Friday 7 August 2009

Outsourcing Guests

I was amused and at the same time amazed to read about the new fashion of hiring guests some time back: "Now, hire wedding guests from Rs100 to Rs500". It's no surprise that it had to start in Rajasthan, where there is an age-old tradition of hiring women to weep over a dead person. These women are known as 'Rudali'. However, in this tradition at least, the idea is to invoke the locked-up feelings of the relatives, which would otherwise cause long-term psychological damages. But to hire guests to simply show-off is not even a pleasant thought. What good such a show-off would do to either side, except inflating their egos and wasting loads of money? Those who witness such a grand play would forget it sooner or later. But, those who pay for it would never forget that it was a 'fake'.

How painful would it be looking at wedding photographs in which you could hardly relate to anyone, and which would always remind you of the put-on show? Instead, would it not be better to perform the ritual in the simplest manner with relatives, friends and genuine guests and spend the extra money on arranging the marriage of a poor girl who would never forget such a kind gesture till she lives?

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