Imagine a wedding which starts at 2:30 AM and is done by 2:30 PM? Surprised? Shocked? Well, that’s Telugu weddings for you. In most cases, the wedding begins at midnight depending on the auspicious time, called the muhurtham.

Earlier, Telugu Brahmin weddings were happening for sixteen days. This was called Padaharu Rojula Pandaga which literally translates to ‘sixteen days of celebration.’ Currently, it is limited to 4 - 5 days because imagine the wedding budget and wedding planning required for 16 days! Let alone hosting the guests for that duration in this age.

Though the number of days has been reduced now, the pandaga (celebration) and the tradition, however, is still the same and every ritual is performed with dedication and honesty. Here is a brief account of the rituals that are followed at a Telugu Brahmin Wedding:

PC: Read the wedding story of Sreelakshmi and Akhil.

Pre-wedding rituals

Some rituals are performed before commencing the wedding ceremony. They are done to prepare the bride and groom-to-be for the wedding. Here are those Pre-wedding rituals:

1. Nischyadaartham

This is the engagement ceremony. The first thing after fixing the alliance is to check the jathakam (horoscope.) The parents check the compatibility of the to-be bride and groom based on the factors like zodiac signs, gotram (clan,) and planetary positions. They fix a date accordingly for the nischayadaartham and the bride and groom exchange rings and gifts.

This ceremony is done to confirm the alliance. After this, the Lagna Patrika (the wedding letter which is written to confirm the date and time of the wedding) is read aloud which has the couple’s name with their zodiac signs, gotram (clan,) and other religious details. It has the date of the wedding and address of the wedding venue along with the name of the parents and their ancestral name.

2. Snathakam

Snathakam is a ceremony which is performed in the pellikoduku’s (groom) place by his family. This ritual is done to signify the transition of the groom from the Brahmacharya stage (bachelorhood) to Grihastha (family man.) In this ritual, the pellikoduku wears a white holy thread which ensures that he has ended his Brahmacharya vrata.

Most Brahmins will have 3 rounds of thread before the wedding. This indicates their Brahmacharya stage. During this ritual, they add 3 more rounds and a total of 6 rounds of the thread will be tied. This indicates the beginning of the Grihastha stage.

3. Mangalasnanam

Mangalasnanam is a ritual where the couple takes an auspicious bath before the wedding. It is very similar to the Haldi ceremony. The couple’s family separately does this ritual before commencing any other ritual. Married women of the household take turns and apply oil on the bride and groom’s hair. They prepare a paste using turmeric, kumkum, and sandalwood and apply it on the couple’s hands, feet, and face. Then, the couple takes a bath in the holy water. With the completion of this ritual, they get ready for other wedding formalities.

4. Aarti

After the Mangalasnanam, the couple and their respective family, proceed to offer their prayers to God which is called the Aarti. They take a silver plate, fill it with some water, add turmeric, kumkum, and akshintalu (rice coated with turmeric powder and ghee) in it. They place silver deepam (lamp), light it, and rotate it 6 times (3 times clockwise and 3 times anti-clockwise) facing the deity. This is done to pray for the prosperity of the soon-to-be couple. The women of the family sing songs exclusively for this ritual which are called Aarti songs.

5. Edurukolu

Edurukolu is a ritual where the bride’s side try to impress the groom’s side. The brother of the pellikuthuru (bride) convinces the groom by praising his sister’s beauty, intelligence, and other virtuous qualities (brother praising his sister...such irony!) The groom, thus, falls in love with the bride (again!) and gears up to get married.

Present-day modification for this ritual is that both the families have to impress the pellikoduku and pellikuthuru to marry each other. They can sing songs, tell shayaris, to describe either the beauty or the perks of marrying each other. Trust us, this is one ritual to watch out for, in Telugu weddings.

Wedding rituals

The Edurukolu signifies the end of the pre-wedding rituals. Coming to the main wedding rituals, there are some great rituals and some of them are common to the Tamil Brahmin wedding rituals. This is the reason why Telugu weddings sometimes last the whole night. The rituals are:

1. Kashi Yatra

PC: A picture of the kashi yatra ritual at Anjana and Prateek's wedding.

Just imagine getting one last chance to escape the wedding. Wouldn’t it be an awesome test to check whether the couple is really interested in the wedding or not? Just kidding.

The Kashi Yatra ritual is an oddly fun event which actually means escaping the wedding! This chance is given only for the groom (lucky fellows..isn’t he?) The groom is made to carry some essentials like an umbrella, bamboo stick, and wears new slippers to start his journey to Kashi. Then, the bride’s brother stops the groom and convinces him to marry his sister. Once the groom is convinced, he postpones the life of celibacy for a few years!

2. Gauri pooja

Gauri pooja is performed in the bride’s house. The pellikuthuru performs the pooja by praying to the goddess Gauri. The bride offers flowers, fruits, and lights incense sticks for the pooja. She prays for a happy and successful wedding.

In some weddings, the pellikuthuru prays to Goddess Lakshmi. They keep a photo of Goddess Lakshmi sitting beside Lord Narasimha. This is said to protect the couple’s family from all the negativity and provide prosperity.

4. Kanyadanam

Kanyadanam literally means ‘giving away the bride’ and it is performed by the bride’s parents. In this ritual, the bride is carried in a bamboo basket by her maternal uncle. The bride and groom aren’t supposed to look at each other. Hence a curtain is held in between the couple. Then, the bride’s parents wash the groom’s leg with water. It is believed that the groom is incarnated as Lord Vishnu to marry the bride who is incarnated as the Goddess Lakshmi. The bride’s father then offers his daughter’s hand in marriage to the groom.

