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June 16, 2008
Horse or not?
This is going to be a touchy subject for Indian-American kids across the country.
Especially those from Northern Indian provinces.
One quick and easy point of contention for newlyweds-in-the-making and parents on their Indian side is this:
“Are we going to have a horse or not?”
Any one of my Indian-American peers who brings their significant other home for marriage approval, the whole question of the wedding planning gets real complex real fast.
For one, this is not a parentally-sponsored match. Instead, it is the early stages for what's called a “love marriage."
Bollywood makes a big hoopla of love marriages. In fact, they are the plot for each and every Bollywood film.
Indian weddings in America
Nonetheless, our story is focused on the U.S. of A., and all the difficult stuff that comes with being a second-generation Indian person dealing with planning a wedding.
More importantly, a second-generation Indian person with zero clue about what an Indian wedding is “supposed” to be like.
Has anyone out there been to a really authentic-feeling Indian wedding in America?
What I've noticed at them is this---
Instead of a white horse to transport the groom to the bride's place, for example, like they do in Northern Indian provinces on the day of the "procession," you might have something else.
Like a white car.
At one wedding I went to, the groom pulled up in a white BMW.
The idea is to show wealth and stuff, so I guess that works. But taken out of context (the colorful and random chaos that is India), I get the feeling a certain special something gets a teensy bit lost in translation.
See related posts at Design Kompany:
Design Kompany's short-short film set to an 'Ameri-bolly' soundtrack
Why Indian women wear bindis
Indian jewelry
A miniature painting from Rajasthan
Posted by Dipika at 11:12 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
June 4, 2008
Clinching the nomination
If this guy doesn't inspire, I don't know who does.
America, this is our moment. This is our time. Our time to turn the page on the policies of the past. Our time to bring new energy and new ideas to the challenges we face. Our time to offer a new direction for this country that we love. The journey will be difficult. The road will be long. I face this challenge with profound humility, and knowledge of my own limitations, but I also face it with limitless faith in the capacity of the American people. because if we are willing to work for it, and fight for it, and believe in it, then I am absolutely certain that generations from now we will be able to look back and tell our children that this was the moment when we began to provide care for the sick and good jobs for the jobless. That this was the moment when the rise of the oceans began to slow and our planet began to heal. This was the moment when we ended the war and secured our nation and restored our image as the last best hope on earth. This was the moment, this was the time when we came together to remake this great nation so that it may always reflect our very best selves and our highest ideals. Thank you Minnesota. God bless you, and God bless the United States of America. ---Barack Obama
Posted by Dipika at 6:51 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack