Indians love celebrations- we believe in sharing happiness with others at all stages in life. The moment a woman learns about her pregnancy, she starts to plan for the Godh Bharai ceremony – fun, festivities and all the pampering! Families start to figure out innovative and unique Godh Bharai ideas to have a time that everyone will remember!
What Essentially Is Godh Bharai?
Godh Bharai, or “Fill the Lap,” has an innate and deeper meaning in the Indian culture, which is why the ceremony is arranged following the traditions.
According to the tradition, the God Bharai ceremony is an all-female function with the doors being closed for all males, even the soon-to-be father. In earlier days, women used to wear traditional Indian clothes and celebrate the Godh Bharai ceremony with music and dance. Homemade Indian snacks and drinks were arranged for a small feast. During the main event, the older women give blessings to the pregnant mother and the unborn baby.
However, a traditional baby shower can get quite dull for the mother, which is why this time around, you need to plan the celebration uniquely. To help you out, here we have talked about the most innovative God Bharai ideas to turn the old, boring ceremony into a more entertaining and exciting one.
When Is Godh Bharai Celebrated?
Godh Bharai is generally planned in months 7-9 of pregnancy- considering that is the most stable time of the entire journey. Since the first 3 months are quite tumultuous and the risk of miscarriage is maximum, some people choose not to declare their pregnancy well till the first trimester is over.
Again, the 9th month can be uncomfortable for the would-be-mother- given the weight is maximum and the baby can arrive anytime. One may also be experiencing contractions during this time. So generally, 7th month is preferred for the celebrations.
However, when to celebrate Godh Bharai also depends on the culture, religious beliefs and other factors as a family may deem fit. Some people have a small pooja and function only after the birth of the baby, and not before. Well, the country is diverse!
Innovative God Bharai Ideas To Try In 2021
God Bharai, or the Indian baby shower, is an incredible and heavenly ceremony as per the tradition and Indian culture. Even though the ceremony is mainly arranged to give their blessings to the mother and the unborn baby, there is no rule saying that the woman cannot have fun.
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If you are reluctant to have your baby shower in the old, traditional way, you can try some of these innovative God Bharai ideas for 2021.
1. Have the men participate too!
As per the traditions, the Indian baby showers are attended only by females. Men are generally not allowed to participate in the ceremony, and somehow, this tradition is still being followed. However, this time, you can change the rules and make your baby shower more fun.
Having a co-ed God Bharai is one of the best ideas for 2021. Rather than boycotting the males, you can invite them to be a part of your celebration, especially with your partner. After all, he will pamper you the most and always support you if you feel overwhelmed during the baby shower.
2. Outdoor God Bharai ceremony
No other event will be as exhilarating as the outdoor celebrations. Starting from the pool parties to barbeque nights, such events’ fun and excitement is unmistakable. So, if you are given the option of arranging your baby shower outdoors, won’t you be thrilled?
You will be, and that’s why we have included this point under our best God Bharai ideas for 2021. Being amidst nature and fresh air will help you to breathe freely. This way, you won’t be grimacing at the thought of all the females crowding in your personal space. Also, with outdoor baby showers, you will have the opportunity to organize different games, barbeque stands, etc. and have more fun!
3. Organise a theme-based baby shower
If a wedding can be arranged based on a theme, why can’t a God Bharai ceremony? If you are not satisfied with how this ceremony used to be celebrated in earlier days, you can try a theme-based baby shower. Event planners usually arrange such baby shower events since they are more experienced than us.
Some of the best theme-based God Bharai ideas that you can try are:
- Disney princess themed baby shower
- Avenger themed baby shower
- Unicorn themed baby shower
- Comic themed baby shower
4. Try different baby shower games
Usually, during the God Bharai ceremony, the primary sources of entertainment include traditional music, dances, and gossips. However, sometimes, these can be too overwhelming for the mother, and hence, she might not feel comfortable throughout the ceremony. For this reason, it’s time to try out new God Bharai ideas with which both the fun and excitement can be doubled.
With the Indian baby shower games like ribbon tie-ups, passing pillows, and others, you can create a comfortable and joyous ambiance for the mother. Also, these games can be easily played by the soon-to-be mother, and thus, she will not feel left out.
