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Niki Niki Boondi

This song is sung by the women of the grooms family during the ghodi and describes the ceremonies that are held when the groom is astride the mare, in preparation for the departure to the brides home. All the women shower blessings on the young man before he begins the auspicious journey to wed, and bring back, his bride.

Certain ceremonies and rituals are described in this song. The bag of coin, the kohl in the eyes, the yellow gram lentils that are fed to the mare just prior to the departure of the grooms party. Once again, we see how these songs function as a repository of the customs and continue their preservation.

A light rain was considered auspicious, a blessing from the sky itself.

A light rain falls
Mother performs the ceremonies.

Mother performs the ceremonies
Father holds a bag of coin.

Father holds a bag of coin,
My beautiful brother is astride the blue mare.

A light rain falls,
My brother is astride the blue mare.

My brother is astride the blue mare,
Mother blesses him, may you live a hundred thousand years.

My beautiful brother is astride the mare,
Chaachi blesses him, may you live a hundred thousand years.

My brother is astride a blue mare,
Bhaabi blesses him, may you live a hundred thousand years.

My beautiful brother is astride the mare,
His sister holds the reins.

His sister holds the reins,
As the mare feeds on yellow lentils.

The mare feeds on yellow lentils,
Bhaabi puts kohl in his eyes

Bhabi puts kohl in his eyes,
The doli enters our palace slowly.

The doli enters our palace slowly,
His mother circles water and sips it.

In the last two lines the scene shifts to the time when the groom returns home with his new bride. At the entrance, his mother ‘circles’ the two of them with a handful of water (to signify her love, cherishment and devotion to them) sips the water and thus welcomes the young couple home.

Traditionally women did not accompany the marriage party to the home of the bride. The groom’s mother did not witness the marriage of her son but stayed behind to welcome the young couple home. Today this custom has pretty much been set aside. Another custom that is no longer followed, and rightly so, is actually preserved in this song. The women who perform the various ceremonies - the mother, bhabi and sister - have the adjective ‘suhagan’ attached to them. A suhagan is a married woman whose husband is still alive. It used to be believed that a widow was an inauspicious presence, but this is no longer accepted by any sane person.

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