Sisir Mishra skydives on Sunday. Picture by Sanjib Mukherjee

Bhubaneswar, July 13: Grooms reaching the wedding venue and the altar on horseback, palanquin or four-wheeler is passé.

In Bhubaneswar today, Sisir Mishra, a New Delhi-based aircraft technician working with the Indian Air Force, literally dived to his matrimonial bliss.

The aircraft expert and two of his friends flew to a height of 10,000ft in a helicopter over Saheednagar, where his wedding reception was taking place.

The groom then jumped off over Saheed sporting grounds where the mandap was located. With the cloud condition proving just right for the jump, Mishra fell from a height of 7,000ft. He opened the parachute at 2,000ft, much to the relief of a cheering crowd comprising both the bride and groom’s family. To avoid any untoward incidents, an ambulance and a police van was posted near the wedding venue.

“My friends standing down below gave me smoke signals to mark the area where I had to land,” said a jubilant Sisir, after landing. At 12 noon he went to a nearby hotel from where he emerged in the traditional groom’s attire ready to tie the knot. “Skydiving isn’t a new stunt for me, but I was anxious today, as this is one occasion when taking risks is foolish,” he added.

“I had never skydived in Orissa before,” he said, adding: “I also wanted to create an awareness regarding adventure sports.”

Originally from Odagaon in Nayagarh, the skydiver naturally had a hard time convincing his family and the bride’s family regarding the stunt. “Initially, I was extremely apprehensive. However, when I learnt that he had done this before and saw that he was so eager, I agreed,” said a visibly relieved bride, Shweta Pristi, a student of genetics.

The aircraft technician has been skydiving for 12 years now. “I train other skydivers too.”

At present, Sisir is a part of a five-member Indian sky diving team. Last August, he participated in the US Open skydiving championship that was attended by teams from 130 countries.

The idea to dive to his wedding struck Sisir after one of his students (hailing from Puna) tied the knot in a hot air balloon. “I thought why not do something that has never been attempted in India before,” he says smiling.

The venture cost him around Rs 2 lakh. Revenue minister Manmohan Samal was present to mark the occasion. Mishra already has a Limca record to his credit for jumping off a height of 15,000ft in the US with the Tri-colour.