Marriage speaks spirit of humanity

CUTTACK: It was not only a unique marriage  but also a tale of the spirit of humanity and compassion that continues to run strong among the people. Both the groom and the bride were deaf and dumb belonging to the lowest strata of  society but were led to the altar by the local youth club at Mohammedia Bazaar on Sunday. The wedding of Trinath Sahoo of Jagatsinghpur with Lily Barik (27), daughter of Narayan Barik of Mohammedia Bazaar, was held as per tradition with the customary ‘barat’ and the community feasting at the Laxmi Narayan temple here.Trinath and Lily have moving stories of their own. Trinath, born deaf-mute, had suffered the tragedy of losing his entire family, including parents, in the 1999 Super Cyclone. He had then come to Cuttack where he was sheltered by Tutu,  a tea shop owner at Ranihat. He has been under the tutelage of Tutu since then and put in charge the shop now-a-days.Lily was born to a family suffering from a peculiar genetic defect causing hearing and speech impairment to five of the seven siblings. Narayan has five sons and two daughters and barring one son and a daughter all suffer from speech and hearing impairment. Narayan is a petty barber who ekes out a living hopping from door to door while his sons are running small saloons in the locality.The union was facilitated by the local club members who sought to help Narayan out. The youth club members came to know about Trinath and approached him through the community of the deaf and dumb people in the City. He visited the girl’s family and agreed to the marriage.The engagement ceremony was conducted and the wedding was fixed for Sunday. Trinath came all decked in groom’s attire with around 50-strong ‘barati’. The marriage was solemnised as per Hindu rituals.A feast was organised for as many as 400 guests from both the sides. The couple were gifted with sarees, clothes and even gold ornaments by the local guests.“Every penny was spent by the local club who raised individual donations. People of the locality not only came forward to contribute money but also made presents and gifts in cash and kind to the couple. About Rs 30,000 was spent on the ceremony,” said ‘Sahi’ head Shivendra Barik.