Vault: Her 7-day wedding is causing family drama

Summary

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The Bert Show: Vault – Her 7-Day Wedding is Causing Family Drama

Date: July 14, 2026

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Episode Overview

In this lively and heartfelt episode, The Bert Show team invites listeners to share and compare wedding traditions from around the world, sparked by a listener's story of emotional family drama during her sister's 7-day traditional Indian wedding. The conversation is full of humorous jabs, genuine moments, and calls from diverse listeners, each highlighting how deeply cultural rituals shape a family’s emotional life and how they handle letting go.

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Main Theme

Exploring wedding traditions across cultures, especially the emotional and sometimes contentious customs around lengthy ceremonies, farewells, and the meaning of marriage celebrations.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Indian Wedding Experience

• Listener (Indian Culture Speaker) shares about her sister’s recent Hindu wedding:

  • Traditional Indian weddings span 6-7 days, filled with vibrant ceremonies and emotional farewells.
  • The farewell ceremony, where the bride says goodbye to her family and symbolically joins the husband’s, is particularly moving—even if the sister is only moving "10 minutes down the street."
  • The ingrained sadness is described as both touching and, at times, frustrating.

  Quote:

  • “Why do we have to cry? She's living 10 minutes away. Let's skip the ceremony and, like, party.” – Indian Culture Speaker (04:20)

  • Even those not prone to tears found themselves "bawling," signifying the ceremony's emotional power.

  Quote:

  • “I have seen [my younger sister] cry once in my life. She is bawling, and I start crying, too.” – Indian Culture Speaker (03:47)

• The tradition’s roots and ongoing meaning:

  • Host Reshma and the caller explain: Traditionally, the bride leaves her parental family to formally join her husband's family.
  • There’s an awareness and critique of the gendered aspects of this system (sons “add,” daughters “leave”), fueling both pride and discomfort.

  Quote:

  • “I'm one of three girls, so technically my parents lose three daughters...that's why I don't like that.” – Indian Culture Speaker (09:33)

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Comparing Cultural Traditions

The segment moves into an open phone-line roundtable on wedding customs, with callers sharing perspectives:

Jewish Weddings

• Traditions discussed:

  • Breaking the glass: Symbolizes the irrevocable change after marriage and also references the destruction of the ancient temple.
  • Consummation tradition: In some orthodox families, the couple retreats for a first meal (and potentially sex) after the ceremony.
  • Vows in Hebrew: Some couples recite vows in a language neither understands, leading to humorous confusion.

  Quote:

  • “We didn’t have any idea what we were saying to each other…for all we know, we could’ve said anything the rabbi told us.” – Jewish Caller (07:18)

French Weddings

• Three-day celebrations:
  • Include all-night parties, minimal sleep, and a big closing brunch, emphasizing joyful endurance rather than symbolic partings.
  • (10:13–10:38)

Black/African-American Weddings

• Jumping the Broom:
  • Originates from slave-era weddings. The act symbolizes a couple’s union when they were denied official marriage rights.
  • Quote:
  • “In slave times, they couldn’t have weddings. So to symbolize that they actually got married, they jump over a broom.” – Black Caller (11:10)

Cambodian/Buddhist Weddings

• Multiday celebrations:
  • Traditionally last about 3-7 days.
  • Noisy local processions, traditional dress, and ritualistic sitting and foot massages for the groom, some of which the hosts joke might be unique to the caller’s family.
  • Quote:
  • “We have to go outside, bang on gongs...like a whole marching band…Everybody’s like, watching us. It’s so embarrassing.” – Cambodian Caller (11:37)
  • Quote:
  • “The groomsmen have to massage the groom's legs because they can't move.” (12:39)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Indian Farewell Rituals:

  • “You just say the word wedding and Indian people start crying.” – Reshma (04:36)

• On Gender Expectations in Indian Tradition:

  • “With son you gain, and with daughters, you lose. That's why I don't like that.” – Indian Culture Speaker (09:33)