5. Set up a special dessert section
Pregnancy means mood swings and lots of food cravings. Sometimes, pregnant women crave some bizarre food combination that a healthy person can never stand, let alone eat it and digest the food. So, if you are craving some sweets and want to eat them all day, setting up a separate dessert stand will be an excellent idea to innovate any God Bharai ceremony.
Rather than having the old Indian sweets on the menu, you can plan for a corner dessert stand with your favorite dishes. For example, if you are craving cupcakes or pastries, you can have different cupcake stands with diverse flavors and toppings. Similarly, you can also plan for a unique chocolate basket filled with every chocolate one can dream of.
6. Create an advice banner wall
A lot of females attending the baby shower function will be either older women or of your same age. Hence, you will be surrounded by several females who have already crossed the threshold of motherhood and experienced what it likes to be a mother. Now, you can use this fact to your advantage of getting some piece of advice from those who are way more experienced than you.
But, instead of asking them to share their moments, you can ask them to write their memories or advice on a paper sheet, and once done, you can hang them on the wall. For more fun, you can even cut out the paper from colored charts and in different shapes.
Or have a huge whiteboard where people can write precious advice for you on embarking on a new journey.
7. God Bharai photoshoot album
While looking for the best God Bharai return gift ideas, you will often find yourself in a dilemma over the gift choices. Since you want to play your baby shower uniquely, the regular gifts are definitely out of the option list.
That’s why giving the photoshoot albums as the return gifts is one of the best God Bharai ideasin 2021. According to the receiver, you can even personalize the albums, like writing their names on the front cover or decorating the photographs in unique ways. However, this idea is only perfect when your baby shower attendees are your close friends and relatives.
8. Gender guessing game
Another fantastic idea to innovate the God Bharai ceremony for the soon-to-be mom is by arranging a special sub-event where everyone has to play the guess game.
You can create a book where they will write the gender they expect and why. It will be fun when you revisit the book after the baby is born. They can also write some encouraging thoughts to motivate the mother. You can also ask them to bring gifts in written form like books and cards.
9. Onesie making competition
To increase the baby shower ceremony’s fun level, you can arrange for a onesie baking competition. Here, the judge will be none other than the soon-to-be mother herself, while all her friends and close reactive will participate and make onesies for her baby.
One can even decorate the onesie with fabric paints or different embroideries. And at the end of the competition, you can even hang these onesies to create a beautiful canvas. Arranging such a match will keep the mother engaged in a delightful ambiance, and hence, the baby shower ceremony will become more memorable for her.
10. Neutral ceremony décor
If you want to create a subtle and gentle ambiance for the baby shower ceremony, choosing a neutral décor theme will be the best idea. Starting with the balloons to the Indian bang shower dress, everything needs to have a neutral shade like white, off-white, gold, brown, and so on. You cannot include any objects having gender-specific color.
Going for a neutral décor is a difficult task because every element must portray your undying love for your baby. You can take help from professionals to successfully arrange the baby shower event without any hurdle.
11. Cake cutting event
No event is ever complete without proper dessert, and that’s why including a cake-cutting section is one of the most exciting God Bharai ideas for 2021. You can order the cake from a bakery or make one at home; the latter seems to be more feasible since then, one can be conscious about the mother’s health.
Starting from the icing to the toppings, everything will be of the mom’s choice. You can create different cakes for the baby shower ceremony like:
- Princess themed cake
- Halfway girl-boy cake
- Onesie cake
- Cupcake assorted cake
- Bowtie cake
- Flower cakes
12. Reminiscing video marathon
The last idea to make your God Bharai memorable is by organizing a video marathon. You can ask all the friends and close relatives to bring their videos where the content will describe their bond with the star of the day- the soon-to-be mom.
And then, in the end, you can compile all these videos and start a marathon. This will help the pregnant woman let go of every depressing thought and give them enough confidence to fight anxiety and other issues that are detrimental to their health. Even though such an arrangement will most probably leave her in tears, it will at least let her know that her close people will always cherish her.
Conclusion
The nine-month journey of a pregnant woman is filled with several bittersweet moments and grand celebrations. One such major celebration that every pregnant woman waits for is the gosh bharai ceremony or the baby shower function.
Arranging a baby shower ceremony might sound easy, but only when you follow the traditional system. And such an event will never be exciting and filled with fun. So, if you want to organize a unique baby shower, you can try some of the best God Bharai ideaswe have discussed here.