Road accident hours before wedding; severely injured bride marries fiancé from hospital bed in Kochi
Hours after a pre-dawn accident left bride-to-be Avani Jagadeesh with a serious spinal injury, her wedding moved from a convention hall to the emergency department of a hospital in Kochi, where monitors, stretchers, and softly murmured prayers became the backdrop to her union with fiancé VM Sharon.
Hours after a pre-dawn accident left bride-to-be Avani Jagadeesh with a serious spinal injury, her wedding moved from a convention hall to the emergency department of a hospital in Kochi, where monitors, stretchers, and softly murmured prayers became the backdrop to her union with fiancé VM Sharon.
Hours after a pre-dawn accident left bride-to-be Avani Jagadeesh with a serious spinal injury, her wedding moved from a convention hall to the emergency department of a hospital in Kochi, where monitors, stretchers, and softly murmured prayers became the backdrop to her union with fiancé VM Sharon.
Kochi: What was meant to be the happiest day of their lives began in fear and chaos, but love refused to yield. Hours after a pre-dawn accident left bride-to-be Avani Jagadeesh with a serious spinal injury, her wedding moved from a convention hall to the emergency department of a hospital in Kochi, where monitors, stretchers, and softly murmured prayers became the backdrop to her union with fiancé VM Sharon.
Avani, daughter of M Jagadeesh and Jyothi of Kommadil, Alappuzha, and a teacher at Bishop Moore School, Cherthala, was supposed to marry Sharon, son of Manumon and Reshmi of Thumpoly, and an Assistant Professor at KVM College of Engineering and Information Technology, Cherthala, at a grand function to be held on Friday afternoon at Alappuzha’s Thumpoly.
But the day took a tragic turn at around 3 am. “Avani, her cousin Anandhu, and aunt Jayanama were travelling to a beauty parlour in Kottayam for the bridal makeup. The car lost control and crashed into a tree in Kumarakom,” said Avani’s uncle, Shibu Sukumaran.
Local residents rescued the trio and shifted them to Kottayam Medical College. All three of them were badly injured, but due to the severity of Avani’s spinal injury, she was later moved to VPS Lakeshore Hospital, Ernakulam, at noon for specialised treatment. Sharon and his family rushed to the hospital upon hearing the news.
With the auspicious wedding time fixed between 12:15 pm and 12:30 pm, the families expressed their wish to proceed with the ceremony despite the unforeseen tragedy. At Sharon's request, hospital authorities, after consulting with the medical team, made special arrangements for the groom to tie the thali (mangalsutra) in the emergency department, ensuring the ceremony would not cause any discomfort to the patient. “We have been in a relationship for a long time, and our families agreed to the wedding.
“Today was supposed to be our big day and we were preparing for it. But unfortunately, the accident occurred. But we wanted to go forward with the wedding. The hospital authorities were very supportive in fulfilling our wish. Avani needs our full support for the recovery. We hope she will be back to normal soon,” Sharon said.
“Avani has suffered a serious spinal injury and will undergo surgery soon. But she is stable,” said Dr Sudish Karunakaran, Head of the Neurosurgery Department.