(This article is a part of the web-exclusive series from our latest issue 'The Marriage Issue'. More from the print quarterly here.)
Millennials will always be confused. You can't blame them either; the defining characteristic of the generation is that of being undecided. By a Google-informed approximation, anyone born after 1981 (but not after 2002) tends to exhibit similar behavioral patterns. These tendencies have much to do with questioning prior obsessions and habits, all the while expressing themselves almost exclusively, and indefatigably, on the internet. As India's urban millennials stretch their arms to embrace global identities, they are still holding unto cultural and religious traditions. And the arena where this is showcased to the hilt is the theatre of marriage, and India's fondness for ostentatious weddings.
India has a reputation for sybaritic weddings. And at the core of this is the fixation on gold. As a Bangalorean I have watched the city's tipsy balance between modern conveniences and ritualistic excesses. Indeed, the south of India is an intriguing geographical space to deconstruct India's obsession with gold in a digitally informed world. The 'south' is, of course, too vague a term to comprehensively include the subtleties of culture, class, and family quirks to reveal any answers with authority. This is why personal stories build a more authentic narrative of patterns and paradigms. The women I talked to were ready to share their stories, with stunning insights, about their tryst with this alluring metal. We could finally talk about the elephant in the room.