How did the individual known as Maharaj first arrive in Shirdi and who was the first person to greet him?

According to the introductory section in Chapter 0, Maharaj arrived in Shirdi with a wedding procession for the nephew of Chandbhai's wife. The procession stopped in a garden near the Khandoba temple. When Maharaj went into the temple, he was met by a gentleman named Mhalasapati, a local goldsmith and a devotee of Khandoba. It was Mhalasapati who first welcomed him, setting the stage for Maharaj's life in Shirdi. Maharaj's initial journey to the village was thus tied to this wedding party.