KRISHNAGIRI: A 60-year-old man died while attending his eldest son’s engagement near Mathur in Krishnagiri district of Tamil Nadu on Sunday evening, on the eve of the wedding. In normal circumstances, the wedding would have been postponed. But in this case, the grieving family members and the bride’s side decided to advance wedding and hold it on Sunday night itself as the deceased man’s wife insisted that it would make his soul happy.
The deceased man has been identified as Varadaraj, a textile merchant in Perugopanapalli village near Mathur. He was married to Manjula, 48. The couple’s eldest son, Manish, 26, was set to marry Kavya Priya, 21, daughter of Govinda Raj and Sivasankari from the Bargur area.
The wedding was scheduled to be held in a hall in Mathur on Monday morning. On Sunday evening, Varadaraj collapsed during the engagement ceremony in the same hall. He was rushed to a nearby hospital, where he was pronounced dead due to a heart attack.
Family members, relatives and attendees were all in a shock. They were pondering about postponing the wedding when Manjula, the deceased man’s wife, insisted that the wedding should proceed as planned. She said, “My husband arranged this wedding. If his soul is to find peace, the wedding must happen.”
All were confused. But she insisted. At last, they decided to hold the wedding on Sunday night and funeral on Monday.
Varadaraj’s body, dressed in a new silk dhoti and shirt, was brought to the hall. The mangalsutra was placed in the hands of the corpse. Manish then ‘received’ the mangalsutra from his father and tied it around the bride’s neck as all watched it with deep emotions.
The funeral was held on Monday, as (un)planned.