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Updated Oct 14, 202423 Stunning Indian Wedding Hairstyles for the Ceremony and Beyond
Here's some inspiration for both traditional and modern styles.
Photography: Banga Studios
An Indian wedding ceremony is a special event with a lot of meaning, tradition and history behind it. The same can be said for Indian wedding hairstyles, which vary based on where you're from in India and whether you're keeping things very traditional or going for more of a modern spin. Regardless, sparkling bejeweled hair accessories, like a maang tikka, or flower-adorned updos or clips, are almost always incorporated for the bride, wedding party and even the guests. Read on to get inspiration for wedding hairstyles for an Indian wedding and learn more about the meaning behind them.
In this article:
- 23 Inspiring Indian Wedding Hairstyles
- What to Know About Hairstyles for an Indian Wedding
- How to Find a Hairstylist for Your Indian Wedding
23 Inspiring Indian Wedding Hairstyles
From traditional low buns to more modern Hollywood waves, Indian bridal hairstyles include an option for every bride. Just like Indian bridal makeup, these hairstyles tend to have a special meaning. Scroll on to find a selection of beautiful looks from real brides, and be sure to collect your favorites to share with your stylist by clicking the heart in the top right-hand corner.
1. Flower Hair Bun for an Indian Wedding
Opt for the more traditional with a sophisticated and elegant updo like this one. The low bun is made even more special with the addition of flowers that match the rest of the outfit, as well as a maang tikka and some volume at the crown of the head.
2. Romantic Half-Up Hairstyle
A half-up wedding hairstyle is a popular option for Indian brides who want something a little more modern, as are glamorous Hollywood waves. This Indian wedding hair combines both. Barbie Patel, CEO and founder of Cinderella Bridez, a beauty company specializing in South Asian Indian weddings around the world, notes that brides often remove their maang tikka for the wedding reception, but that accessory could work with this hairstyle as well.
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3. Low Bun With Volume
According to Patel, one traditional bridal hairstyle is a low, intricate bun with volume at the top, like this Indian wedding hairdo. With a maang tikka that matches the bride's dress, this is a beautiful and popular look that works for any Indian bride.
4. Long Curls With Accessories
Photographer: Aguiam Wedding Photography
,Hair: Waheeda Nasar
Opt for a glamorous and elaborate look with a hairstyle like this one. Long, soft curls look beautiful with a maang tikka and extra sparkling hair accessories throughout—these look like tiny, glittery flower clips. Bonus points if everything matches your outfit.
5. Sleek Updo With Volume
A soft updo can be romantic, but a sleeker updo feels elevated and even more sophisticated. Pull hair tightly back into a low, large bun and add some volume at the crown of the head for height. A maang tikka is a beautiful finishing touch.
6. Braided Half-Up Style
Photographer: Greta Tucker Photography
,Hair: Shades with Prithvi
This hairstyle is a nice mix of tradition and something more modern. The traditional piece is the maang tikka down the center part, but the bride kept things more modern with a braided half-up style and loose curls. It's soft, romantic and keeps your hair out of your face but still on your shoulders.
7. Long Fishtail Braid
According to Patel, braids are a very popular hairstyle choice for both traditional and more modern Indian weddings. Extensions make a long fishtail braid like this even longer and thicker. Keep some volume at the crown of the head for a softer look.
8. Fishtail Braid With Flowers
Photographer: Greta Tucker Photography
,Hair: Shades with Prithvi
Braids are another popular choice for many Indian brides, and this long fishtail braid is a great example of that. Pull hair back loosely for a little added volume, then do a regular or fishtail braid (like this one). You can use extensions to make the braid longer and fuller. Add some small flowers, real or fake, as a pretty embellishment.
9. Traditional Low Bun
Photographer: Aguiam Wedding Photography
,Hair: Waheeda Nasar
This sleek low bun, pulled back tightly with a neat center part, is among the popular hairstyles for Indian weddings. Paired with a red lehenga and matching matha patti, this look feels very regal and special. The bride wore this for the ceremony before switching to long, loose curls for the reception, something that is very common among Indian brides, according to Patel.
