Hundreds of fatherless brides have tied the knot in a mass ceremony in India.
The event runs from December 21-22 and has seen 271 brides married off in Surat, a large city beside the Tapi River in the west Indian state of Gujarat.
Among the girls chosen for the ceremony, five are Muslims and one is from Nepal. Two girls are from the state of Uttar Pradesh, five from Maharashtra and one each from Jharkhand and Odisha, according to local media.
The event which is held some 270 km from Ahmedabad has run for eight years in a row and is funded by diamond tycoon Mahesh Savani, who believes that giving away brides is a blessing from God, has been funding and organising mass weddings for fatherless women in Surat every year since 2010.
The event in 2012 saw just 23 girls getting married and has steadily increased since then.
Mahesh Savani told The Times of India: ‘When we started this activity, we wanted to help Surti girls who have lost their father. Each year, the number kept going up and for the past two years, it has been economically feasible for us to do it alone.’
Weddings in India are expensive affairs with the bride’s family traditionally expected to pay the groom a large dowry of cash and gifts.
Fathers in India also traditionally pay for their daughters’ weddings, which can mean that if a bride’s father has died or is extremely poor, her chances of getting married are almost non-existent.
Mahesh has said previously that he feels a ‘social responsibility’ to help the woman who can’t afford their own weddings. He said he began his campaign in 2008 after a distant relative died, which left him responsible for organising his daughter’s weddings.
So far, Mahesh has helped fund the weddings of 3,172 brides.
Indian brides sit for a mass wedding in Surat, western India, on Saturday, December 21
A bride and a groom pose for a photograph ahead of a mass wedding ceremony in Surat
A bride drinks tea before a mass wedding ceremony in Surat, some 270 km from Ahmedabad on December 21
A bride shows her hands decorated in jewelry and traditional henna dye
Brides arrive to participate in a mass wedding ceremony on Saturday
A bride adjusts her nose earring ahead of her wedding as part of a mass ceremony
People gather for the annual event which has taken place every year since 2010
rides and grooms pose for photographs ahead of the ceremony. Among the girls chosen for the ceremony, five are Muslims and one is from Nepal
Brides arrive in mini buses to attend the event, dressed in traditional attire
Indian brides and grooms arrive for the ceremony. Mahesh has said previously that he feels a ‘social responsibility’ to help the woman who can’t afford their own weddings
Brides and grooms arrive en masse. The event is funded by diamond tycoon Mahesh Savani, who believes that giving away brides is a blessing from God
Police Service (IPS) Shahida Ganguly (centre left) talks with Muslim brides. Among the girls chosen for the ceremony, five are Muslims
A bride-to-be fixes the headdress of her friend as they attend the mass ceremony
An Indian bride take a selfie before a mass wedding in Surat, India, Saturday
More than a hundred couples tied the knot at the mass wedding. Weddings in India are expensive affairs with the bride’s family traditionally expected to pay the groom a large dowry of cash and gifts
Indian grooms sit before a mass wedding in Surat
Indian couples stand for photographs. Fathers in India traditionally pay for their daughters’ weddings, which can mean that if a bride’s father has died or is extremely poor, her chances of getting married are almost non-existent
An Indian bride sits for the mass wedding ceremony on Saturday
Indian brides take a selfie together ahead of their wedding ceremony on Saturday
An Indian bride and groom perform rituals
Indian brides and grooms perform rituals at the mass event in the west Indian state of Gujarat
Indian couples stand for a mass wedding in Surat, India
A bride and a groom practise Hindu rituals as they participate in a mass wedding ceremony in Surat
Maninderjeet Singh Bitta (centre), chairman of the All-India Anti-Terrorist Front arrives to give blessings at a mass wedding ceremony in Surat, some 270 km from Ahmedabad on December 21
Brides and Grooms smile and laugh ahead of a mass wedding ceremony in Surat
Indian businessman Maheshbhai Savani (centre) poses with some 135 brides. Mahesh has been funding and organising the events since 2010
Mahesh poses for a photo with the brides that are soon to be married