• On the Meaning of Breaking the Glass:

  • “When you break the glass that everything has changed...you’re never the same again once you get married.” – Jewish Caller (08:05)

• On the Humor and Confusion of Rituals:

  • “We didn’t have any idea what we were saying to each other...I could have said, ‘No, I don't love you!’” – Jewish Caller (07:18)

• On Personal Family Traditions:

  • “I think somebody’s jacking with you...that’s just your family.” (On Cambodian rituals) – Reshma (12:55)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• 01:32 – Introduction to the caller’s Indian wedding dilemma
• 03:37–04:26 – Emotional retelling of the farewell ceremony
• 06:38 – Call from another Indian listener confirming the emotional impact
• 07:18 – Jewish wedding vows and traditions
• 08:05 – Explanation of breaking the glass in Jewish weddings
• 09:22 – Question on what happens when Indian families only have daughters
• 10:13 – French wedding traditions (three-day party)
• 11:03 – Black tradition of “jumping the broom” explained
• 11:37 – Cambodian/Buddhist wedding processions and rituals

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Episode Tone & Style

The episode blends humor, honesty, and warmth, making space for laughter about lengthy ceremonies, cultural confusion, and emotional excess, but never losing sight of the deeper meaning families attach to these moments. The hosts balance curiosity, gentle teasing, and heartfelt listening, encouraging callers to share freely.

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Conclusion

The Bert Show’s episode on “Her 7-day wedding is causing family drama” is a vibrant, empathetic, and hilarious look at the emotional weight and ritual richness of global wedding traditions. Listeners come away with a new appreciation for how cultures handle transition, family, and the power of tradition—whether those traditions make us cry, party for days, or jump a broom.

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Transcript

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[Bretzky]

What's up everybody? It's Bretzky. And America is turning 250. And I can't think of a better way to celebrate that than playing on an American owned social casino. Spinquest.com with all of your favorite games, live craft, bubble craps, live blackjack, there's no better place to play for free and win real cash prizes. Spinquest.com Spinquest is a free to play social casino void where prohibited. Visit spinquest.com for more details. The Bird show hi Reshma.

[Reshma]

What you gripe here, girl?

[Indian Culture Speaker]

All right. Well, a couple of weeks ago, my older sister got married and we're Indian, so it was a traditional Hindu wedding. And I love our weddings. They're beautiful, colorful. Our clothes and culture are really bright. It lasts a few days. So the day of the wedding, the

[Reshma]

wedding lasts for a couple of days.

[Indian Culture Speaker]

The wedding, well, the ceremony, like there's traditional things. So it's about six to seven days.

[Bretzky]

So. Wow.

[Indian Culture Speaker]

Yeah. The first ceremony was on Sunday and the reception was on Saturday.

[Reshma]

That's something in itself right there too.

[Indian Culture Speaker]

Really?

[Commentator/Interjector]

Joanna's sitting there going, really? I will make mine two weeks, seven

[Reshma]

days from the initial wedding to the last day. In an Indian culture, I mean, the wedding's last seven days, they'll do it in three.

[Indian Culture Speaker]

But it's at least three days.

[Bretzky]

Well, it's. One village has to march all the way to the other village with all their cattle, then they trade it for the bride and then they march all the way back.

[Indian Culture Speaker]

That's exactly how it happens. But there's certain traditions that really peeve me. One of the traditions is traditionally or back in the day Way back in the day in India, when a girl gets married, she's given to her husband's family. So she leaves her own family and joins her husband's family. So when that happens, she has to say goodbye to all of her family. And it generally happened right after the wedding. So there's a ceremony where she goes up to each person and her family and says goodbye. And of course, they're saying goodbye to their daughter, their sister, whoever. So everyone's crying. So, oh, my God, I'm gonna tear up now. You're tearing up now.

[Commentator/Interjector]

Talking about tearing up, it gets on her nerves.

