Classic Bengali wedding stories

Different rituals of Bengali wedding have inspired many novels and movies and are considered real treasures of Bengali art. These stories generally portray feelings, social problems and shifting roles of love, family and culture in Bengali society.Perhaps one of the best-known plots associated with Bengali weddings is Rabindranath Tagore’s novella *Nastanirh* (The Broken Nest). While it is not all about the marriage, following the story of the wedding, it gives details of marital life in a Bengali family. The conflict is shown through the relationship of the main character, Charulata, and her husband Bhupati and the lonely, emotional alienation experienced by many women during arranged marriages of Victorian India of the 19th century is subtly portrayed. Various edge aspects of love marriage and personal aspirations in Bengali style have been depicted cleverly in this story line.T

he timeless story of marriage can also be depicted from another novel *Parineeta* written by Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay.

In this novel, author describes Shekhar & Lalita’s friendship and possible appeal which is set in requisite family pressure. The novel is a portrayal of the way marriages took shape in their social, economic and especially in dowry system back in early twentieth century Bengal. To sum up, *Parineeta* timeless classic resonation of love, sacrifice besides social perspectives of Bengali marriages.In cinema, *Shubho Mahurat* (The Auspicious Moment) directed by Satyajit Ray gives a suspense thriller formed out of the coat-tails of a Bengali marriage. The movie which draws from Agatha Christie’s *The Mirror Crack’d from Side to Side* revolves round a murder that occurs in Bengali wedding. Ray successfully takes advantage of the atmosphere of the wedding to crank up the emotions, suspense and utilize the grandeur and beautiful customs of Bengali wedding.The issues picked in these timeless stories be it in literature or cinema are worked upon using Bengali wedding as a background and hence they still remain eternal stories.