We invite everyone to join us in a celebration of our union rooted in Indian culture! A night of performances, dancing, food, and games awaits you. We anticipate our guests will come from many different backgrounds, and we hope you will all enjoy the opportunity to experience the and join our fun multi-cultural events throughout the weekend. It is a great opportunity for all of us to learn about one another and have a lot of fun at the same time!

Photo Credit: Shanell Bledsoe Photography

While Ahlad and I will have already performed a traditional Indian marriage ceremony, we are excited to share celebratory cultural elements of this marriage. We hope to share a short video of highlights from our Indian wedding ceremony. Following this, we have a night of fun planned for you. While we cannot bring all of the elements of Indian wedding traditions to you in one night, we hope to honor the traditional wedding ceremony and celebrate Indian culture with food, dancing, and revelry characteristic of a sangeet.

Dancing is a big part of many Indian cultural events, and anyone who knows Ahlad knows he loves to dance. We will have fun dance performances put on by bridal party members and other friends. We also hope to include some table activities and games that will allow you to learn more about Indian culture and have fun with one another. Additionally, we will have open dancing where you can enjoy a mix of popular Indian and western music. Henna will be available for those interested. And, of course, there will be delicious food throughout the evening!

Yes! A casual buffet will provide a filling meal of delicious Indian food, with plenty of vegetarian options. We will also have an assortment of Indian snacks and sweets for everyone to enjoy and try. We encourage everyone to be open to trying something new. If you have dietary restrictions that may prevent you from being able to eat the foods we will have available, please reach out.

Yes, alcohol will be served at this event. While mixed drinks will be available during the wedding reception on Sunday evening, we will be serving canned alcohol such as beer, wine, ciders, and seltzers at this event.

Bright, popping colors! Many of you may be familiar with the more muted tones of western weddings, but we hope you will enjoy our bright and exciting colorful decor! We encourage you to wear something fun and colorful and take pictures throughout the event!

A relaxed affair. While there will be performances and we hope to share a video of parts of our Indian ceremony, we don't expect everyone to sit quietly throughout the evening. Feel free to mingle, chat, take pictures, and get to know one another regardless of whatever else is happening. If there is anything we want to draw your attention to, we will let you know, but it is totally fine to chat with others at your table during performances or get up to grab snacks at any time!

Reach out if you have any other questions!

We encourage everyone who is comfortable doing so to wear Indian apparel to this celebration! If you do not wear Indian attire, we encourage you to don fun and colorful dressy western attire.

We are happy to connect about potential outfits and several people will be able to assist if you need help pinning anything. In the next section, you will find several examples of types of outfits suitable for this event and places to purchase such outfits.

Men's Indian Attire:

For men who wish to wear Indian attire, we recommend a kurta. Examples are shown below.

Women's Indian Attire:

Indian attire can vary by region, and we know some guests may have Indian attire from attending other events. If you have worn Indian attire to another event, we welcome you to wear it here. Examples of suitable Indian attire for women include lehengas, sarees, and Anarkalis. While mid-length tunic style Indian dresses (kurta sets, etc ) are less formal than the previously mentioned options, we invite you to wear them as a more affordable and simple option to feel a part of our Indian festivities. If you are not familiar with Indian attire, we recommend lehengas, kurta sets, or Indian dresses rather than a saree as sarees require more complex draping and pinning. Examples will be shown below.

Western Attire:

Above all, we want everyone to be comfortable! If you are not wearing Indian apparel, we recommend semi-formal/cocktail western attire. We encourage people to wear bright, colorful, and fun outfits. Any color is fine. Long or short dresses are both great!

For men interested in wearing Indian attire, we recommend a kurta set. A kurta set can consist of a kurta (Indian tunic) paired with the traditional pants which can often be purchased in a set. You can also pair a kurta top with khakis or slacks.

Where to buy:

We recommend Amazon as they have a variety of kurtas available with many options under $40. Additionally, if you live near an Indian clothing store, you will definitely be able to find kurtas there. Don't forget, you can always reach out to friends as they may have something you can borrow as well.

Example Images:

There are many options for women's Indian attire, and we invite you to wear what you are most comfortable with! Examples of suitable Indian attire for women include lehengas, sarees, kurta sets, and Anarkalis. We do caution that those who are unfamiliar with Indian attire may want to choose something other than a saree as sarees require a particular style of draping that can take time to learn and may be more difficult to move and dance in for those who are not used to wearing them.

Where to buy:

There is no single place to buy Indian women's attire. Some outfits such as kurtas and salwar kameez can be bought from amazon, whereas lehengas and saris (while sometimes available on Amazon) may be more easily purchased from a local Indian attire store of one of the websites listed below. We note that nice kurta tops and salwar kameez may be the most affordable option for those who do not currently own Indian attire. You can always reach out to us with questions. Other websites that may offer suitable attire are listed below. If you choose to order something from Etsy, make sure you read reviews.

Etsy: www.etsy.com

House of India: www.houseofindya.com

Utsav Fashion: www.utsavfashion.com

Lehenga:

A lehenga is a two-piece garment often worn to formal events in India. The outfit consists of a blouse for a top that is cropped at the waistline and a floor length skirt. A lehenga is generally worn with a scarf known as a chunni or dupatta that can be wrapped and pinned in many styles. There are many tutorials to help you pin the scarf, and we are happy to help anyone fix any pinning on arrival.

Anarkali:

If you are looking for something that may feel similar to western style dresses, this might be a great option. Technically a subset of salwar kameez, anarkalis are long flowing tunic style dresses that are generally worn over fitted bottoms. If you choose to wear this style, leggings are a practical option to wear underneath.

Mid-Length Tunic Style Dresses (Kurtas and more):

There are a diverse array of mid-length tunic styled dresses in India. With different styles being given a variety of names, these outfits generally consist of a mid-length tunic style dress known as a kurta layered over varying styles of pants (fitted pants similar to leggings, looser pants in a palazzo style). Many women's kurtas are available on amazon and can be found through a "kurta for women" search. Some outfits may come with pants, but if you purchase a top separately, we advise styling your tunic with a matching pair of leggings.