Kettu Kalyanam

Kettu Kalyanam, also known as Thali Kettu, was the name of an elaborate ceremonial mock marriage of the Samanthan, Nair, Maarar, and Ambalavasi communities of the southern Indian state of Kerala. The customs of this marriage varied from region to region and caste to caste. Among the higher class Nairs in North Malabar, Travancore and Cochin, mostly a person of the same caste or sometimes a Malayali Brahmin (Nambudiri or Potti) is invited for the purpose of tying the Tali and performing rituals. In South Malabar, a person who belongs to the same caste or Thirumulpad, or Pattar (Tamil Brahmin) is invited to act as bridegroom.

Sambandham (a matrilineal form of marriage) might take place only if the bride had already had this elaborate ritual mock-marriage known as Kettu Kalyanam. The Kettu Kalyanam is ceremonial only, for after the rituals the groom returns to his house never to meet the bride again. In some parts of Malabar, immediately after the ceremony a formal divorce is constituted, whereas in other areas the groom enters into sambandham with the girl and becomes her husband in practice if the girl is of marriageable age.

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