For the past two months the Ladies of the VSR Family (LVF-Chennai Branch) seem to be painting the city red ! Every weekend since the past two months has seen hectic activities centred around the upcoming wedding, each session for very specifically planned activities. The entire lot is being led by none other than Mrs. Ramanathan, who has rightfully earned the title of the Wedding Planner for the VSR Family !
Read on to understand the various stages involved and why she has qualified !
Saree shopping
The first project was Mission Sarees ! Mrs. Ramanathan is a woman hard to please. After a comprehensive survey of the various show rooms of ALL the silk stalwarts of India (Nallis, Kumarans, Pothys, RMKV, Rasi etc. etc.), she was still not satisfied with the designs available. Finally she discovered a new find - Mr.Balakrishnan - the authentic silk weaver from the heart of Kanchipuram ! Bala is now a household name in the Ramanathan family. He is a regular visitor to the house - visits them almost twice a week.
The process : Bala arrives - Jana's frantic phone calls on 3 hotlines to her 3 SILs - the 3 SILs arrive in the next half hour to examine the saris - a quick shortlisting by all - 4-5 saris are kept aside- (she of course is most excited if her brothers (who all incidentally have "exquisite taste") are present to make the selection - then a new set of colors/ designs are also requested from him for the next round of selection. This story repeats twice a week until the required no. of saries are finalised and bought !
Unfortunately these saris were still not upto the mark for some of the youth - the YLVF (Young Ladies of the VSR Family). The young ladies (Lalan, Adi, Vasu (minimal presence), accompanied by the Shyams, Jana and Radha) began the shopping spree. It began after 5pm and ending at 9:30 pm - they had entered in and out of all the hip and happening and most exclusive showrooms of the city and the country - until the girls were "satisfied" with their respective selections ! Lalan, as usual, had complete clarity as to the exact color and design of the saree she wanted - it was something that she had seen on a photograph sent by her friend and had set her heart and mind on it - and her one-minded pursuit in search of that elusive design was finally rewarded with almost the exact shades and designs !! Adi too finally relented (at 9:30 pm) to the last saree that was shown to her for the day - after going in and out of at least half a dozen shops !
Tailoring
Next was the tailoring session for the blouses bought. The hunt was on for the "perfect" tailor - despite the fact that most tailors were shut that day due to independence day, they still managed to locate (in Jana's words) "one of the best" tailors, who is an exclusive tailor who only stitches for the Who's Who of chennai !
Jewelery Shopping
The next session was for Jewelery shopping - they hit Kutcheri road and all the shops in and around the Mylapore tank - but alas - none were upto the mark. The aunt of course left no stone unturned to help her nieces find the "most exquisite and fabulous jewelery in Chennai" -they finally located the right one from where again it was mass deals !
Pearls
Next was the turn for specific pearl sets, referred to by a friend and imported from Hyderabad !! Various shades and sizes of "the most authentic pearls" were bought for different people.
Gifts
The most recent excitement has been the daily jaunts to "town" - the excitement is simply to be seen to be believed ! the unending seesions of buying various types and sizes of return gifts for various sets of people !! And of course the whole excitement of buying it in wholesale rates and a sense of accomplishment at outwitting the jewellery shopkeepers in TNagar/ Tank ! The infectious enthusiasm has resulted in daily outings to "town" along with various members of the family for different items to be shopped !
Gift wrapping
After the gifts purchase, a small scale industry was temporarily set up in the Akshaya parking lot, with all raw materials again procured from the wholesale markets from Town! The production has been completed and the factory has been closed down temporarily.
Conclusion
The ladies are really proud that they have (in all proabability) outdone the bride and the bride's family, in terms of time spent on the various types of shopping !! The bride would now be getting the jitters that she needs to match up to the YLVF clan !
And of course the epicentre for this hectic activity originated in GF-I Akshaya Apts ! And with the number of days counting down, the days of shopping also are slowly running out, much to the disappointment of Mrs.Ramanathan. After the wedding, its anybody's guess as to next set of services that would be offered under the VSR umbrella !
