- Choora
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A Choora is a set of colourful bangles worn by an Indian bride on her wedding day. This is a tradition originating in Punjab, North India. It is a favoured tradition in Sikh and Hindu families for the bride to wear a choora. Choorae (plural) may contain different coloured bangles in various combinations, but the most common combination is red and white. The choora is worn by the bride for 40 days from the day she puts it on and on the 40th day only her husband can remove it for her. She can wear other choora after that for as long as she likes in any colour. The choora ceremony is held on the morning of the wedding. The bride's maternal uncle and aunt give her a set of choorae (21 bangles in red and white ivory). Nowadays, the bride often wears 7 or 9 bangles. According to tradition, the bride should ideally wear the chooda for at least a year. It is now normal for the bride to wear her choora for a month and a quarter (40 days). 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.
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. After that, in traditional homes at least, she takes over the lion's share of domestic work from her mother-in-law.
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