The Feeling of ‘Security’
Since childhood we see our moms wearing bangles and that is the first toy which mother uses to engage the child, irrespective of the region and religion in India. Can you recall the sound of your mother’s bangles? It may not be that prominent to your ears now with too many things in mind but it was the most melodious sound in infancy that used to ensure the presence of your mother. Some feelings cannot be expressed…they are just felt. It is one such feeling.
The Feeling of ‘Newness’
Bangles are inseparable accessory of a married woman in India. In almost all the religions, girls are bestowed with bangles in some or the other ritual in their marriage and then they are asked to wear the bangles throughout life as a symbol of ‘suhaag’. Hindus usually have tradition of ‘choora rasm’ in which bride is gifted with particular kind of bangles called ‘choora’ and she has to wear them for 40 days to one year, depending upon the family tradition. In few religions, this ‘choora’ ritual also involves gifting bangles to all the females present in the ceremony. Red & white studded ‘choora’ made of plastic is famous in Punjabis & Sindhis. Sometimes people do experiment by changing the colours but traditionally red colour is celebrated as symbol of ‘suhaag’ in Hindus. Marwadi, Rajasthani and Jain brides are known to wear lacquer bangles (laakh ka choora) in this ritual at the time of wedding.
The Feeling of ‘Being-Blessed’
Bangles are considered so auspicious in Hindu religion that every time woman enters in new phase of her life there is a ritual of gifting bangles. In seventh or ninth month (as per family tradition) of the pregnancy, choora ritual is performed to give blessings for the new phase of motherhood. This ritual is generally marked with traditional songs of the rasm by the elderly females in house.
The Feeling of ‘Romance’
When we talk about songs, we cannot miss that even bollywood could not ignore the significance of bangles. For every generation, bollywood has atleast one famous song ranging from ‘Gori hai Kalaiyaan tu laade mujhe hari-hari Chudhiyaan’, ‘Mere haathon me nau-nau chudiyan hain’, ‘Chudi baji hai kahin door khan-khan’, ‘Chudi nahi ye mera dil hai’, ‘Bindiya chamkegi, chudi khankegi’, to ‘Kangna tera ni saanu kare ishaare’. Bangle is used in lyrics to portray a feeling attached to it like romance, timidity, desires, playfulness, etc. Mostly it is used to convey the secret message of love with its melodious sound. Even Karan Johar wasn’t able to resist the use of bangle in his movie and gave us a great song ‘Bole chudhiyaan, bole kangana, hay main ho gaya tera saajana’. And the famous singer Falguni Pathak has created her image of Garba Queen with the song ‘Chudhi jo khanke haathon me’.
Bangles have evolved with time just the way songs did in bollywood. One can buy bangles of various shapes like square, triangular, star, floral. But ‘choora’ is still manufactured in traditional circular shape. Don’t miss this ritual in your wedding, it is not just ‘choora’ but the blessings attached to it which makes it so special.
Also Read : Solah Shringar:The Ultimate Beauty Regimen for Indian Brides