best to bring them all to you 🙂
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