A Telugu Reddy wedding is a grand event with lots of fun-filled ceremonies and rituals that define their respect for tradition. Var Pooja is one such ritual in the list of wedding ceremonies that are conducted after Snatakam.
Significance of Vara Puja Ritual in a Telugu Reddy Wedding
Vara means the groom and puja means honouring him. Var pooja or var puja is an event to welcome the groom and his relatives to the wedding. If the wedding is a one-day affair it is done early in the morning else done a day before the marriage. The venue may be a Kalyana Mandapam, temple or a hotel. It is customary to welcome the groom and his family with gifts and is given due prominence throughout the wedding.
Procedure for Vara Puja
- When the groom arrives as per Telugu Reddy wedding rituals, the bride’s family welcomes them with the Nadaswaram and Thayli being played.
- The bride's brother garlands the groom and welcomes him.
- The bride’s father washes the feet of the groom with milk and wipes it off using a cloth. The groom is considered as an incarnation of Lord Vishnu and hence his feet are washed by the bride's father.
- The bride’s mother does an Aarti to ward off any evil that could befall on the groom.
- There is a small engagement ceremony conducted similar to the one that took place during the pre-wedding rituals.
- The groom's family also brings some goodies for the bride.
- The groom is given a golden bracelet and chain as a gift by the bride’s parents.
- The mother of the groom is given a silk saree and the father a dhoti and Angavastram.
- All the gathered guests are given gifts.
A sumptuous vegetarian meal is arranged for all the gathered guests and relatives and the two families take time to get to know each other better, before the wedding.