Weddings Reception in India from 1980s - II

I fondly remember another scene from a wedding dinner during my teenage years. The venue was decorated with tube lights and multi colored bulbs, with Insects swarming around. It was also known as LICHU lights in local parlance. 

A big municipality water tanker was rumbling nearby. A few mongrels were roaming, feasting and fighting over the leftover food. They were chased away, running with tail tucked behind their hind legs, only to return back to resume their feast and fight. At the entrance volunteers were seen standing with PAAN (betel) and unfiltered Cavenders cigarettes on plates, destined for guests, post dinner.

Atop the house was the dining area. The impatient guests were trying to push through a narrow entrance leading to long rows of dining tables. After one batch was done the table was cleaned, white paper rolled over and water in dirty plastic glasses were placed every couple of feet apart. One can always see a thick coating of oil mixed dirt floating on the drinking water. Three mountain sized guys with protruding belly, were tasked to stop the crowd who could no further.

 

The burly troika's weapon to stop the marauding crowd, was a big cylindrical slab of wood held horizontally at chest height, pushed towards the unruly guests trying, to prevent them from barging in. The tug of war continued with the crowd trying to get through and those big guys holding the log as the barrier to hold them. Once signaling the tables were ready the big guys relented, eased a little bit taking a breath. The flood gate opened. People poured in like waves across a ruptured dam which would have put DALEI GHAI ( the legendary embankment on river Mahanadi known to burst during monsoon flooding ) to shame.

 

I was a mute yet amused spectator to this saga of crowd control, sandwiched between one batch and the next until the crowd trickled down to a few. After finishing my meal washed down with grease laced water supplied from those rumbling municipality tanks pumping them. I continued towards a corner to wash my hands and mouth. Barely few feet left before I could reach my destination, I had to careful wade through the slushy ground filled with fish and chicken bones plus a blend of rice and potato skins.

 

But I had to take my turn. There was this guy right in front, swishing and rinsing his mouth using extended forefinger vigorously moving across his teeth, from left to right. He cleared his throat, KHRRHH...KHRRH...ARRHHH...ARRHH..THHOO..THHOO. Post rinse his mouth was full and he could not hold the water any longer, it came out with POOOOCH followed by clearing of throat again. A portion of the saliva and food residue filled water just emitted from his mouth bounced from the ground and then splashed on my feet. He was hardly apologetic, looked the other way and passed on the mug towards me. I miss those days and the memories. Receptions these days are way too formal with plastic smiles, devoid of the elements of fun of that bygone era.