10. Bejeweled Low Bun
The maang tikka might be one of the most popular Indian bridal hair accessories, but it's not the only one. For this blended ceremony, the bride wore a passa (also known as a jhoomar), a piece of hair jewelry that is inspired by Mughal royal jewelry. It looks perfect paired with a low updo and center part.
11. Flower Adorned Bun
Photographer: Ivy Weddings
,Hair: Makeup by Marz
As Patel notes, flowers are a very popular hair accessory among Indian brides, whether they're real or fake. This bride added large blush and white roses around her low bun for a very special and gorgeous wedding hairstyle for an Indian wedding.
12. Loose Half-Up Waves
Photographer: Ivy Weddings
,Hair: Makeup by Marz
This half-up hairstyle with long, loose waves is slightly more casual than the traditional low updo of many Indian brides. This can be a good choice for a more modern bride, or it can make a beautiful look for a prewedding event, especially when hair jewelry is added.
13. Low Voluminous Ponytail
For this blended ceremony, the bride kept things on the simpler side with this hairstyle. Her hair is pulled into a low ponytail with plenty of volume at the crown of the head and a maang tikka along the part. This is an easy look if you want to transition to loose waves later on.
14. Sleek Embellished Bun
Photographer: Allison Sullivan
,Hair: Beauty 'N the Bride
More than one elaborate hair accessory definitely isn't too much, and this hairstyle with flowers is proof. This bride paired her sleek low bun with an intricate matha patti and added a string of striking jasmine flowers around her bun for a traditional touch.
15. Half-Up Style With Curls
This half-up hairstyle features plenty of volume, a side-swept look thanks to the off-center part and some tighter curls. It's glamorous and just elaborate enough, and the matha patti features some really pretty glittery details.
16. Sideswept Soft Waves
For her wedding ceremony, this bride opted for a modern Indian wedding hairstyle for long hair: soft waves with a deep side part. This sideswept look is giving old-Hollywood glam and is a more versatile look that can easily be paired with hair accessories as well.
17. Soft Bun With Flowers
This might be the perfect low bun hairstyle: a sideswept look, a little volume all around and a pretty twisted knot that feels special. The hair accessories, which include baby's breath flowers around the bun and a beaded headband, make it even more meaningful.
18. Braided Low Bun
Photographer: Pearl Paper Studio
This bride chose a surprisingly versatile hairstyle. She opted for a French braid into a low, voluminous bun with a side part for extra glam. After the ceremony, the bride let her hair down, with just the braid as her hairstyle.
19. Braid With Flowers
Photographer: Enmuse Photography
,Hair: Blush Beauty by Nadia
Braids are a popular choice for Indian brides, and this one is made even more special with meaningful accessories. A veni made of jasmine flowers is woven throughout the braid, and a bejeweled maang tikka completes the look.
20. Bejeweled Half-Up Style
A half-up style looks really beautiful with a bejeweled headpiece like this one, which matches the rest of the bride's Indian wedding jewelry. It would look just as great without the headpiece if you wanted to take that off for the reception, making it very versatile.
21. Bold Floral Hair Accessory
Photographer: IVASH Studio
,Hair: Cinderella Bridez
Putting fresh (or even faux) flowers in your hair is both meaningful and really pretty. These appear to be red jasmine flowers around the bride's low bun, and they offer a nice bold color alongside the maang tikka. This is also proof that the flowers don't need to match your Indian wedding outfit perfectly to work.
22. Long Soft Curls
Photographer: Ptaufiq Photography
,Hair: Cinderella Bridez
While leaving your hair pulled back can be quite traditional for an Indian wedding ceremony, a lot of brides choose to leave their hair down. This bride opted for long, soft curls for a look that is glamorous and versatile. It also looks gorgeous with a simple maang tikka like this one.
23. A Simple Updo & Veil
Photographer: Ptaufiq Photography
,Hair: Cinderella Bridez
A simple low bun is elegant enough on its own, but add an elaborate matha patti and a bejeweled long veil, and you've got a look that is truly breathtaking. This bun is perfect for the traditional ceremony and can easily be transformed into something different for the reception if that's what the bride wants.
