Tuesday 15 November 2011

Of wedding portraits and love!

The hall of our ancestral home is an exhibition boasting of portraits of four generations of our family. The center of attraction is the picture of Jesus and His Sacred Heart. Flanked to his left is the portrait of my great grandfather. Now, he was one person who probably faced the camera first time in his life. His eyes almost pop out of the sockets in the picture. His demeanor is dull, gloomy and as a child i was scared to look at his picture at nights- too goofy you see! To the right is the portrait of great grandfather ( maternal) with his wife, taken in 1900s probably. He is regally seated on a throne like chair- i wonder where these studio guys buy "throne- like" chairs! His wife stands shy and coy, with her silk saree's pallu draped over both her shoulders. With a simple chain, jasmine flowers tucked behind her hair, she looks calm, cool and composed. Our great grandfather sports a silk angavastra, his look complete with a walking stick on hand, a HUGE moustache and a curt smile- he could pass muster as a village villain of any Kollywood movie.

To further left is the wedding portrait of my grandfather and grandmother, taken a few days after their wedding. The groom stands tall in his wedding coat- this is the influence of British in our family, i think- our forefathers had converted from Hinduism to Christianity by this time. The British were successful in converting many such villages totally from Hinduism to Christianity by a simple trump card- water! Only those converted to the new religion could draw water from canals for irrigation. The influence of British in weddings is depicted by the coat of grandfather- he even had a coat flower tucked in! And my grandmother sports a kerchief crumpled in her hands in the picture taken in 1947. 
Pic courtesy- oldindianpics.in
The next picture is that of my Dad and Mom, taken in 1977. The elaborate bouquet held gracefully in her hands, her wreath shining, Sharmila Tagore bun, jasmine flowers tucked by the side of her ear, big kajal laden eyes, my Mom was an equal match to Dad. His bell bottom pants, coat, curly cropped hair and big buckled belt- the retro look is totally enchanting! By now, men and women had learnt to stand together and were even bold enough to hold hands! 

Next in the lineup is generation 4- us, the cousins. These picture are ostentatious- pure display of status and wealth- the simple chain from generation one has now grown manifold. The number of neck pieces, pendant chains, haars and bangles till the elbow- now we know why the price of gold is sky- rocketing!!! The coat is the same, but the groom's chain and bracelet( of course gifted by poor fatherinlaw!) are more prominent than his smile! The bride- ah yes, poor she...She looks a mannequin who ran away from the ramp, all painted face, shining jewellery- clad in priciest kanjeevarams. As the mean distance from the grandparent's photo increases, so does the glitter and glamor of the cousins' portraits! 

Pic courtesy- google image search
 One look around the living room of my ancestral home, i try to peer closely at every pair and try to strike out a similarity between the four generations of wedding portraits. And i finally locate the underlying current that is synonymous in all the portraits- love! The glint of love in great grandparents' eyes that look straight at the camera, the gesture of hands held together in my grandparents' picture, the elbows hooked together in my parent's portrait and finally the 'clinging' pictures of the cousins- all speak of the love we have for our partners. God has gifted our family for four generations with His greatest Blessing- LOVE! And i am yet to figure out what the next portrait on the wall would be- probably a peck on the cheek of the bride....What say dear cousins?;) For a lip lock to be caught on a family portrait, it seems we have to wait another generation!

17 comments:

  1. where are the pictures of your parents and grand parents pictures?
    The 70's were the time of bell bottoms and patai belt, which only some people could carry gracefully, or rather handsomely,others failed miserably. But at that time, I suppose the tailors would automatically cut the pants into bell bottom shape whether one liked it or not. And post your photo too, please.

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  2. I want ur and ur hubby pic in thr too :D...Seriously about the liplok thing, Its on its way!!!Now Indians r trying to catch up with the western culture!

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  3. I agree with you CN, the next portrait will be a lip-lock one.. Beautiful pics :-) Have a great day..

    Someone is Special

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  4. Such pics are treasures, evergreen and classic! As we move on from one generation to other, though the differences might become glaring but it feels so good when we see that inspite of it, they still retain the most essential element... Cute post :)

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  5. @ Rama- Thanks a lot for the comment:) Have not pasted my own picture here, you know why;) Will try to upload my grandparents' ones later, when i visit my ancestral home:) LOL on the bell bottoms:P

    @ Redhanded- touche'! My brother who is getting married soon promises a liplock;) Lets see:P

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  6. @ SiS- thanks for your comment, brother. Hope to witness it soon;)

    @ Arti- Glad you liked the post:) Thanks for the comment and yes, the essential element gets passed on through generations!

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  7. Love the pictures! Each picture is a reflection of its time. I remember seeing my mother's wedding photo where she looks tragic. But she tells me that it was considered impolite to smile widely in one's wedding snaps. One had to look suitably sad when they got married :)The photo gallery is so reminiscent of the old houses.. today with the nuclear families coming in we can only boast of one or two such pics on our walls!

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  8. This time around in singapore , i saw a couple getting photographed near the sydney bridge, they were dressed in marriage attire. It was fun watching them feign a kiss while the photographer helped them pose. Our times are indeed changing fast. But for me the most endearing image is that of my parents post marriage, my moms eyes just managing to take a peek at the camera.. there is far more charm in looking at the shy bride then the liplocks that loom large.. IMO

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  9. nice :)
    such photographs are timeless..

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  10. hehe...same here ..I too have a collection of such pics...its amazing to go through them,,
    and yeah good description, :-)

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  11. @ Seema- Thanks for the comment. Glad you liked the post.

    @ Meera- LOL at your comment- suitably sad:P And yes, as nuclear families burgeon, we are left with fewer pictures:(

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  12. @ Mayank- wow! So cute that you love your granny's shy and coy look:) Indeed it is far more romantic than the liplocks:)))

    @ AS- yeah, they are priceless too!

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  13. @ Madrasi- Every Tamil house boasts of such pictures;) Glad you too own a bunch!

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  14. @ Madrasi- Every Tamil house boasts of such pictures;) Glad you too own a bunch!

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  15. Nostalgia...The pics are treasure troves..irrespective of the gold ornaments....priceless.

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  16. I grew up aping the Curly Hair and Bell Bottom generation.Who could forget the Sharmila Tagore Buns And the twists..Yahoo!!!!

    Ninaithale Inikum..:)

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