Chennai couple takes the plunge with a dive

Chennai couple takes the plunge with a dive

Kamini.Mathai@timesgroup.com

Chennai:02.02.2021

It wasn’t so much the stars that decided this wedding date, but the changing tides. At the crack of dawn on Monday, when all was well with the ocean, V Chinnadurai and S Swetha tied the knot 60 feet underwater off the coast of Neelankarai in Tamil Nadu.

“It was a traditional marriage ceremony, only it was underwater. We dived in at an auspicious time in the morning and exchanged garlands and tied the thaali before 730am as per instructions from our priest,” said groom Chinnadurai, a software engineer and a licensed scuba diver.

His bride, Swetha, also a software engineer, began her course in scuba diving about a month ago to prepare for her wedding day. “I was nervous and so were my parents, but we had eight divers with us. It was exciting too because we’ve been trying to tie the knot since last week,” she said. “It was all in the hands of the sea.”

Although the couple had practised in wetsuits, both bride and groom chose to dive right in on their big day dressed in traditional attire – Swetha in a koorai sari and Chinnadurai in a veshti, with all loose ends velcroed firmly in place. The ceremony was videographed and the bride and groom emerged to cheering family members waiting on the seashore for the rituals.

“The entire wedding depended on the ocean currents,” said SB Aravind of Temple Adventures, who helped the couple organise their unique wedding.

V Chinnadurai and S Swetha tied the knot 60 feet under water, off the Neelankarai coast on Monday