Mysuru (Karnataka), June 25 (IANS) The majestic Ambi Vilas Palace in the heart of the state's cultural capital has been decked up and illuminated for the five-day royal wedding of Yaduveer Krishnadatta Charamaja, the titular Maharaja of Mysuru, with Trishikha Kumari from Rajasthan.
"This is a special occasion for the royal family as such a grand wedding is happening 40 years after Srikantadatta Narasimharaja Wodeyar married Pramoda Devi in 1976 in the palace," royal family secretary M. Lakshminarayana told IANS on Saturday.
Since Friday till June 29, visitors and tourists have been barred from entering the sprawling palace which has been white-washed and spruced up for the wedding and the reception, with special lighting to show its grandeur.
Ahead of the main functions from Sunday when the prince and princess will be dressed as bridegroom and bride to tie the nuptial knot on Monday and a grand reception on Tuesday, the century-old palace is bustling with activity.
"As some of the activities, including rituals, prayers and worshipping of the palace deity (Hindu goddess Chamundeshwari) are confined to the family, we are not giving information on them for privacy. Media is allowed to cover the wedding and the reception on June 27-28," Lakshminarayan said.
On the second day of the wedding ceremonies, 23-year-old Yaduveer performed specific rituals after an oil bath early morning, offering flowers to the goddess and Hindu god Ganesha at Chamundi cradle and prayed at Lakshmiramana temple, located within the palace precincts.
"Following the dynastic tradition, the maharaja also worshiped the holy feet (pada puja) of the rajaguru Abhinava Vagheesha Brahmatantra swamiji of Parakala mutt, who is supervising the ceremonies with palace head priest Dharmadhikari Janardhan Iyengar," the secretary noted.
Yaduveer also offered flowers to the decorated arch at the palace main entrance in the presence of Queen Mother Pramoda and family members.
Trishika, 22, is the second daughter of Maharaj Kumar Harshavardhan Singh and Rajkumari Maheshri Kumari of the erstwhile princely state of Dungarpur in Rajasthan.
An arts graduate from the Massachusetts University in Boston, Yaduveer has been engaged to Trishkika on his return from the US last year.
Yaduveer was adopted on February 23, 2015 and crowned as the 27th Maharaja on May 28, 2015. He is the grandson of princess Gayathri Devi, eldest sister of Srikantadatta and eldest daughter of the last reigning maharaja Jayachamarajendra Wodeyar.
The Wodeyar dynasty ruled Mysuru from 1399 to 1950.
