SHAADI IN CORONA TIMES: PPE IN TROUSSEAU, MASKED BARATIS

Indian weddings can never be sans shenanigans. And now that designer masks have become an essential fashion trend for the couple, it’s the turn of the baratis to show some swag! “My friend recently got married, and I had a different mask stitched for every event. For sangeet, the relatives on the bride’s side wore a mask reading ‘Team Bride’, and for the shaadi, our masks said ‘Congratulations’! We even gifted the couple a mask with ‘Just Married’ embroidered on it,” says Neeharika Bhatt, a Delhiite.

Priests, on their part are wearing gloves while performing the rituals. “Hum ne toh heat-resistant gloves pehen ke shaadi sampann karayi. Ab koi paer chhuyega toh aashirwaad ke liye haath uthna svabhaavik hai. Isliye humne pehle se hi gloves pehen liye they,” says Lakshman Minoti, a Delhi-based priest.

The role of the bride’s sisters has also evolved now. Neha Bindal, a Gurugram resident, who collected e-money for the tradition of juta chhupai, says, “From sprinkling rosewater on guests to pumping sanitiser in their palms, things have surely changed a lot.”

And then comes the bridal trousseau. “We packed two personal protective equipment (PPE) suits and matching masks and gloves with all her dresses. It was unusual, and we laughed about it,” says Anish Tandon, a Gurugram resident who had over 200 virtual guests in his daughter’s wedding.

PHOTO: FACEBOOK Designer masks for weddings are now being flaunted by not just the bride and groom, but baratis too