5. Panigrahanam

In Panigrahanam, the pellikoduku holds the right hand of the pellikuthuru. The groom chants:

“Dharmecha arthecha kamecha mokshecha

aham evam naati charami.”

This means that amidst many desires, joys, and sorrows, the husband promises to be with his wife forever.

6. Jeelakarra Bellamu

In this ritual, a paste prepared with Jeelakarra (cumin seeds) and Bellamu (jaggery) is placed on the couple’s head. It happens while the curtain is present. This ritual signifies that the bond shared by the couple will be strong and unbreakable. After this, the ritual called pravara is held amidst the couple’s family. The Purohitudu (Pandit) chants a mantra to convert the bride’s gotram (clan) to that of her prospective husband’s. This is the time when the actual muhurtham starts.

PC: Jeelakarra bellamu ritual being followed at Rajeswari and Chanakya's wedding.

7. Madhuparkam

In this ritual, the bride is asked to wear a white cotton saree with a red border. The groom wears a cotton dhoti with a red border. This ritual signifies purity and strength. This is the traditional wedding attire to be worn during the muhurtham.

Some wear a white cotton saree dipped in turmeric. It is said to be auspicious.

PC: Read the wedding story of Bharathi and Trinath where Bharathi adorned the white saree.

8. Mangalsutra Dharana

Once the couple wears the traditional attire, the curtain between the couple is removed. The groom takes the Mangalsutra (holy knot) and ties it to the bride. Usually, the groom ties three knots to the bride. In some traditions, the groom ties two knots and the groom’s sister who would be the prospective sister-in-law ties the third knot. This procedure signifies that the bride and groom are married.

PC: Mangalsutra dharane at Manasa and Pavan's wedding.

9. Akshintalu

In this ritual, the couple exchange Poola haaram (garlands.) The wedding guests bless the couple by sprinkling flowers and Akshintalu (rice coated with turmeric powder and ghee.)

PC: Read the story of Rajeswari and Chanakya.

10. Saptapadi

After the Akshintalu, the couple walks seven times around the fire. They take an oath to support each other by having good health, wealth, knowledge, respect, trust, love, and strong family bonds.

PC: Read the wedding story of Priyanka and Sandeep.

11. Sthalipakam

The first thing to do in this ritual is the groom adorning the feet of the bride with toe rings. This signifies that the woman is married. Later, a kunda (a big silver vessel) is kept in which a ring, preferably the engagement ring is tossed. The couple needs to fish for the ring inside the vessel. Three attempts would be given and the one to win maximum times is considered to be the dominant one.

PC: Poojitha and Jayakumar having fun searching for their ring!

12. Arundhati Nakshatram

There is an interesting story behind this ritual. Arundhati is one of the 7 wives of sage Vashishtha. Once, Lord Agni lusts for sage Vashishtha’s wives. Therefore, Svaha, Lord Agni’s wife impersonates as Vashistha’s six wives and satisfies Lord Agni. However, it was impossible for Svaha to impersonate Arundhati.

PC: Read the wedding story of Soumya and Puneeth.

Arundhati’s loyalty and devotion towards her husband Vashistha were so strong that no man could think otherwise. Her chastity was beyond words. She and Lord Vashistha later became stars. Watching Arundhati nakshrtram after the wedding is advised to every bride. By following this ritual, it is believed that the bride will follow the path of Arundathi and be devoted to her husband.

13. Appagintalu

This is the end of the Telugu wedding ceremony. Appagintalu means handing over the bride to the groom’s family. Henceforth, the bride will belong to the groom’s family. It is similar to the Vidaayi, a moment of both happiness and sadness.

A big plate is filled with milk. The bride, groom, and their respective family sit in front of each other. The bride’s parents dip the bride’s hands in milk and hand her over to her parents-in-law, her husband’s siblings, and to her husband.

Post-wedding rituals

Once the wedding is done, the bride will accompany the groom to his house. There are a few rituals that are followed there:

1. Gruhapravesam

After the wedding ceremony, the bride is welcomed by the groom and his family. A jar filled with rice and jaggery is kept at the entrance of the house and the bride kicks it with her right toe. After this, the groom’s family performs a small aarti and the bride enters her new house.

2. Satyanarayana Vratam

Lord Satyanarayana is considered to be one of the supreme lords. This vratam is said to bring happiness and is one of the purest rituals. It is performed on either the full moon day or during any auspicious occasions like a Telugu wedding ceremony. Performing this ritual brings good luck and prosperity to the couple.

3. Uniting the Mangalsutra

In the mangalsutra dharana, the groom will tie the mangalsutra to the bride. However, even before the wedding rituals commence, the bride’s mother ties the mangalsutra on an auspicious day to the bride. After sixteen days of the wedding, both the mangalsutras are tied to one single thread and tied around the bride’s neck by the groom. That’s the reason one can see two coin-like pendants in their mangalsutra.

These are the rituals followed at a Telugu brahmin wedding. Be it a simple wedding or a grand destination wedding one thing stays in common - the rituals. Every Indian has a sentiment over the rituals performed during the wedding. While you want to perform it with devotion, there are tons of other commitments to deal with while planning a wedding. But with WeddingBazaar by your side, you don’t have to worry about those errands.

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