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Al Jazeera
Al Jazeera
Lifestyle
Ismat Ara

Inside a 700-year-old ‘groom market’ in India’s Bihar state

People prepare for the 'Saurath Sabha' in Bihar's Madhubani district with a Hindu ritual [Ismat Ara/Al Jazeera]

Madhubani, India – In the scorching heat of a July afternoon in eastern India’s Bihar state, a man in his mid-thirties nervously stands in the corner of a field. Wearing a pink shirt and black trousers, he waits in anticipation. It is a big day for him.

Nirbhay Chandra Jha, 35, has travelled more than 100km (62 miles), all the way from Begusarai to Madhubani district in the hope of finding a suitable bride for himself in Saurath, a village famous for its “sabha” or annual “groom market”.

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