 The Coacher Household is witnessing such festivity for the very first time. Ananya, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Ajay Singh Coacher, is to wed Gaurav, son of Mr. and Mrs. Randhir Singh Madan in less than two hours. Mr. Coacher is all nerves today. Finding a groom for his daughter has been no mean task. We place advertisements in all the top newspapers of India, telling them about our daughter and the kind of groom we wanted. My wife, she worked so hard on this. She met pandits, she went to marriage bureaus and posted Ananya's pictures on various websites. The response we got was stupendous, but both of us, very clear on three things. One, we wanted the boy to be from a business family, as ours is a business family and Ananya would have the least of problems as far as the adjustment goes. Two, we wanted him to be as educated as her or maybe even more. Because the mental equation is really very important here. And three, the horoscopes must match. The Janam Patri must endorse this alliance so that we know that God's will is with us. With the boy and girl meeting all parameters their parents had set for them, the match is on. And their families will leave no stone unturned in celebrating the wedding of their beloved children, true Indian style. Two months into the engagement, the co-chairs and madhans have planned the grand wedding of their children. On this bright February morning, Ananya's Haldi ceremony is scheduled where she will be bathed in rich turmeric paste to brighten her up and set her skin aglow. The traditional prayers chanted by the Pandit are followed by family and friends applying the paste made of turmeric, rose water and sandalwood on Ananya. Back at the Madhan house, Gaurav too is subject to the spicy beauty treatment. The turmeric is then washed off the bride and groom and reveals new glowing skin on them. Bright and radiant, they are now ready for the evening which will embellish them further and move them a step closer to the most cherished day of their lives. Mehendi is customary to all Indian weddings and is made by grinding the leaves of the Mehendi shrub with lime juice and water added to it to give it the desired consistency. The paste is put in a plastic cone and pressed out in the shape of a fine strand through the cone's nozzle. Intricate designs are dexterously created on the bride's hands and feet that feature her favourite designs and patterns. Ananya's hands are adorned with the deep dark Mehendi colour she's so wished for. Today, she will dress up in a traditional pink lehenga and dance at the night she so looks forward to. I'm dancing with Gaurav on Tera Hune Lagaahu. We've been rehearsing this song since three weeks with the choreographers and I'm really very excited for today's musical evening because all my close friends are going to participate in it and my mummy and daddy are going to shake a leg so I'm really looking forward. A stunning venue is ready to host a grand night of music, song and dance. All of Ananya and Gaurav's family and close friends will be performing at tonight's function. And D-Day is finally here. It is for the first time that Ananya and Gaurav are meeting on the stage as bride and groom and now they will perform the ritual of the Jai Mal wherein they will make each other wear a garland signifying their mutual acceptance to be husband and wife. The wedding ceremony proceeds at the Mandap. Thereafter, Mr. Kochar is called upon to perform the traditional ritual of Kanyadan where he is said to be gifting the bride away to a new man and a new home. The couple goes on to complete the Satheire or the seven circles they will make around the holy fire burning in the middle of the Mandap as a witness. They promise each other love, happiness, courage, protection, loyalty, a family and good upbringing of their children. And now it is time. Ananya will leave from her abode to enter that of her husband's where she will build with him a new family, a new life. I promise to be her lover, guardian, not just in this life, but the next seven lives spent together. Be the times good or bad, I promise to always keep her happy and always to be by her side. Initially I was scared, jittery. It's still sinking in, but I didn't know that being married would be such a wonderful feeling. It's a new day, a new world and a man by my side who I can call mine forever.