[Indian Culture Speaker]

But it still affects me. But it still affects me. I'm such a baby that this still affects me. So there's a Sarah. So they say goodbye to her, and the groom's family takes the bride away to their village, is what used to happen, but it's become a part of the Indian culture. So now we still do it, even if she's moving five minutes down the street. So at my sister's wedding. Yeah, at my sister's wedding. I mean, it was a fantastic wedding. I was there for two weeks, and we were never really close, but over the past year, we've gotten really close. And she got. Had all the ceremonies and the wedding happened. The wedding happened, and everything was fine. And we're all sitting there and we're all kind. We always joke about it, like, oh, I hate this part. I hate this part. I hate this part. And I knew I was gonna cry a little bit because I cry at everything.

[Bretzky]

But even telling a story about crime.

[Indian Culture Speaker]

Even telling a story about crime. But we're all, like, getting up and have a huge family. So everyone's getting up and walking, and I'm kind of, like, standing in the back thinking, I can, like, postpone the crying if I stay in the back. And I see my younger sister walk by, and I have seen her cry once in my life. She is bawling, and I start crying, too. So we're going through. We go up to my sister and her and my little sister and I were sitting there huddled together for an hour straight.

[Commentator/Interjector]

An hour I could not.

[Indian Culture Speaker]

Oh, my God.

[Bretzky]

How far is she moving from you? Seriously?

[Indian Culture Speaker]

She lives in California. She's moving 10 minutes down the street. I kid you not. And I could not stop crying. Like, we're sitting there for 20 minutes, and every one of my aunts or cousins would come up to us and be like, o, it'll be okay. She's only moving. And every time they said something, we want to Cry more. And I hate the fact, like, why do we have to cry? She's living 10 minutes away. Let's skip the ceremony and, like, party.

[Bretzky]

I don't understand it, but what was the cry like? Why are you crying right now?

[Indian Culture Speaker]

I can't even tell you. I don't know, because I guess I

[Bretzky]

think it's a great tradition because you're brainwashed by it. I think it's awesome.

[Reshma]

You just say the word wedding and Indian people start crying.

[Indian Culture Speaker]

Yeah. I guess it's because, like, technically she's still leaving our family and became a part of his family. So it's kind of like I lost a sister, sort of. Even though to me, I mean, I still talk to her, the same amount still happens. But I've been trained that I lose a sister. Like, she joins, like, my mom when she got married, she left her family, and she's now part of my dad's family.

[Reshma]

Okay.

[Indian Culture Speaker]

So in my mind, she was leaving my family even though nothing changes.

[Bretzky]

But don't look at it as losing a sister as it is gaining 30 head of cattle.

[Reshma]

Here's where I want to go with this, because just the fact. I mean, this is the first time I think any of us have heard that Indian weddings take place over seven days, that different cultures have different ceremonies and different traditions for weddings that I think I'd like to hear about. 404-741-Q100 like, in the Jewish religion, you said you were at one where they break the glass. And then, like, in traditional Jewish families, aren't they supposed to go and have sex and stuff?

[Bretzky]

Yeah. In a traditional Jewish. In the most authentic Orthodox, I guess would be the word Jewish ceremony that I was in or attended, the bride and groom disappear to a room and I consummate the marriage.

[Commentator/Interjector]

Well, remember when we had producer Lindell working on the show and she was Mormon? Like, nobody other than Mormons could even go inside of her ceremony. Correct. They had all kinds of secret traditions going on.

[Reshma]

Like, wasn't it her brother's girlfriend or maybe even her brother's wife couldn't attend the ceremony because she wasn't Mormon?

[Commentator/Interjector]

There was some type of. There was a younger person in her family. Didn't she have, like, little brothers and sisters that weren't allowed because you have to be a certain age to be in it or something like that? Yeah, we had to be at the reception waiting on them to come back because we couldn't go to the ceremony.

[Reshma]

So different, you know, different traditions and different cultures for weddings. And as Reshma said, Seven days. You're Indian. Seven days, and you cry because the bride is leaving and going to his family. We ball. Good morning. Is it Maya?

