Indian wedding glossary · Wedding day rituals
What is Kangana?
Also written: Kangna, kangan khelna, कंगना
Kangana is the sacred thread with small charms tied on the wrists of the bride and groom before the wedding, which they later untie for each other in a playful game.
- Who keeps it
- Many Hindu families in UP, Bihar, Rajasthan, Haryana and Madhya Pradesh.
- When
- Tied in the days before the wedding; untied after the wedding, usually at the groom's home.
About Kangana
What should you know about Kangana?
The thread is tied during the haldi or another pre-wedding ritual, often with a small cloth pouch, a cowrie and a betel nut. After the wedding, the couple must untie each other's kangana with one hand while relatives tease them.
In many families the same day ends with a game of finding a ring in a bowl of milk and water, and whoever finds it more times is said to rule the home.
In the order of functions
Where does Kangana come in an Indian wedding?
Tied in the days before the wedding; untied after the wedding, usually at the groom's home.
- Before the weddingFixing the match, the engagement, the date and the card.
- The functionsPujas, haldi, mehndi, sangeet and the family days before the wedding.
- Wedding day ritualsFrom the baraat to the pheras, nikah and anand karaj.
- After the weddingVidaai, the new home, the reception and the first visits.
Planning your own days? The free wedding function order planner puts your functions in a sensible order with dates.
On the card
What do families write on the invitation for Kangana?
Families rarely print it, but sisters often promise it on the wedding group: Kangana khelna after griha pravesh!
Related words
Words that go with Kangana
- Griha pravesh
Griha pravesh is the welcome of the new bride into her husband's home, when she gently tips over a kalash of rice with her right foot at the threshold and steps inside.
- Haldi
Haldi is the ceremony where relatives apply a paste of turmeric, gram flour and oil or rose water to the bride and groom, each at their own home, to bless them and make them glow.
- Tilak
Tilak is the ceremony where the bride's family, usually her father and brothers, visit the groom's home, put a tilak of kumkum on his forehead and welcome him into their family.
- Joota chupai
Joota chupai is the playful custom where the bride's sisters and cousins hide the groom's shoes during the wedding and ask for money or gifts to return them.
- Nalangu
Nalangu is a set of playful games in Tamil weddings, played by the bride and groom with relatives watching, to break the ice after the formal rites.
Questions
Kangana, answered
What is Kangana?
Kangana is the sacred thread with small charms tied on the wrists of the bride and groom before the wedding, which they later untie for each other in a playful game.
Which families celebrate Kangana?
Many Hindu families in UP, Bihar, Rajasthan, Haryana and Madhya Pradesh.
When does Kangana happen in the order of wedding functions?
Tied in the days before the wedding; untied after the wedding, usually at the groom's home.
What do families write on the invitation for Kangana?
Families rarely print it, but sisters often promise it on the wedding group: Kangana khelna after griha pravesh!
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