Shimla, Sep 13 (IANS) Impressed by the Hindu wedding ceremony, an Australian couple decided to marry in the same style in a Himachal Pradesh village.
Mikahael Van Akel, 35, and Christiane, 30, both Australian nationals, asked their spiritual guru Swami Amar Jyoti at Kadwali village in the Kangra valley of Himachal Pradesh to hold the wedding ceremony at his ‘ashram’ near Palampur town, some 260 km from here late Wednesday.
The couple were dressed in dazzling Indian wedding robes and the ceremony was conducted by Brahmin priests, Shashi Sharma and Rakesh Bhatt. The couple listened to the chanting of Vedic hymns in rapt fascination.
Indira Singh, an elderly friend of the couple played the role of the bride’s parent in ‘kanya daan’, or the ritual of gifting the girl to the husband at the wedding ceremony.
After taking seven rounds of the sacred fire, the couple said they were flying back to Australia on Friday.
The couple invited villagers and friends for a local hill style ‘dham’ or meal to celebrate the wedding. The menu was strictly ‘pahari’.