{"id":7407,"date":"2011-03-07T14:07:57","date_gmt":"2011-03-07T19:07:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/indianamericanstory.wordpress.com\/?p=435"},"modified":"2014-12-30T21:42:13","modified_gmt":"2014-12-30T21:42:13","slug":"one-country-different-cultures","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/apa.si.edu\/now\/one-country-different-cultures\/","title":{"rendered":"One Country, Different Cultures"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Priya Chhaya<\/a><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\"Rangoli<\/a>

This design is a form of rangoli, colorful artwork that can be drawn with paint or sand, and is a decorative element during celebratory occasions. This particular set is ready made and may be used during one of the pre-wedding events for its splash of color. All photos by Priya C.<\/p><\/div>\n

Everyone always tells you how complicated planning a wedding is, but I never actually understood until I found myself knee deep in working on address labels for invitations, multiple tastings for Indian food (not necessarily a bad thing) and trying to figure out what to say during my sister-of-the-bride speech.<\/p>\n

Then there’s what all the wedding books say is the toughest part of planning\u2014figuring out how to make the experience be both for the bride and<\/em> the groom.\u00a0 I am a Gujarati whose extended family lives in Maharastra. My future brother-in-law is South Indian\u2014more specifically he is a Telugu from Hydrabaad. So much like planning a wedding between two different American cultures, planning a Hindu wedding for a Gujarati bride and a Telugu groom has been a learning experience.<\/p>\n

Because Indian weddings are an amazing mix of tradition\u2014through dress, food, and ceremony\u2014we’ve taken the care to stop and think about what elements can incorporate both sides of the family.\u00a0 For instance, the baraat<\/em>\u2014the portion of the ceremony where the groom’s side arrives at the wedding venue usually includes a horse (or at rare moments an elephant) and some engaging music. Most weddings I have attended use recorded Bollywood music, or a live dhol<\/em> (drum) player.\u00a0 In trying to bring in the more southern element, we realized that the dhol<\/em>‘s Telugu counterpart was a mridangam<\/em>, which gives a slightly higher pitch drum beat than the dhol<\/em>\u2014so now for the baraat<\/em> my future brother-in-law will be dancing to the sounds of both regions of India.<\/p>\n

\"Sets<\/a>

One-Two-Three-Four! A few sets of daandiyas, a pair sticks used in a traditional Gujarati folk dance. These particular daandiyas are for one of the pre-wedding events. <\/p><\/div>\n

That being said, this post is not about melding the details between two distinct and separate cultures, it\u2019s about understanding and acknowledging the nuances of the same nationality.\u00a0 For instance, during a Hindu ceremony one of the most important moments is when the couple takes seven steps around the fire, making their vows to each other and their respective families. For the Telugu there is an earlier moment in the ceremony, when my sister and her soon-to-be husband see each other for the first time, that is just as important. During the Jeelakarra-Bellam the groom places jaggary<\/em> (a sugary substance) and some cumin on the bride’s head. This is a symbolic moment when two seemingly different items (one sweet, the other bitter) comes together forever\u2014that is two people coming together through the good and the bad times. To some extent, this is also representative of two different parts of Indian culture finding common ground in bringing the two families together. For planning sake though\u2014I didn’t understand the importance of this particular ceremony until the groom’s family put it in the draft to the ceremony program (which will explain the rites to those not familiar with Hindu weddings). \u00a0What this process demonstrates on a micro-level is the work needed to bring people together across any cultural divide, Indian or otherwise. It takes open communication, honesty and recognition that in some cases compromise is the best path to take.<\/p>\n

\"Tiny<\/a>

Tiny statues of Ganesh, the Indian elephant god who is the remover of obstacles and an important deity for auspicious occasions. These Ganesh are meant to be a gift to guests when the the formal wedding invitations are delivered.<\/p><\/div>\n

Of course this is all in the context of planning a wedding and doesn’t include other aspects of Telugu culture\u2014the food, the very different dance and art forms \u2013 all just as an important part of the Indian experience as Gujarati culture. In fact\u2014going through this process has allowed me to have some great conversations about what aspects of Indian culture have dominated the American worldview of India. Some argue that the \u201cIndian\u201d in America vision that we see is often more of a Punjabi Indian world view\u2014with bhangra<\/em> exercise classes, and hip hop remixes at night clubs.<\/p>\n

Which prompts me to ask readers the following questions:<\/strong><\/p>\n