Trend of women tying rakhis to their sisters-in-law catching up

Rakshabandhan is mainly known as a festival denoting the bond of love, care and respect between a brother and a sister. However, the festival nowadays is witnessing a trend, where a woman (nanand) is tying a rakhi to another woman (bhabhi, or brother's wife). And this rakhi is fancy and colourful — it's called Lumba rakhi.

It is a tradition followed by Marwadi and Rajasthani women to tie Lumba rakhi to a sister-in-law's wrist. The legend behind this custom is that the brother's wife is the person responsible for his wellbeing. So the sister sends the sister-in-law a rakhi, seeking her wellbeing, too.

While the tradition of tying rakhi to the bhabhi is not totally new in Gujarati families, the latest fad is to go for these fancy and feminine oriented rakhis.

According to the owner of a seasonal rakhi shop at Mansi crossroads, Amit Patel, the sale of Lumba among Gujarati women has risen by nearly 70% in the last two years. "These are in the range of Rs10-Rs800."

"Around two years ago, while buying rakhis I stumbled upon Lumbas. On quizzing, the shopkeeper replied that these were rakhis to be tied around a bhabhi's wrist. Since I found them attractive I bought them and celebrated Lumba with my bhabhis as well. They are very attractive and are available in various sizes and colours and all kinds of embroidery," says Bina Shah, a professional who is a resident of Memnagar.

In the case of Bhavana Patel, a homemaker, Lumba has taken over from traditional rakhis. This Nehrunagar resident says, "In our family, we have a tradition of tying rakhis around the bhabhi's wrist. For the past three years, I have been tying Lumba around my bhabhi's wrist. It is very attractive and comes in several shades. She can wear it with sarees and also salwar-kameez suits. It looks beautiful, traditional and at the same time, chic."