A traditional Punjabi wedding has numerous rituals, which have a distinct significance and charm that lead to the big day. It begins with a Roka ceremony, which is a simple event usually attended by close family and in a mutually convenient date backed by ‘shubh muhurat’. This is actually an unofficial engagement ritual where the groom’s family members and his friends attend the function and give blessings to the would-be bride. The ceremony started in the old tradition of the arranged marriage norm, where the patra or Patri’s parents would announce that they are searching for a suitable or the best match for their son or daughter and once they had found that match, their search had come to an end.

roka ceremony

The roka ceremony involves the mother of the groom adorns the bride by placing a beautiful red chunni or dupatta over her head and blessing her with clothes, jewelry, cash, etc., which is often referred to as the thaka ceremony on the other hand, the parents of the bride gift clothes and cash to the groom and shower him with their blessings sagan (gifted money and he is fed ladoo). Most of the families like to begin the ceremony with a small puja or a prayer, to mark the first and the most important step of the wedding. There is often an exchange of gifts and sweets such as fruit, Indian sweets or dry fruit (me).

The main reason behind this specific ceremony is to announce that the bride and the bridegroom are now officially engaged, thus they can openly court. It mainly acknowledges the beginning of a new relationship between the two families, who will then after discuss and select an auspicious wedding date. Usually, the ceremony is performed in the traditional ethnic wear which is also known as the roka ceremony attire. The boy may wear a special designer suit, kurta and pyjama whereas the girl, on the other part, may select or choose from the wide range of saree, salwar suit or lehenga choli. The guests usually prefer following the ethnic theme of dressing.

Since ancient times, the ceremony has been a low-key affair that has been only conducted at the respective residents of the bride or the groom. even though the rings are not exchanged in this ceremony, the couple mainly stands unofficially engaged after this ceremony is over. Traditionally before this ceremony, the couple wasn’t allowed to see each other.

Roka Ceremony Video Invitations:

However, nowadays it is becoming immensely popular to host the ceremony or the function in a well-decorated banquet hall or a hotel venue. So for celebration, especially in a Punjabi wedding related ritual, always needs a lot of guests to be invited. So invitations can be done through a various type of media as per your choice. But in the modern technological world, the use of invitation video is the latest trend.

Companies like inviter.com do the same for you. They firstly, collect the pictures and the videos from you, create a proper video invitation with music based on the theme of the occasion and then send it to the guests from your list of invitees. A lot of sample music, phrases, etc., based on the selected theme or occasion are available and you can also choose and select from it and create the video. All these are can be done online and as per the exact timing.