Bhubaneswar, Nov. 27: After a re-christened Radha appearing in Uttar Pradesh, it now the turn of Maa Bhagabati to appear in Orissa.

While IPS officer D.K. Panda is all set to marry Krishna tomorrow, Priyabrata Das, a teenage boy from a coastal town in Balasore who had claimed himself as Maa Bhagabati, ?married? Shiva on Friday. The boy?s family arranged his marriage.

Fifteen-year-old Priyabrata is the son of Ashok Das from Barabati area of Balasore. On Friday he was all decked up as a bride for the marriage. The ceremony took place in the presence of hundreds of devotees and local people. While Priyabrata?s father acted as the father of the bride, Gadadhar Nayak, a retired senior manager of Punjab National Bank acted as the karta of Shiva

Though, initially the boy and his family members were hesitant to talk to the media, after repeated attempts, Priyabrata said for past few years he felt like a woman in his heart and mind. ?I used to worship Maa Bhagabati, and I always felt I am the wife of lord Shiva. One day Maa told me to marry lord Shiva.?

Priyabrata's father, who is also an ardent devotee of the goddess, said that on June 27 last year he was ?told to perform the marriage ceremony? in his dreams. ?When a girl attains puberty it is the duty of her father to search for a groom. My son first received the blessings of the goddess when he was in his uncle?s house in Jagatsinghpur district. He was metamorphosed to a female during last few months,? he said.

The marriage was like any other regular Bengali Hindu marriage complete with chanting of hymns. Priyabrata was married off to a Shiva idol brought in a colourful procession. The priest applied vermillion on the forehead of the bride. The ceremony was followed by a vegetarian dinner. Thereafter, Priyabrata was taken to Nayak?s house in a colourful procession. Nayak said he, too, had been instructed in his dreams by Shiva to perform the marriage. Accepting Priyabrata his daughter-in-law, Nayak said it was his fortune for being selected as father of Shiva.