Pre-wedding festivities begin at Vinesh’s village

Deepender Deswal

Tribune News Service

Hisar, December 10

Asian gold medallist wrestler Vinesh Phogat (24) is set to tie the knot with her fiancée Somvir Rathee in a traditional but glittering ceremony at her native Balali village of Charkhi Dadri district on December 13.

Her family has already started preparing for the marriage ceremony and the pre-wedding rituals have also started. Womenfolk of the village have been invited to sing traditional wedding songs at her house every evening.

Vinesh’s family said it would be an impressive ceremony, though only a select group of guests, mostly relatives, friends, prominent wrestlers and sportspersons, have been extended invitation by the family.

The likely guest list includes famed Indian wrestlers Sushil Kumar, Yogeshwar Datt, Bajrang Punia and Sakshi Malik. Invitations have been extended to some foreign wresters as well. Some celebrities from the tinsel town are also expected to arrive, though the names are not being disclosed, said a wrestler known to the Phogat family.

The bride’s uncle and coach Mahavir Phogat and cousins — wresters Geeta and Babita — are among the hosts of the wedding.

According to Harvinder Phogat, Vinesh’s brother, the pre-wedding rituals started on Sunday and would be complete on Wednesday.

Vinesh told mediapersons that she had her focus on her career and would leave for Bengaluru to join a training camp three days after the marriage.

Meanwhile, coach Om Prakash Dahiya, a relative of Somvir Rathee’s family, said the family would host a grand reception at Bakhta Khera village in Jind district on December 14.

Somvir and Vinesh exchanged wedding rings at the lawn of the IGI airport on August 25, which coincided with her 24th birthday, as soon as she arrived in Delhi after winning the gold medal in the Asian games held in Jakarta. The move came as a surprise even to some members of her family.