Chaudhary works in the Netherlands.
By Dileep Thekkethil
BENGALURU: Indian cricket all-rounder Suresh Raina starts a new innings in his life today, set to marry his childhood friend Priyanka Chaudhary, who works as an engineer in the Netherlands.
Raina, who was in Chennai training for the upcoming IPL series, flew back to New Delhi at around 6PM on Friday to tie the knot with Priyanka in a private function which will be held at Leela Palace Hotel, later today.
The function will be attended by all members of the Indian cricket team, including captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni along with his wife and the new born baby daughter Ziva. Prime Minister Narendra Modi who was invited to the function has conveyed his wishes to the couple.
Raina will play the first IPL match of this season on April 9 and has a busy schedule till next month; so, the honeymoon of the newly married couple will have to wait until then. There are also reports that Raina and Priyanka are planning to go for their honeymoon in Milan, Italy by May end.
According to media reports, both families have been very close for a long time and Priyanka’s father is also said to be Raina’s sports teacher in Ghaziabad, early on in his life. Chaudhary is an engineer from Krishna Institute of Engineering and Technology (KIET) in Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh, who moved to the Netherlands for work. It is believed the father of both the groom and the bridegroom were friends and colleagues earlier, and the couple’s mothers are also friends.
While his family made last minute arrangements for his marriage function in Delhi, Raina was seen training in the nets today morning. The venue has been decorated extravagantly with flowers and lights, and relatives of both sides have started flowing into Leela Palace, adding to the wedding celebrations. Both Raina and Chaudhary are expected to wear Sabyasachi outfits for the wedding.
The mouth-watering menu for the marriage is prepared by Lucknow’s Tundey Kebab. According to its owner Mohammedd Usman, Raina is a regular customer at his food outlet and he had promised to cook at Raina’s wedding whenever it took place. He also said that a team of four cooks have been sent to Delhi to cook shami kebabs, galawat kebabs, mutton korma and mutton biryani for the guests.
The star attraction on the food menu would be kebabs wrapped with crusty parathas, served along with onion rings and spicy dhaniya chutney. It’s not just Raina but Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan is also a great fan of tundey kebabs as he often asks them to prepare for special events at his residence. Javed Akthar and Shabana Azmi are also in the list of tundey kebab fans. The preparation of kebabs by Tundey cooks is through a secret recipe passed over generations. What we know about the recipe is that it is made with soft marinated mutton mixed with raw papaya.
Raina, who is from Meerut in Uttar Pradesh, in an interview to The Times of India revealed that the marriage to Chaudhary was fixed by his mother: “The best thing is that the match has been decided by my mom,” and added about the venue of his wedding: “We have chosen the venue in Delhi since I have lots of friends here. Virat (Kohli), Shikhar (Dhawan), Ishant (Sharma) aur meri UP ki team ke bahut saare players hain, jo sab aa rahe hain. (many of my team-mates from UP team are coming).”
IBN reported Raina as saying: “I have known Priyanka for long, but in the middle, I didn’t have time to be in touch with her. I remember meeting her at the airport for five minutes in 2008. She was flying back to Holland (where she currently works) and I was going to Bangalore for an IPL game, and we met at the Delhi airport for just five minutes. Usse pehle main usse bachpan mein mila tha (before that we met during our childhood).”
Raina also admitted that Chaudhary was not keen on cricket, as much as soccer.
“She doesn’t know much about cricket. She is a great soccer fan. She is a huge fan of Messi and Robin van Persie. She loves me for what I am and not because I am a cricketer. She is a very nice girl and I love her,” he told IBN.
The Economic Times reported Raina is a skilful singer and has often displayed his talent at functions. He is likely to croon a chartbuster or two at the wedding.
Other than cricketing celebrities, several politicians including Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav, and celebrities from Bollywood are expected to grace the occasion.