Bharat Takhtani, Esha Deol at Esha Deol's wedding at ISCKON temple 02

A ''choora'' (or ''chura''; plural ''chooriyan'') is a set of bangles traditionally worn by a bride on her wedding day and for a period after, especially in

Punjabi Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to: * Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan * Punjabi language * Punjabi people * Punjabi dialects and languages Punjabi may also refer to: * Punjabi (horse), a British Th ...

weddings.

Materials and appearance

The ''choora'' is usually red and white; sometimes the red bangles are replaced with another colour, but they are usually only two colours. They are traditionally made of ivory, with inlay work, though now made with plastic. Traditionally there are 21 bangles, although more recently the bride often wears 7, 9 or 11 bangles. The bangles range in size according to the circumference of the top of the forearm and the wrist end so that the set fits neatly.

Customary use

Wearing the ''choora'' is primarily a

tradition which is followed by

Punjabi Hindus Punjabi Hindus are adherents of Hinduism who identify linguistically, culturally, and genealogically as Punjabis. While Punjabi Hindus are mostly found in the Indian state of Punjab today, many have ancestry from the greater Punjab regi ...

Sikhs Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism, Sikhism (Sikhi), a Monotheism, monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Gu ...

and Punjabi

Jains Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religion. Jainism traces its spiritual ideas and history through the succession of twenty-four tirthankaras (supreme preachers of ''Dharma''), with the first in the current time cycle bein ...

or the Bhabra community.

Sindhoor Sindooram is a traditional vermilion red or orange-red coloured cosmetic powder from the Indian subcontinent, usually worn by married women along the part of their hairline. In Hindu communities the sindoor is a visual marker of marital ...

and Mangalsutra are other adornments worn by married women. The custom is also observed in

Gujarat Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the nin ...

Rajasthan Rajasthan (; lit. 'Land of Kings') is a state in northern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the largest Indian state by area and the seventh largest by population. It is on India's northwestern s ...

and

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...

. The ''choora'' ceremony (''dahi-choora'') is held on the morning of the wedding or the day before. The bride's maternal uncle and aunt give her a set of ''chooriyan''. Traditionally, the bride would wear a ''choora'' for a full year, although if a newly wed bride became pregnant before her first anniversary, the ''choora'' was taken off. When the color started to fade, her in-laws would actually have it re-colored, so everyone would know that she had been married for less than a year. On an auspicious Punjabi holiday, usually '' sankranti'', after the first anniversary her in-laws would hold a small intimate ceremony in which the ''choora'' was removed and glass ''chooriyan'' (bangles) were placed on both hands. This usually was accompanied with mithai (Indian sweets) and a monetary shagun. The ''choora'' then was taken to a river and a prayer was said and it was left to float onto the water. Afterwards the woman could wear other ''choora'' in any colour for as long as she liked. It is now normal for the bride to wear her ''choora'' for a month and a quarter (40 days). As the ''choora'' is made of fragile materials, Punjabi custom has it that the bride may refrain from heavy housework in her marital home to keep it intact for the 40 days, as a kind of

honeymoon A honeymoon is a vacation taken by newlyweds immediately after their wedding, to celebrate their marriage. Today, honeymoons are often celebrated in destinations considered exotic or romantic. In a similar context, it may also refer to the phase ...

. After that, in traditional homes at least, she takes over the lion's share of domestic work from her mother-in-law.

References

{{Reflist Bracelets Hindi words and phrases Jewellery of India Marriage in Hinduism Punjabi culture Punjabi words and phrases Sikh practices