Dhamtari: Nowadays, weddings cost so much that the bride's family even goes bankrupt. In Chhattisgarh, there is a tribal community in which both engagement and marriage can be done with just twenty rupees.
Members of Goriya tribe living in Bhatgaon of Dhamtari are still following the centuries old tradition from generation to generation. In Goriya tribe, when a boy or girl has to get married, both the parties meet to establish a relationship by paying just 20 to 500 rupees. The groom's side can take the bride home by paying this small amount provided the bride is ready for marriage.
"My mother's house is in Kaneri. When people came to see me at the time of marriage, our relationship was fixed for sixty rupees, which we call Sukh Bandhna in our language. Our marriage took place for three days. The amount fixed for the marriage has the consent of the parents. Later my husband feels that we should bring two or four more wives, then he will leave me at my parents' house and return the sixty rupees given to me at the time of marriage," said Mela Bai, a tribal Goriya woman.
"In our time, marriages were conducted in this manner. Now times have changed a bit. Some people follow the old tradition and some do not," said another woman Dinbati Bai.
Marriage fixed for 20 rupees: The people of Goriya tribe are still following this tradition which has been going on for years. The people of Goriya tribe say that the money given to the girl's side during the fixing of the marriage is always kept with them like a deposit. When the girl's side breaks the relationship, whatever amount was given earlier has to be returned in its original form. After returning the money, the girl's side takes their daughter back.
If the marriage breaks for any reason, the family members return the money given at the time of marriage, said Jagmohini Bai.
If the family and the girl agree, we wait for two to three years. Later, when the marriage takes place, we bring the bride home. My marriage was fixed for five thousand rupees, said Dilesh Goriya, a villager.
Unique ritual: There are many unique traditions in the Goriya tribe. One of these is to lock the boy and the girl in a room before marriage. People of the Goriya tribe say that when the marriage of the boy and the girl is fixed, both are locked in a room for a few days. People belonging to the tribe believe that during this time both get to know and understand each other. After this, the life of both is tied in the bond of marriage.
"The marriage takes place only when both the families agree. Their tradition is still going on in the same way. If the boy wants to leave the girl, the money is returned. The marriage takes place inside their camp. Earlier, the marriage would take place for 20 rupees, now this amount has reached up to five hundred rupees," said Dinesh Kumar Pandey, headmaster.
Even in today's online era, the people of the Goriya tribe are not only carrying forward their tradition but the new generation is also accepting it.
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