[Caller/Guest]

Maya, Hi. How are you guys? Just want to let you know you're not alone. People are listening out there.

[Reshma]

Thank you.

[Indian Culture Speaker]

Thank you.

[Caller/Guest]

I am Indian, and I'm a Hindu, actually. And I've been to a bunch of weddings in my family, and I've done the same thing. Reshmazda. And we've had that ceremony at the end of every one of those weddings where the whole family's lining up and they're just giving hugs to the bride. Everyone is bawling and. Yeah, I mean, she's moving, like, right down the street. But I think it's just because it's the fact that it's like an end of an era. Like, you're letting your little girl go and she's growing up, and you just gotta let her go.

[Reshma]

I like that tradition.

[Commentator/Interjector]

It's kind of cool.

[Indian Culture Speaker]

No, no, no.

[Reshma]

You don't like it?

[Commentator/Interjector]

You don't.

[Reshma]

Here's Betsy. Good Morning. You're on Q100.

[Caller/Guest]

Hey, good morning. I want to say that I'm Jewish, and when I got married, I said my vows in Hebrew, and my husband did, too. And we didn't have any idea what we were saying to each other. It's like, if you go any traditional Jewish wedding, we all say our vows in Hebrew. And, I mean, it's nice, but we don't know how to speak in Hebrew. It's like, what did we just say to each other?

[Reshma]

It's a tradition that's hard to sink your teeth into because you have no idea what you're saying.

[Caller/Guest]

Exactly. And so we just followed along what our rabbi said. And so, you know, I could have said anything that he said. I could have said, no, I don't love you, or know this or know that or whatever, but, you know, for four years, so it's great.

[Indian Culture Speaker]

So what does the breaking of the glass symbolize?

[Caller/Guest]

It symbolizes. There's a lot of different. There's a lot of different meanings for breaking the glass. One of them is that when you break the glass that everything has changed, that you can never put the glass back together again. So it's like you're never the same again once you get married. Just like how you can never glue glass together back together again. And you could also. It's also about, like, remembering the destruction of an ancient temple as well. So there's a whole bunch of different interpretations to it, but it's fine. Because then everyone yells mazel tov at the end and then you go away. And as Jeff was saying earlier, you're supposed to go have sex in a room.

[Commentator/Interjector]

What does mazel tov mean?

[Caller/Guest]

Mazel tov means congratulations.

[Bretzky]

Means go have sex.

[Caller/Guest]

Yeah, yeah. So essentially, when you go off to that little room, you have your first meal together. So you have. They provide you with a small dinner or appetizers from your wedding and drink, and it's like the first private meal that you share together as husband and wife.

[Reshma]

Okay, thank you.

[Commentator/Interjector]

Fascinating.

[Reshma]

Different traditions from different cultures. When it comes to.

[Bretzky]

I'm sorry, Bert. We let that Jewish person sneak through and you couldn't weigh in on that? I apologize.

[Reshma]

It was like she was talking Latin.

[Bretzky]

It was like she was talking Hebrew.

[Reshma]

Julie, good morning. You're on Q100.

[Caller/Guest]

Good morning. My question is to Reshma. By the way, I love you guys, is what happens if the Indian family only has daughters? Does that mean like they lose their family and then when you're old, you do have no family left?

[Indian Culture Speaker]

Yeah. I'm one of three girls, so technically my parents lose three daughters, so. Which is why in Indian culture it was more fortunate to have a son. Because with son you gain and with daughters you lose. That's why I don't like that.

[Bretzky]

You know why?

[Caller/Guest]

They have seven or eight children. They're waiting for the mail. I would not have stopped if I'd known I had to have a male.

[Indian Culture Speaker]

I mean, most people, most Indian people, like my dad's got like 14 siblings. Like back in the day, they reproduce like crazy to be able to like, sustain and like carry on the name.

