The British Royal Wedding

A lot has been said and written about the nuptials of Kate Middleton and Prince William, and why not? The modern day fairytale wherein the world's most eligible bachelor weds an ordinary girl after a romance that lasted a decade and a relationship that had it's own fair share of ups and downs reached it's happy ending with the ceremony at Westminster Abbey and was sealed with not one but two kisses on the balcony of the Buckingham Palace.

The affair to remember started with months of speculation when Kate (now HRH Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge) and William announced their engagement and the blue sapphire and diamond ring that once belonged the the ethereal Late Princess Diana so befittingly sat pretty on Kate's finger. Then there were speculations about her wedding dress, the cake and the invitees to the wedding of the century. Everything was closely guarded. In spite of all the paparazzi, I think the princess to-be maintained a very dignified profile inviting no bad press and no embarrassing blasts from the past excluding the famous sheer dress that she wore in her college's fashion show. But that should hardly be considered embarrassing since it was the same dress that made the Prince notice her!

There was a lot of excitement all over the world with poll results touting Kate to be one of the most popular royal brides ever. She enjoyed the goodwill of people all over the world. The excitement was palpable in India as well with the news and lifestyle channels partaking in the frenzy. Shows about royal weddings in the past, the lifestyle of the Middletons and interviews of the friends and family of the couple became a staple of prime time programming. All this lasted for a fortnight and it all culminated today with the live telecast of the royal wedding.

Now I must admit, I have never seen such a grand wedding being telecast for us 'Muggles.' The extravagance was evident right from the start when the guests started pouring in. The women in their ultra gorgeous Philip Treacy hats and the men in their best morning suits representing the who's who of the world sat in each other's company at the Westminster Abbey. This was followed by visuals everyone had been waiting for, the arrival of Prince William along with his best man and brother, Prince Harry to the church. As the Bentley pulled into the streets, the poster boys of the British monarchy waved at the crowds who'd been waiting all night long and into the morning to catch a glimpse. This was followed by the arrival of other members of the royal family including the groom's father and the Queen. Then came the visuals everyone had been waiting for, those of Kate getting into the car. The Chantilly lace bridal dress was designed by Sarah Burton of Alexander McQueen and she wore a tiara the Queen had lent to her. She looked simple yet extremely elegant. As she stepped out of the car accompanied by her father and her maid of honour and adorably cute flower-girls and into the church, the picture seemed straight out an illustrated fairy tale.

As she walked down the aisle, one could see the best man telling the groom that his bride who had been a self proclaimed "bundle of nerves" just hours before the wedding looked beautiful. The archbishop led the vows for William and Kate. The only possible glitch that could've happened was when the ring didn't seem to fit Kate's finger but that was resolved and the couple was pronounced Man and Wife. They then proceeded on to sign the 3 registers that every royal couple must sign after being wed while the choir engaged in some opera.

And thus the wedding was solemnized. The girl who'd entered the church as a commoner stepped out as royalty. An open air horse drawn carriage stood waiting to escort the royal couple back to the Buckingham Palace. The bride who was now Her Royal Highness received a royal salute from the British cavalry and the newly-weds seemed to be enjoying every bit of affection and attention albeit in a dignified manner that was being showered upon them by the thousands of people who had gathered along the London sidewalk. They did their bit for the crowd, waving at them and acknowledging them.

And when the wedding part finally reached the palace and when they emerged in the balcony for their first appearance as Prince and Princess, they sent the crowds and the media and the millions of viewers across the world in a tizzy by kissing each other- a tradition established by Prince Charles and Lady Diana. The crowds clamoured for one more kiss, and the much in love couple happily obliged.

Thus, came down the curtains on the biggest reality show in modern history. A reality show with all the pomp and grandeur minus the advertisements and the sponsors. The girl next door had found her prince charming. And they lived happily ever after!

Morning Walk Musings

You don't stand before a mirror and wonder what the road will think of your outfit or listen to its jokes and pretend they're funny in order to run on it. It wouldn't be easier to run if you dressed sexier, the road doesn't notice if you're not wearing lipstick, doesn't care how old you are, you don't feel uncomfortable because you make more money than a road. You can call on a road whenever you feel like whether it's been a day or a couple of hours since your last date. The only thing a road cares about is that you pay it a visit once in a while.
-Nike ad:What Women Want

I happened to watch the Mel Gibson-Helen Hunt starrer last night. The theme of the movie was much done as the title suggests what women want, and for all practical purposes be it eye candy or entertainment, the movie didn't impress me much. The same old redundant and fantastic story of a man getting mind reading powers on being electrocuted in the shower and hearing what women want and eventually turning from a MCP to a more compassionate individual. Then ofcourse, he loses his powers on being electrocuted again, the same way our heroes regain their memory after getting hit by the same stick. What tremendously appealed to me in the movie was the above mentioned quote.

Contrary to what a lot of us may perceive it as, it's not to be construed only in the context of a man-woman relationship. No sir, it goes on to show how the dynamics and the struggles in the life of an individual.

Today morning when I put on a faded blue t-shirt, track pants and an utterly mismatched pair of red sneakers with a yellow rubber band adding to the melee of colours, and set foot in the park for my 2.5km walk, I realised how oblivious I could be to everything around me , everything except the Greenday song that played on my iPod which prompted me to run further. And it wasn't about running away from anything. It was just about moving ahead. And when I did take cognizance of the people around, I realised everyone was just the same. At that hour in the day, in a city like Bombay which is known to be the fashion capital of India, nobody had an ounce of make up or jewellery or matching clothes. Left me wondering as to why people (including me) can be so different in a matter of hours. Why must we dress to impress others?

They say clothes maketh a man but is that truly so? Are our clothes the testators of our character? If that were so, we would be changing with every new collection that hits the racks. Why must we be so conscious of the way we look when we step out in public? Why must we be commanded by those skinny girls who tell you to eat a particular brand of breakfast cereal to stay in shape?

Why must we pretend to be in control when we really aren't?