Who says that the pandemic has watered down marriage celebrations? In an unusual wedding, a Chennai couple V Chinnadurai and S Swetha tied the knot after diving 60 feet underwater, at a 4.5 km distance from the Neelankarai coast.
Keeping up with the traditions, the IT engineer couple donned desi attire even underwater. While Swetha wore a koorai saree, Chinnadurai wore his veshthi with all the loose ends velcroed firmly in place, TOI reports.
The groom who is a licensed scuba diver alongside being a software engineer said, “It was a traditional marriage ceremony, only it was underwater. We dived in at an auspicious time in the morning and exchanged garlands and tied the thaali before 7.30 am as per instructions from our priest.”
As per a report in The Hindu, the ceremony was filmed underwater, and the couple came out of the water to continue with the other marriage rituals, while their families cheered for them. Check it out:
Bride Shweta, who is also a software engineer recalled, “I was nervous and so were my parents, but we had eight divers with us. It was exciting too because we’ve been trying to tie the knot since last week. It was all in the hands of the sea.”
She added, “But they convinced me and after due training in a swimming pool and also after a few scuba diving sessions, I was confident enough and took the plunge today. The first time that I went to the bottom of the sea, I saw live fish swimming by me. It was an experience of a lifetime.”
S B Aravind of Temple Adventures who helped organize this unique marriage said, “The entire wedding depended on the ocean currents. I had to tell them to leave the date of the wedding blank on the invitation. It was filled in only this morning when we confirmed the waters were calm enough for a dive.”
He added, “Last night we got a call from the fishermen that the sea was calm and so we hurried early this morning. We had taken permission from the coastal police for the marriage. After coming onto the shore, the other rituals were done.”
The groom, who hails from Tiruvannamalai, revealed that he has been a swimming enthusiast since a young age. He said, “I am a certified scuba diver. I have been scuba diving for 12 years now, thanks to Aravind anna, our instructor. It was his idea that we get married under sea. But, we noticed a lot of plastic waste, particularly masks, on the seabed.”
“We spent 45 minutes underwater. I proposed to her with a bouquet and then exchanged garlands and then tied the thali. Flowers were showered on us and then we took a few rounds underwater. We are worried about finding masks underwater. We wanted to create awareness about this and so chose our wedding as an occasion.”
I had heard of the stars aligning for an auspicious occasion, but now I’ve also seen the ocean currents determining the marriage. What do you think of this adventurous wedding? Tell us!