What to Know About Hairstyles for an Indian Wedding
Indian bridal hairstyles range from sleek updos to voluminous waves with plenty of extensions. The typical Indian wedding consists of multiple celebrations over the span of two to three days, but the ceremony is generally where tradition comes into play the most.
Traditional vs. Modern
While traditional Indian wedding hairstyles vary depending on the region, they usually include some sort of elaborate, intricate updo. "When it's more traditional, brides want more volume," Patel explains. "This could be an updo with more of a poof on the head and some curls in the bun." Modern brides may also choose a low bun, but as Patel notes, "the modern bride wants everything more sleek." Many modern brides also choose to leave their hair down completely.
Whether the bride chooses to go for an updo or curls, one thing is for sure: they will incorporate some sort of hair accessory into the look. "The headpieces are the same," Patel says, noting that many South Asian Indian brides wear headpieces for the ceremony.
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For the ceremony, brides who want to stray from the very traditional typically choose either a sleek low bun or glam Hollywood waves, both of which still include an accessory. "Some of our more modern brides choose to wear their hair down," Patel says. "We're still able to style their hair with the tikkas and the headpieces, so they'll choose to leave all of their hair down, or do a half-up style, and we'll put in hair extensions so we can give a lot of volume and fullness." Patel also notes that many modern brides opt for a center part rather than a side part.
The ceremony is only one part of an Indian wedding. For prewedding events, Patel says brides choose hairstyles like high ponytails, long classic braids, or fun braids like bubble braids or fishtail braids.
Flowers and Hair Accessories
Hair accessories play a big part in hair design for Indian weddings. Patel notes that the most common hair accessory for South Asian brides is a maang tikka, a single-strand or three-strand headpiece with a chain that follows a center part and a pendant that dangles on the forehead. A matha patti, something Patel says she sees often, is a more elaborate version of a maang tikka, with side chains that fall against the forehead.
Hindu brides often wear a dupatta, a long, scarf-like accessory. "Typically, when you think of an American wedding, you think of your sheer, white veil," Patel says. "Dupattas are worn similarly, but they match the color of the outfit the bride is wearing, so it could be red, pink or white."
Flowers are also important when it comes to Indian wedding hairstyles, Patel says. "A lot of brides tend to wear jasmine flowers," she explains. "Jasmine flowers are native to India. Jasmine grows robust throughout India and has a very fragrant smell. So it's really beautiful and it just kind of sets the tone, you know." While jasmine flowers are most commonly found in a bride's hair, she also says that some brides opt for spray roses or baby's breath.
For braided hairstyles, Patel notes that many brides add very long, thick hair extensions for a longer braid. She also says that braids are usually adorned with intricate hair jewelry, such as jada billai, a set of ornamental discs or chains that are attached along the length of the braid. Flowers can also be woven into braids, such as an accessory called a veni, which consists of small strings of fresh or artificial jasmine flowers that are tied or woven into the braid. A kunjalam (or paranda) is another popular choice—it's a decorative tassel attached to the end of the braid.
Indian Bridal Hairstyles vs. Hairstyles for Indian Wedding Guests
The hair accessories that Indian brides typically wear during a wedding ceremony aren't reserved for them only. According to Patel, guests and members of the bridal party, like Indian bridesmaids, sometimes wear jasmine flowers in their hair or incorporate a maang tikka into their hairstyle.
How to Find a Hairstylist for Your Indian Wedding
Finding the perfect hairstylist for an Indian wedding can feel overwhelming, especially if you're in a rural area compared to a city. The Knot Vendor Marketplace is a free tool that makes it so much easier to scout out the most impressive stylists in your area. Before you begin your search, be sure to use the "support diversity" filter at the top of the results page and select Asian-owned businesses. This allows you to find Indian hairstylists near you who know what they're doing, which Patel says is so important. "Hire a well-known South Asian or Indian hair expert that's used to working with brides," she recommends. "Not only do we have to get the hairstyle right, but we have to style the hair with the head jewelry, and sometimes not every hairstylist knows how to do that."