[Cambodian Caller]

No kidding.

[Reshma]

Really?

[Commentator/Interjector]

Just ask the Chinese, right?

[Caller/Guest]

Yeah, same thing.

[Commentator/Interjector]

It's the same tradition, right?

[Indian Culture Speaker]

Same exact idea.

[Reshma]

Here's Anna. Anna, what culture are we talking about?

[Caller/Guest]

It's French.

[Reshma]

French.

[Caller/Guest]

They're just apparently a huge partier. So they did this big three day wedding where on Friday afternoon everybody starts partying. It goes into until like 4 or 5 in the morning. Everybody gets two or three hours of sleep. They get up, they start again. And I said, sweetheart, I just can't. I can't do that much. So we're doing a big party on Friday night. We're having the wedding on Saturday, and then we're doing a big brunch on Sunday. So we're doing kind of a mix.

[Reshma]

All right, so For French, it's three days. The Indians had three days of partying. Keela, good morning. You're on Q100.

[Caller/Guest]

Hi.

[Reshma]

Hi.

[Caller/Guest]

I listen to you guys every Morning.

[Cambodian Caller]

I love, love, love, love, love your show.

[Reshma]

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, thank you.

[Caller/Guest]

Okay, so I'm black. And usually in black weddings, like, right after the ceremony, before they walk down the aisle, they have, like, this rickety old broom and they jump over it.

[Reshma]

Oh, yeah, you jump over the broom. I've never seen that.

[Caller/Guest]

I've heard that of it.

[Reshma]

For what reason?

[Caller/Guest]

Cause, like, in slave times, they couldn't have weddings. So to symbolize that they actually got married. These jump over a broom.

[Reshma]

Oh, really?

[Caller/Guest]

Wow.

[Reshma]

That's what I'm talking about there. That's interesting.

[Commentator/Interjector]

Really cool history.

[Reshma]

Thank you for calling. Wow. Morning, Q100. Hold on one sec. Good morning, Q100.

[Cambodian Caller]

Hello.

[Sponsor/Ad Voice]

Hello.

[Cambodian Caller]

Hi. I like listening to y' all every single day.

[Reshma]

Thank you. Appreciate it. What culture are we talking about here?

[Cambodian Caller]

I am actually Cambodian, so I'm Buddhist. So for our weddings, we traditionally wear traditional clothing. And so during the day of the ceremony, it's just like the Hindu tradition. It lasted for seven days. Minimum is probably like three days. So we have to go outside, bang on gongs around their neighborhood at least three times, which is so embarrassing. Really.

[Commentator/Interjector]

And does everybody do it together?

[Cambodian Caller]

Yes, it's like a whole marching band. So we have, like, traditional clothing. Everybody's, like, watching us. It's so embarrassing. I've done this, like, three or four times already.

[Commentator/Interjector]

And so everybody who's attending the wedding and in the wedding party and whatever has to go and do that.

[Cambodian Caller]

Oh, yeah, everybody has.

[Reshma]

I think that's cool too. Like, the whole neighborhood knows that somebody's getting married in that.

[Cambodian Caller]

Oh, yeah. Then after that, we have to sit down for a couple of hours. Well, three or four hours. And we can't move from that position. And the groomsmen have to massage the groom's legs.

[Reshma]

Say that last one one more time.

[Cambodian Caller]

The groomsmen have to massage the grooms legs because they can't move.

[Reshma]

Oh, really? And what does that symbolize? Like, why do you have to stay stationary that long?

[Cambodian Caller]

I really don't know. We just sit there. They throw a lot of flowers and rice at us, and I think somebody's jacking with you.

[Reshma]

I think that's just your family.

[Bretzky]

I don't think that's a Cambodian.

[Commentator/Interjector]

Y' all sit there and be quiet. I mean, y' all sit there and it symbolizes strength.

[Reshma]

Other Cambodians are calling, going, I don't have any idea what he's talking about. That's just your family.

[Bretzky]

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