The Tamilian community is fairly large. The Tamilians believe in simple living, hence their weddings are not necessarily extravagant affairs. The date for the wedding is fixed after consulting the Hindu calendar. As per the Tamil calendar the months of Aashad (July 15th to August 15th), Bhadrapad (September 15th to October 15th) and Shunya (December 15th to January 15th) are considered inauspicious for weddings and hence, Tamilian weddings are not held in these months.
Matchmaking - The Tamil traditions follow marrying within the community. However, the horoscopes of the couple are always matched.
 Costumes - The dress code for the Tamil bride is a saree. Usually the saree is a red one or any other similar dazzling color. She would wear gold and pearl jwellery. Pearl is specially worn, as it is a Hyderabadi specialty. The bride also adorns her hair with flowers in hair. The grooms of Andhra Pradesh wear the South Indian dhoti and a shirt in their style only. The Tamil grooms would not wear the shirt during marriage, but a dhoti and white Punjabi.
Pre Wedding Rituals
The girl and the boy are forbidden to meet each other until the horoscopes are seen and matched and an auspicious day is fixed for marriage. "Jaanavaasam" is celebrated one day prior to the marriage when the groom`s family and guests arrive at the bride`s place and Ganesh Puja is performed. On the dawn of the wedding day the boy and the girl have an auspicious bath called "Mangala Snanam".
VrathamVratham: This ritual is somewhat similar to the Panda Kaal Muhurtham. It is usually performed a day before the wedding by the family of the bride as well as that of the groom. They recite Vedic hymns in the presence of a priest (Vaadyar) and seek the blessings of a family deity. Next, they invoke the blessings of all their ancestors and pray for their intervention in removing those obstacles that threaten to disrupt the wedding proceedings. Following these ceremonies, all married women from the groom`s family participate in a ceremony called Palikai thellichal.
Pallikai Thellichal: The family of the bride begins this ceremony a day before the wedding. Clay pots are filled with grains. Married women from both the sides sprinkle water on the pots filled with nine varieties of grain. During this ceremony, the others present sing traditional songs to the accompaniment of music. The next day (the day after the wedding) when the grains sprout, these pots are immersed in a pond so that the fish in the pond may feed on the grains and bless the newly-weds.
Naandi: This ceremony involves honoring a few Brahmins with gifts and sweets. The Brahmins are invited to represent the souls of the ancestors of the bride and the groom. The families seek their blessings before beginning the marriage proceedings.
Jaanavaasam: A tradition rarely practiced these days. The groom gets into a decorated car and is escorted to the wedding venue by a large and joyous procession of family and friends. Professional musicians accompany the procession and play traditional wedding music. Sometimes there are also fireworks to celebrate the occasion. The girl`s brother garlands the groom and receives him at the Wedding hall to the accompaniment of traditional music.
Wedding Ceremony
Deep mores and significant rituals make the Tamil wedding even more interesting.
Receiving the Groom: When the groom and his family arrive at the venue, they are welcomed with a tray containing offerings of flowers, paan supari, fruits and mishri. Rose water is sprinkled on the groom. The bride`s brother applies a tilak (dot or line) of sandalwood paste and kumkum on his forehead and garlands him. The bride`s mother offers the groom`s parents offer a sweet dish prepared from condensed milk. A senior female member of the bride`s family performs aarti (a small ritual conducted as a mark of reverence) and welcomes them. It is also customary to break a coconut to the ground, as this is believed to help ward off evil spirits.
 Kanyadanam Wedding: The "mandapam" where the actual ceremony is to be performed is decorated with kokam and flowers. Also varieties of sweets and savories are served in the mandapam. The father of the bride welcomes the groom and washes his feet. The groom`s family presents the bride with the wedding 9-yard sari, which his sister helps, her wear. She has to be present wearing the newly gifted sari for the ritual of "Kanyadanam" where the groom and the bride are symbolically united by the bride`s father. In this ceremony the girl`s father is made to sit on a sack of paddy, and the girl is seated on his lap. The paddy symbolizes material and spiritual plentitude in the marriage. Then the yoke of a plough is touched to the bride`s forehead symbolizing that just as two bullocks are required to carry the plough for tilling the fields, so also will she and her husband remain side by side to go through life. The bride`s father then gives away the bride to the groom.
Saptapadi - The havan and the paanigrahan are then performed where the boy accepts the girl and promises to look after her forever. Then the bride and the groom go around the sacred fire seven times in a ritual called "Saptapadi". The groom takes hold of the right foot of the bride and makes her take seven consecutive steps where the bride touches her feet to a grinding stone "ammi". This symbolizes that their union be as steady, solid and steadfast as a stone. In Tamil Marriage garlanding is done thrice. Most importantly, the boy ties a yellow thread with a pendant called the `Taali` to the girl`s neck.
Post Wedding Rituals
This has some fun filled moments in "Nalangu" usually celebrated in the evening when the boy and the girl are given a coconut to play with. An exchange of gifts takes place between members of both families and flower petals are showered on the couple. At the time of "Grihpravesh" the bride is formally received and welcomed into her new home and family after taking a leave from the bride`s family.
Katta Saddam- The next day after the 2-day affair of marriage, the boy`s relatives leave the marriage hall and return to their respective homes. The bride`s side bid adieu and provide them with all the condiments like rice, dal, coffee powder, appalam, tamarind, pickles and so on. They also offer cooked food, which include coconut rice, tamarind rice, lemon rice and curd rice.
Paaladaanam - The bride and groom seek the blessings of the elder members of the family by asking for blessings in prostrate form in front of them. They also offer them a gift of fruits and a token rupee.
Sammandhi Mariyathai - The families of the newly-weds exchange clothes and other lovely gifts respecting their status during this ceremony.
Laaja Homam - The groom accepts popped rice from the bride`s brother and gives it to the sacred fire or Agni. The blessings of God Agni are asked for as fire stands for the divine power and light of God.
More on Marriage System in Indian States
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More on Types of Marriages
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