All About the Vidai Ceremony 

Vidai ceremony is a ceremony native to India. This very special ceremony holds a sentimental place in the hearts of the bride’s family.

In Indian marriages, the pre-wedding days are full of activities, friends and family making merry all around. It is a whirlwind of ceremonies, rituals and emotions running high. While on one hand, there is immense joy permeating everyone because of the union of the new couple, there is sweet sorrow on the part of the bride’s family from leaving their daughter to another home.

This momentous ceremony is termed as Vidai ceremony, also known as Bidai or Bidaai, or Doli as in Sikhism.

The Origin of Vidai Ceremony

In ancient days, the brides were usually given off to princes and kings of faraway lands, mostly as a gift, property or as a peace treaty between two kingdoms. The Vidai ceremony was a part of royal weddings. However, the custom is in practice even today in regular weddings.

The Vidai Ritual

In India, the daughter of the household is seen as ‘paraya dhan’, someone who is to be blissfully given away during marriage. When a newlywed leaves her home, she is garbed in her bridal attire. And along with her husband, her father, brothers and uncles surround her.

The bride then proceeds to throw three handfuls of rice or wheat along with a few coins, over her head and into the house. This symbolizes her connection to the house. This is an act of repayment to her parents for keeping her in the house, and also to spread prosperity and happiness in its four corners.

Following this ritual, she gets into the groom’s vehicle, which is some cases is a Palanquin, and leaves for her new home.

The Vidai Attires

1. The Wedding Lehenga

India is a land of varied culture, reflecting across in weddings. While the essence remains the same, different cultures may follow different customs.

In some cultures, the Vidai ceremony takes places as soon as the bride and groom exchange their 7 vows. Therefore, for this occasion, the bride chooses to wear her wedding lehenga for the ritual.

2. The Bridal Sari

While some women wear lehengas, most feel them heavy wedding attires are difficult to carry during the ceremony. Therefore, one tends to look for comfortable attire that is chic and glamorous at the same time.

Brides often wear elegant sarees with embellishments for this ceremony. These days, women pay a lot of attention to what they wear. The on-going trend is to drab in a net sari or a Banarasi Silk Sari, in bright colors like red, maroon, yellow and green.

3. Salwar Kameez

Salwar Kameez is the recent trend among Punjabi brides. Often brides have to perform the Vidai ceremony, and then move towards their husband’s house, where more ceremonies await them. Hence, they find wearing a Salwar Kameez is a comfortable option.

On the Road to a New Life

As the bride’s parents hand her over to the groom, both the newlyweds get into their vehicles. As the car moves forward, the bride’s family completes the Vidai rituals by throwing coins on the road.

By throwing coins in the way of the car, the bride’s family hopes to ward of all evils from their path towards a new life.