For 11 months, Sharafunnisa Chakkulagara's engagement was stalled because her family did not have money for a wedding.
On Sunday, in a Muslim ceremony, Ms Chakkulagara, 23, married Ali Thekkeavachil, 29, who works as a cook at a hotel.
"We are from a very poor family background," said Ms Chakkulagara, who has three brothers at home and an ailing father. "And it is very difficult for us to meet the expenses of a marriage.
"The system in Kerala to conduct a marriage is beyond the limit of an economically below-average family. We are financially very weak and there is no regular income."
Although the family was able to marry off her elder sister a few years ago, there was not sufficient money for her own wedding. Her brothers work at odd jobs around the town of Changaramkulam.
"There is just enough to meet our daily living expenses," said Ms Chakkulagara. "We normally can't have any savings from our income, and conducting a marriage is always a dream for us."
She described her current home, which she shares with three family members, as one "with limited space".
"Since the house is not well-built, we are finding difficulties during the monsoon season."
But since her wedding plans have been revived by the organisation, she said, she was looking forward to married life.
"I like him," she said of Mr Thekkaeavachil. "We have met before fixing the marriage and exchanged our views and thoughts about our future together. We were completely satisfied with each other, and the marriage was fixed with our permission. "He seems very thankful to the organisation that we can finally wed. Actually, we don't have words to express our sincere thanks to them for fulfilling our dream, which we always thought of as an impossible event in our life."
Ms Chakkulagara dropped out of school at 16 because the family needed to finance the travel of one of her brothers to the UAE, where he works. So she became a seamstress and would like to pursue a vocational course after marriage.
"We will set up something together for me, maybe a small business," she said.
Her husband "will help."
Like the other brides who were married on Sunday, Ms Chakkulagara was to travel to her husband's house, a 15-minute walk and a new life away.
sbhattacharya@thenational.ae
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE
Starring: Winona Ryder, Michael Keaton, Jenny Ortega
Director: Tim Burton
Rating: 3/5
The specs: 2018 Peugeot 5008
Price, base / as tested: Dh99,900 / Dh134,900
Engine: 1.6-litre turbocharged four-cylinder
Transmission: Six-speed automatic
Power: 165hp @ 6,000rpm
Torque: 240Nm @ 1,400rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 5.8L / 100km
Reading List
Practitioners of mindful eating recommend the following books to get you started:
Savor: Mindful Eating, Mindful Life by Thich Nhat Hanh and Dr Lilian Cheung
How to Eat by Thich Nhat Hanh
The Mindful Diet by Dr Ruth Wolever
Mindful Eating by Dr Jan Bays
How to Raise a Mindful Eaterby Maryann Jacobsen
The Penguin
Starring: Colin Farrell, Cristin Milioti, Rhenzy Feliz
Creator: Lauren LeFranc
Rating: 4/5
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FA CUP FINAL
Manchester City 6
(D Silva 26', Sterling 38', 81', 87', De Bruyne 61', Jesus 68')
Watford 0
Man of the match: Bernardo Silva (Manchester City)
MATCH INFO
Europa League semi-final, second leg
Atletico Madrid (1) v Arsenal (1)
Where: Wanda Metropolitano
When: Thursday, May 3
Live: On BeIN Sports HD
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
KEY HIGHLIGHTS
Healthcare spending to double to $2.2 trillion rupees
Launched a 641billion-rupee federal health scheme
Allotted 200 billion rupees for the recapitalisation of state-run banks
Around 1.75 trillion rupees allotted for privatisation and stake sales in state-owned assets
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How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
Greatest of All Time
Starring: Vijay, Sneha, Prashanth, Prabhu Deva, Mohan
UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE FIXTURES
All kick-off times 10.45pm UAE ( 4 GMT) unless stated
Tuesday
Sevilla v Maribor
Spartak Moscow v Liverpool
Manchester City v Shakhtar Donetsk
Napoli v Feyenoord
Besiktas v RB Leipzig
Monaco v Porto
Apoel Nicosia v Tottenham Hotspur
Borussia Dortmund v Real Madrid
Wednesday
Basel v Benfica
CSKA Moscow Manchester United
Paris Saint-Germain v Bayern Munich
Anderlecht v Celtic
Qarabag v Roma (8pm)
Atletico Madrid v Chelsea
Juventus v Olympiakos
Sporting Lisbon v Barcelona
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The specs
Engine: 2-litre or 3-litre 4Motion all-wheel-drive Power: 250Nm (2-litre); 340 (3-litre) Torque: 450Nm Transmission: 8-speed automatic Starting price: From Dh212,000 On sale: Now
