Mumbai: Aiming to erase social-religious barriers, a young doctor-couple solemnized their auspicious wedding with a bonanza of blessings from multi-religious preachers, a sprinkling of IAS officers, judges, activists and orphans, setting a unique trend.
Billed as the first-of-its-kind in Maharashtra, the wedding of Dr. Maitreya Vaishali Patil, 29, (Anesthesiologist of Pen) with Dr. Aditya Nitin Mapara, 30, (Orthopedic from Mahad), has become the talk of not only Raigad but the entire state social-political spectrum.
The brainchild of the veteran Gandhian social activist Dr. Vaishali Patil and executed by her younger daughter Gargi Patil, the January 12 wedding marked the attendance of many dignitaries and bigwigs from all over the state.
They included: retired Bombay High Court judge Justice B. G. Kolse-Patil, IAS officers like Maharashtra Public Services Commission Acting Chairman Dr. Dilip Pandharpatte, Maharashtra State Human Rights Commission Secretary Nitin Patil, SHRC Registrar Judge Dr. Swarupa Dholam, President & Chancellor of Pravara Medical Trust (Deemed University) Dr. Rajendra Vikhe-Patil, besides others.
Ahead of the nuptials, the excited young couple had a brief civil marriage function and then went on for a small in-family celebration of the traditional wedding like ‘haldi’ ceremony, the ‘saat pheras’ before a ‘pandit’, et al, she added.
“The highlight was the public reception at Seesam in Pen town where the villagers and VIPs rubbed shoulders, the couple was blessed by the commoners and celebs, general merry-making and enjoyment for all,” Dr. Patil told TPV.
Discarding the practice of hiring pricey professionals/filmstars, the Maitreya-Aditya bash saw a group of orphans and tribal kids of the Ankur Trust Ashram and Child Haven Ashram presenting vibrant, colourful and rocking dance performances, winning the hearts of the invitees.
Then the kids showered flowers-petals to accord a royal welcome to the bride and groom as the gathering comprising many medicos, activists, politicians, tribals, farmers and others stood up to cheer, clap and pour their blessings to the new couple, under a chilly and starry sky.
The newly-weds also added a dash of sparkle by shaking a leg at the popular Bollywood number, “Kesariya Tera..”, evoking a thunderous standing round of applause while the kids set off noise-free fireworks.
This was followed by the spotlight event – representatives of different religions solemnly praying for the good fortune to the couple in their traditional religious styles and languages.
They comprised: Hindu Pandit Brahmesh Dharmadhikar (Vedic), Buddhist monks Bhante Aryaprajna Shakya and Bhante Ashwamedh of Navi Mumbai Vipassana Centre (in Pali language); Muslim cleric Maulana Ansar Sultani (in Urdu), Head of Raigad Deanery Fr. Rudolph Andrades SFX (in English), as the mesmerized gathering watched in pindrop silence.
In their brief remarks, the holy representatives expressed their pleasure at participating in such a rare wedding, while the Maulana stressed the need for such innovative marriages across society.
Later, Kolse-Patil, Pandharpatte, Dholam, Patil, Vikhe-Patil and others administered a courtly ‘Oath of gender equality, religious harmony and mutual partnership’ to the couple with the guests as witnesses.
The couple also broke ground by donating all the wedding gifts received in cash or kind to the Ashrams for their welfare activities.
Dr. Patil explained that she hailed from a family teeming with mixed-marriages - both inter-caste or inter-religious alliances - including her own with a Tamilian Christian Raj Anthony.
“The marriage of Maitreya-Aditya seeks to stress on the need for social, caste, or communal harmony, and unity of the minds in the current times where the democratic space is shrinking rapidly,” averred Dr. Patil.
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