Jottings - slice of life - 209 ( The wedding Royale - Saga continues..)

Jottings - slice of life - 209 ( The wedding Royale - Saga continues..)

One of my distinct childhood memories is that of Princess Diana's wedding. I must have been in 5th or 6th grade, when teachers announced that all of us will assemble in the school auditorium the next day to watch the live ( or recorded, i dont recall correctly) telecast of this royal event. They wrote a short message to this effect in our study notebooks for our parents to read and acknowledge. Few months before this wedding, I remember a lot of buzz going around, lot of adult talk about an impending wedding of grand proportions. I vaguely remember seeing glimpses of Diana’s young and smiling face in the Hindu, one of our national Newspapers, proclaiming her as the bride of the century. I was too young to notice if she was beautiful or not, but the image I distinctly have at this distance in time is - she did look very pleasing to the eye. A kind of disarming and open smile with a touch of melancholy which gave one a queer feeling of comfort and homeliness. However, I didn’t understand what the hype was all about. Not that I am supposed to, at that age. But still, with others talking so much about it, it was expected that all of us look forward to it. The only thing I understood about weddings in general was: it is a grand affair, people get to wear good clothes, eat sumptuous food, lots of fun, and more importantly, one gets few days off from school work. I didn’t quite realize, nor did anyone make the effort of making me realize, the difference between the gravity and scale of this wedding and many others I had witnessed or heard about in our family. To my limited childish brain, princess Diana’s wedding was nothing but a three hour break for fun. At least, thats what I was prepared for, when I went to school the next day.

Frankly, midway, I remember getting terribly bored. The interminable formalities, the loud and incomprehensible choir that seemed to go on and on, the solemn look on all faces, the utter slowness of the procession began to irritate me. I longed to get up and walk out the stuffy hall I was in; but couldn’t. The next best thing was to secretly pray for this event to come to an end. That didn’t seem a possibility either. I remember looking around to see my teachers glued to the television screen with awe, especially the ladies. They was passing endearing comments on Diana’s dress, her earrings, her necklace, and how chiseled and calm her face looked, what a great pair they made, and more. Every now and then, teachers would look at us expecting we to reciprocate their joy. It was clear they wished this wedding to go on forever. I was however visibly fidgeting, and my fellow classmates were no better.

But after all these years, If there is one thing that distinctly sticks out in my memory of the Royal wedding, it is the sheer glitter, extravagance and grandeur which enveloped the event. There was also a solemnity to the occasion, that my young immature mind couldn’t comprehend then; but, at this distance of time, I now understand it. The tremendous power and sway of monarchy, the sheer gravity of the responsibility of royalty, and the need for scrupulously exhibiting it on occasions such as that, can take quite a toll on oneself. Whether we like of not, we love our kings and queens and hold them to a standard. We want them perfect in all respects. For thousands of years, the human psyche was trained to look up to their monarchs as Gods. Two hundred years of democracy cannot change that attitude. It will take much more time. The reason why the wedding of Charles and Diana was hailed as the most romantic one of the twentieth century was not because there were the most handsome couple, but it was for the fact that monarchy had chosen someone so beautiful and fragile as Diana into their fold and reinforced the fact that for Royalty nothing but the best would do. Such an occasion demanded total allegiance, acquiescence and awe from its people.; hence the extravagant ceremony and pomp. For Diana, it was a vindication of the fairy tale story of finding a rich and powerful prince. The exuberant, care free girl had been transformed into role model with specific code of conduct, decorum and etiquette. What I remember distinctly from the day of the wedding was the hint of raw sadness in her deep blue eyes, periodically masked by spontaneous, mercurial smile on her face. A curious piece of memory to stick on after few decades. When Diana was killed in a car accident in 1996, strangely the first thought that flirted through my head was this young face with all the conflicting emotions writ large.

Well, one more Royal wedding just happened . Megan Markle , the American actress, now become the Duchess of Sussex. Once again, millions sat glued to the television sets watching the couple walk down the aisle in St George chapel. Once again, a young lady gets sucked into the halls of monarchy, and once again, every act, every move, every gesture, every word she utters will be weighed, criticized and analyzed by a stringent hand. It is a life which may seem glamorous and privileged for those viewing it from outside; but for the players themselves it is an serious act of adjustment, almost complete transformation of who they are and what they want to be. It is not easy. To some, it comes easily, to others, like Diana, for instance, the change was difficult, and in her case it never completely happened. We will now have to see how the American bred Megan adjusts to the stuffy demands of Royalty. Times have changed though. Prince harry lives in modern times with newer modes of thoughts and living. Perhaps for him ,Monarchy may not hold the same rigor as it did for his father; and perhaps because of that, the demands on his wife may be more respectful accommodative and less fettered. The aged queen still hold supreme. As long as she is alive, the penumbra of royalty will cast its traditional shadow upon the family. Not in any wrong sense , but in the fact that she will expect certain standards of propriety and behavior maintained as part of Royal household. But after her, it remains to be seen how the family adapts itself.

This time around, I didn’t bother to watch Harry’s wedding, though virtually all broadcasting stations beamed it. Thankfully, there were no school teachers forcing me to sit through it. However, I had no choice but to watch snippets of it on the news. It looked like Megan Markle is all set to live the live of a duchess. The self evident smile of satisfaction was lit large on her face. Prince Harry was subdued, obviously relishing his accomplishment of dating a beautiful lady for year and half, and marrying her without too much fuss within the Royal household. That is sure sign of changing times.

Lets wish the couple a wonderful Royal life. Not many get that privilege.

God bless..

yours in mortality,

Bala