Dr Poorvi Bhat and Shamanth’s marriage ceremony on a picturesque farm in Shivamogga, Karnataka, featured eco-friendly practices with no plastic or pointless waste. Right here’s how they ensured a conventional celebration rooted in sustainability.
One didn’t want a machine to journey again in time at Poorvi Bhat and Shamanth’s marriage ceremony. Held on a picturesque farm in Shivamogga, Karnataka, the occasion felt like a scene straight out of a Nineteen Sixties marriage ceremony.
It had every little thing a marriage wanted: two individuals in love, glad households, a great deal of pleasure, delicious meals, and ample happiness. What it didn’t have was plastic or pointless waste of any variety — whether or not meals, plastic, or paper. The fantastic thing about the union was enhanced by the simplicity of the setting, surrounded by coconut timber, areca palms, mangoes, and plush greenery.
It was every little thing the bride had dreamed of since she was a little bit lady! Each time anybody requested Poorvi, a nutritionist and naturopath, what she wished for her massive day, her reply remained the identical over time: a easy, eco-friendly marriage ceremony at her household farm.
When she determined to marry her husband, an natural farmer, his household readily agreed to her non-negotiable requirement of a sustainable marriage ceremony.
From a sugarcane mantapa (marriage ceremony pavilion) to decorations utilizing mango and coconut leaves from the farm, to a handwash the place the water was recycled into the farm, to metal cutlery and banana leaves, each facet was meticulously deliberate. All of the moist waste was composted within the farm’s vermicompost pit, and the mantapa was chopped up and served as a scrumptious meal for cows!
On the finish of the two-day occasion, the venue was spotlessly clear, with all waste returned to mom nature. Right here’s how the household pulled it collectively:
Going again to the fundamentals
Dr Poorvi’s childhood was rooted in sustainability, the place it was a lifestyle.
“My father has been operating this natural farm for over 40 years. The whole lot there’s composted and these are normal practices adopted in villages. My mother and father comply with these ideas of their on a regular basis life too,” Poorvi tells The Higher India.
When it got here to her marriage ceremony, it was clear that she wished to comply with the identical ideas. She realised that each one she wanted to do was search inspiration from weddings held three to 4 a long time in the past, like her mother and father’. Earlier than the appearance of small plastic bottles and enormous budgets, weddings have been usually sustainable, weren’t they?
Desirous to have a easy marriage ceremony with a number of visitors, the chosen venue was the household farm. The following step was decorations.
“We determined to go native. We selected domestically out there mango and coconut leaves for decorations, which may very well be composted too. Whereas reusable metal mantapas can be found, we selected to go along with a sugarcane one as it’s historically used and grows in Shivamogga. It’s also one thing that our cows love,” says Poorvi.
When she shared her imaginative and prescient with the decorators, they got here up with extra concepts and have been enthusiastic about not utilizing plastic. They ensured that the aesthetics weren’t compromised.
The following and largest step was catering, the place a lot of the waste is generated throughout weddings.
A All the way down to Earth report means that 10 to fifteen % of meals is wasted at each marriage ceremony, with a minimal of fifty kg and as much as 800 kg. Through the 23-day ‘shaadi season’ from November to December 2023, the nation witnessed over 3.5 million weddings. Think about the quantity of meals wasted.
To stop any waste, the household determined in opposition to utilizing plastic bottles or paper cups. They rented metal cutlery and used an auto-clean machine to clean and sterilise it. Additionally they served meals on conventional banana leaves.
“We opted for a neighborhood menu utilizing freshly grown seasonal elements. We had the machine to make sure that the cutlery was clear. We had massive reusable water cans for ingesting water,” provides the bride.
For laundry palms, they positioned drums of water with mugs in a strategic location the place the water would immediately go to the mango timber. They kept away from putting in faucets to forestall extra water utilization.
To stop meals wastage, they instructed the caterers to serve in small portions and as per the visitor’s needs. “We often have a behavior of serving massive portions of meals which most individuals can’t eat. We wished the visitors to be glad and subsequently served small parts, which may very well be refilled at will,” she provides.
Moreover, all of the meals that remained was packed and given to neighbours and farm staff in their very own metal dabbas. The used banana leaves and meals have been composted within the vermicompost pit on the farm. To make sure that the cows too didn’t miss the feast, the mantapa was chopped up and fed to them.
The garlands too have been made utilizing native flowers and a cotton thread, shares Poorvi. The flowers, together with the leaves used for decorations have been additionally composted.
The return items got in reusable jute luggage. And the containers, which carried the sarees and garments purchased for visitors, have been despatched for recycling.
A minimalist bride
The bride did her personal make-up, together with her aunts serving to with saree draping and buddies doubling as hairstylists. Almost 80 % of her bridal trousseau consisted of previous sarees and sarees from her members of the family.
She even wore a 50-year-old saree! (Insert pic) “My grandmother had gifted this saree to her finest buddy 50 years in the past. She in flip gifted it to me now,” smiles the Bengaluru resident.
The 2-day marriage ceremony was a joyous time for the households, visitors and most significantly, the atmosphere too! “We simply have to look again a number of years in the past and draw inspiration from our ancestors. We didn’t innovate, simply adopted what our mother and father have been doing!” she remarks.
Whereas many would possibly really feel that sustainable weddings are dearer, the nutritionist begs to disagree. She shares that leases usually are not very pricey, when in comparison with the price of one bottle of packaged ingesting water.
“There are a lot of eco-friendly marriage ceremony planners who assist with planning such occasions in bigger cities. There are individuals who assist compost and recycle your waste too. Deal with having fun with the marriage the way in which it was meant to be,” advises Poorvi.
Edited by Pranita Bhat; Pictures Courtesy Poorvi Bhat.
