We had dinner in the home of an upper middle class Rajput (warrior caste) family in the City of Jaipur. (The caste system is still very much alive, despite having been abolished more than 60 years ago.) Their household consists of an older couple and their son, his wife and their 4 year old little boy. The son and his wife are well educated and spoke fluent English. Both father and son were formerly in the military. They both now work in a family owned wedding card business. There is also family property. The grandmother takes care of the home and the little boy. The young couple told us how they met (it was an arranged marriage but in these times there is some degree of flexibility) and what the wedding, which took place over a number of days, was like. More than a thousand guests attended the various events. December being in the middle of wedding season, we saw several wedding processions and even passed an elephant on the street decked out for a groom to ride on his way to his wedding. In the various bazaars in the cities you will see scores of wedding shops featuring clothing and accessories standing side by side for almost 100 yards in some cases. Ditto for card shops that specialize in wedding cards but also supply other paper goods.

The host family that served us a delicious dinner.

They showed us a their wedding album

The wedding card business.

A wedding gown on display in one of the shops.

Wedding guests picking fabric for their saris.

Later in the trip we had tea at the home of Narayan Singh, who was the largest landowner and a political leader in the village of Ram Singh Pura in Ranthambore. His household consisted of himself, his wife, their sons and their wives as well as an unmarried daughter, and several grandchildren. This family, primarily the women, work the fields and orchards, and tend the livestock.

The village elder’s home.

The village elder’s wife served masala tea.

Part of the family compound with daughter-in-law and grand-child.

Family fields.

Grandson playing in the water which provides potable water to the family and that is shared with the neighbors. This water also irrigates the orchards.

Nearby a woman danced on a roof, flanked by two tv dishes, a reminder that urban life and modern technology is only a click away.