BHOPAL: Amid the restrictions imposed on attendance at marriages in the wake of the post-Diwali spurt in COVID-19 cases, the marriage of a senior forest officer’s fashion designer daughter in Bhopal could be a trendsetter for others amid the deadly pandemic’s second wave.
Anshika, the budding fashion designer daughter of a senior Indian Forest Service (IFS) officer Surendra Singh Rajpoot, will get married to Seattle (US)-based Microsoft product manager Akshat Dave on December 6 at her Char Imli Colony residence in Bhopal -- where only those close relatives will be included who have tested negative for the deadly novel Coronavirus.
“We’ve only invited 25 immediate relatives from both sides, but they will participate in the marriage at our house, only after testing positive COVID-19 negative. Already, 10-12 of those invitees from Raipur, Ranchi, and Delhi have intimated us about having tested negative for the virus. If some invitees can’t get their COVID-19 test done before arriving for the wedding, we’ll get their tests done in Bhopal and welcome them to the Sunday’s ceremonies, only after they test negative,” the senior IFS officer Surendra Singh Rajpoot, presently posted as Managing Director of MP Rajya Laghu Vanopaj Sangh told The New Indian Express.
But the Rajpoot family isn’t going to disappoint other friends and relatives who are either not on the list of the 25 invitees or test positive for COVID-19, despite being among the 25 close relatives invited for personal attendance at the wedding.
“The entire wedding ceremony will be live-streamed on Youtube. Around 500-1000 of the relatives and friends of the bride and groom, including the groom’s famous Bollywood singer Mausi (maternal aunt) Alka Yagnik, will witness the ceremony online and usher their blessings and good wishes. While the live streaming of the marriage has been inspired by similar events at some other marriages in MP and outside, the inclusion of only COVID-19 negative guests at the marriage is our own initiative” added Rajpoot.
Also, with the threat of possible COVID-19 infection to guests, if the ceremony and party is held at any hotel or marriage lawn, the Rajpoot family has decided to host the marriage at their residence in Bhopal and serve sumptuous food cooked at home by the family to the guests.
The bride’s parents, Ruchi and Surendra Singh Rajpoot, however, have promised all their loved ones big celebrations after the pandemic climbs down. “We want to celebrate Anshika & Akshat’s special day with you in person at a better, healthier time, and will send you the revised plans and dates once we figure them out,” read the wedding invite.