Karva Chauth- Celebrating the ” I DO ” Moment

Karva Chauth is a traditional Hindu festival celebrated predominantly by married women in various parts of North India, especially in  Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Delhi regions.It is  a festival to  rekindle the romance of marriage.It is a celebration of love, togetherness & marriage vows. In other words, it is a traditional festival that is celebrated in modern ways today.The festival usually falls on the fourth day after the full moon in the Hindu month of Kartik, which generally corresponds to October or November in the Gregorian calendar. It falls on 10th October this year.

Why is Karva Chauth Celebrated?

On this day, married women used to observe a strict fast from sunrise to moonrise for the long life, prosperity, and well-being of their husbands. Life was unpredictable & longevity was rare a century ago. The custom of praying for the husband’s good health & life is rooted in this thought.The fast is unique as  some women refrain from consuming food and water throughout the day. However, in the modern day, husbands too keep a fast and join their wives.

How is it celebrated

The rituals begin before sunrise, when women eat a pre-dawn meal called ‘Sargi’, which is traditionally prepared by their mothers-in-law. After this, they abstain from all food and drink until they see the moon at night.

Women dress up in fine clothes—often in shades of red or bright colours—and adorn themselves with traditional jewellery and mehendi (henna) on their hands. They prefer to be attired in their bridal finery. The dressing, makeup & mehendi are an important aspect to be dressed as a bride.In the evening, they gather for a community puja (prayer) where the Karva (a small earthen pot) is worshipped. Elderly women narrate stories and legends related to Karva Chauth, emphasising the significance of love, devotion, and sacrifice in marital life.There is a great sense of bonding & community participation.

They get together with their relatives and friends & typically congregate together in a garden to do the puja.Sometimes, a priest is brought in for a story telling session. Mythological stories that talk about the virtues of women and their prayers for their husbands are often spoken about. Finally an Aarti  is performed and special songs are sung in celebration.

Moon Worship

The fast is broken after sighting the moon. Women view the moon through a sieve and then look at their husbands through the same sieve, symbolising their prayers for their husbands’ safety and longevity. Husbands, in turn, offer water and the first morsel of food to their wives, marking the end of the fast. While all this may sound filmi & romantic it is just custom & tradition.

In modern times, Karva Chauth has also gained popularity as a social event .While the festival is rooted in tradition, it is celebrated with much enthusiasm in social gatherings, blending age-old customs with contemporary expressions of affection. Young women are instagram friendly and would like to flaunt their clothes & finery.In addition, they post images with their husbands at romantic spots.They have moved with the times & have changed the way they celebrate marital togetherness. Film stars and celebrities can be seen with interesting Karva chauth images on Instagram. The most popular ones are the ones that display mehendi (designs on teh palms)in their hands.

Karva Chauth Puja

Around evening time, women get dressed in bright coloured clothes.They wear bright coloured traditional clothes, such as  saris, salwar suits or lehengas.

Preparations for Karva Chauth

Women prepare themselves by buying cosmetics, jewellery, new garments and puja thalis(plates).They get their henna/mehendi (hand paint) done in a local market. Shopping for bridal finery and festive clothes is an important part of the event.

As a matter of fact,it is normal to find shopping markets crowded just before Karva chauth.

Karva Chauth Shopping

Many women are busy shopping for a week before the Karva Chauth Puja. Let us explore the Karva Chauth shopping in Delhi  .

In fact, when you visit the Lajpat Nagar shopping Market, the GK M Block Market shopping Market or the Karol Bagh shopping market you will find women thronging the market and shopping for lenehga (long traditional skirst)cholis,(blouses), salwar suits and sarees.

Shops such as  Frontier Raas in South Extension Market and RCKC in Karol Bagh are popular places to shop. The jewellery lane in Lajpat Nagar is crowded as women like to buy bangles and bindis before karva chauth.

Many women visit spas and beauty parlours  to look their best on Karva Chauth

 A. Karva Chauth Shopping: Puja Essentials

The thalli or the tray is an essential item for the puja. In addition, there is  karva, the pot, the lamps and the sieve. These make the essential Karva Chauth puja essentials.

Best places to buy Karva Chauth Puja essentials are,

Kinari Bazar in Chandni Chowk and Lajpat Nagar Market

Johari Bazar and Bapu Bazar in Jaipur

B. Karva Chauth Picture- Traditional Wear

LEHENGA

LONG DRESS

Firstly, women wear an ornate sari or a heavily worked salwar kameez on Karva Chauth.  In fact,some of them dress up in their bridal dress for the puja. Some women, buy new clothes for the  Karva Chauth picture.In addition, expensive saris that have a lot of embroidery and Zardozi work are purchased. Similarly, salwar kameez with heavy sequins work is purchasedTypically ,the mother in law gifts new dresses to her daughters in law.

DESIGNER SAREE

PLAZZO WITH TANK TOPS

SHORT KURTI SALWAR SUITS

As a matter of fact, young women who prefer to move away from traditional salwar kameez and saris would be interested to buy modern stylish kurtis or salwar kameez sets.

FUSION WEAR

C. Karva Chauth Shopping: The Bangles

In addition, glass bangles or any other kind of bangle/bangles is an absolute must buy for Karva Chauth

Some of the best places to buy bangles in Delhi are:

Hanuman Mandir

Jewellery lane in Lajpat Nagar

Kinari Bazar

In Jaipur –  Bapu Bazar Market

D. Bindi

 Bindi is the red mark that women apply of their forehead.

Jewellery lane in Lajpat Nagar is a good place to pick an assortment of bindis. In other words, one can opt for the bindi stickers or the real Kumkum that is applied on the forehead. It can be ordered online as well.

E. Mehendi

You can probably  visit any shopping Market in Delhi, Jaipur ,Mumbai or Kolkata and you will find mehendi artists busy applying mehendi on the hands of women both young & old.Mehendi is henna powder that is made into a paste and applied on the hands in an intricate patterns.Women apply mehendi /henna  in their hands. Henna is a powder made from the plant Lawsonia inermis.

The henna powder is typically mixed with water and made into a paste. Further, this is applied with the help of a plastic syringe or a piping nozzle on the hands.Intricate designs are created on the palms. It is washed away after a couple of hours. Although it appears orange in colour after washing off the hands, it slowly turns to a deep red colour to display the designs.Further, Mehendi artists can also be found near the jewellery lane in Lajpat Nagar and in the GK M Block Market

F. Sweets

Food- And Finally, only vegetarian food is consumed in Karva Chauth. Malpua, Sweet Mathri, kheer, badam puri, phirni and atte ka halwa  are all consumed as a part of the celebrations.

 In other words ,like all other Indian festivals, Karva chauth has become a popular festival  and women are prepared to spend large sums of money on this day. With the social media taking over our lives, young women are busy posting their Karva Chauth pictures with their beloved on Instagram. Hence, it is all the more important to look your best on this day.

 As a matter of fact, all the items for Karva Chauth shopping  are available online. Hence, check out Amazon and Flipkart.