Dasamo graha / Jaśavanta Mahetā. Amadāvāda : Navodita Lekhaka Sahakārī Prakāśana, 1978. From the University of Chicago Library.

દસમો ગ્રહ Dasmo Grah by જશવંત મહેતા Jaswant Mehta.

Could the title really translate to “Tenth Planet”? Interesting. Okay, a little bit of Googling has led me to this:

“With the onset of the harvest festival, Pongal, the wedding season begins. Eligible bachelors and girls are in great demand.

When traditional astrologers recognise only nine planets in a mortal’s birth chart, the son-in-law is referred to as the tenth planet — in jest. It enters the zodiacal chart of a man when his daughter gets married.

To propitiate this planet, the girl’s father offers sreedhan and palliatives like electronic goods and motor vehicles to the groom. The planet’s relatives contribute their mite to cause trouble to the bride’s family during marriage. The groom’s uncle or aunt tells the bride’s father, “The coffee served in the evening tasted like the concoction served to cattle. Ensure that the best first degree coffee is served to us early in the morning.”

I guess that explains why the father is bowing down to this young man?

I am really enjoying the connected letters in the title, especially the ગ્ર. Very fun!