Swaswika & Prem: This wedding ceremony was a tribute to our Tamil audience

Actors Swaswika and Prem Jacob celebrated the first year of their anniversary recently with another wedding ceremony; this time, in Tamil style.

Speaking to us exclusively, Swaswika shares, “When we got married last year, we didn’t really have a typical Hindu or Christian wedding. Apart from a destination wedding and a ceremony with some north Indian functions, we just took a couple of customs from both communities, like the thalikettu. Since our wedding last year, we have both been working mostly in Tamil Nadu and the audiences there are familiar with us. Also, our team members there were saying that they had not had the opportunity to come to our wedding. So, we just thought this would be a good way to connect with our audiences here.”

‘It’s always special to be a bride’
The actress had come to Chennai from Trichy, where she is shooting for director RJ Balaji’s Suriya-Trisha starrer, in which she plays a lawyer. The plan was to have a photoshoot with the Tamil wedding rituals, but then they decided to have a traditional ceremony, with customs like puja, sprinkling akshathai and a game of rolling the coconut. Prem, who is working on the Tamil serial Nee Naan Kaadhal, chimes in, “It was a tribute to our Tamil audience.”

How was it to be a bride again? “For me, it is always special,” says Swaswika. “I spent time planning our costumes, the decor and other arrangements with the same excitement as the first time around. And there is a joy in going through the rituals again.”

‘I’m like her assistant now!’
Both actors have been busy with shoots in different locations in the past year. “The year just flew by. We were both almost taken by surprise to realise that it was our first anniversary already. We’ve both been pretty busy with work, but we make time for each other. We go to each other’s shoot locations. We’ve travelled together; I’ve gone with her when she had shows abroad. Usually, it’s her mother accompanying her, now, I do so, like an assistant. We are now wondering which style to get married in next year,” Prem says, laughing.

‘Our mantra is that things can be done in different ways and that’s okay’“I’m learning that marriage is giving space to the other person and being aware that he has a different upbringing, so he might do things in a different way from me, and that’s OK, too,” says Swaswika. “Everything doesn’t have to be done in the manner that I’m used to. Both of us are learning this. I’m very talkative, while he is reticent, so we learn to accommodate the other person. He prefers quiet surroundings, while I like to play music loudly and am OK if people around us are talking loudly. But I’m seeing that music can be enjoyed at a lower volume. It is not just about adjusting, but also understanding that things can be done in different ways. We are also able to adjust, compromise and support each other,” she adds.

‘We don’t really have any fights’
“Prem is a very calm and patient person, so we don’t really have any fights,” says Swaswika. “When my mother used to accompany me on sets, usually, I'd take out some stress from the shoot on her. So, when Prem and I are apart now, I might show irritation about him not seeing a message that I sent. But even this is only over the phone. When we are together, we never fight. He also understands and is accommodative of my work and routines,” she elaborates.
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