Taj Falaknuma Palace

Wedding Day

Wedding

Reception

Welcome

We are very excited to celebrate our big day with you! It's going to be 2 days filled with lots of love, laughter, music, food and festivities.&nbsp;

We’ve created this website as a convenient and interactive way to share all of the important details with you in the lead up to our wedding. You can also read more about our love story, get all the travel and wedding info, and check out our registry information too.

Finally – thank you for your ongoing love and support. We are so excited to share this milestone&nbsp;with you and look forward to celebrating all weekend long&nbsp;with our favorite&nbsp;people.

Can't wait to see you in India!

Celebrations

​December 29-30, 2018

Taj Falaknuma Palace, Hyderabad, India

Our Story

Our Wedding

Cute Meet

Neha and Rahil first&nbsp;met when they were 6. Sitting side by side in the same class from Kindergarten through&nbsp;5th grade, they apparently hung out at each-others’ birthday parties (as told by our parents, memories are super hazy hazy) .

Rahil vividly remembers Neha’s last day in school in the 5th grade before Neha moved to the US. Neha’s pretty tech savvy but Rahil wasn’t on AOL, MySpace, Instagram or Snapchat, so they lost touch until 2014 when she took a six-month sabbatical and moved back to Mumbai to chill with her family.&nbsp;

Teaming up against&nbsp;the others in a competitive game of Settlers, they first made eyes at each other on a weekend trip to Lonavala with their full-time friend and part-time matchmaker, Karan.

Constant love and laughter along with Rahil's numerous hand gestures is what their relationship is about! On the first three dates, Rahil spilled Neha’s own drinks on her and she still went out with him for a fourth!&nbsp;

To make up for this, Rahil has had to propose to Neha three times – with a promise ring at Disneyland in Jan ‘17, after a long hike in June ’17 at Snoqualmie, and an Indian style engagement with ~500 witnesses in Mumbai in December '17.&nbsp; &nbsp;

The last three years have truly been fantastic for the two as they finished their masters in LA and Chicago, and now move to the average of their temperatures in Washington DC.

A true test of their relationship is tolerating each other through a 5000km road trip with all their worldly possessions across the country, and they made it without throwing the other person off the precipice at Grand Canyon or leaving one of them in the middle of nowhere in New Mexico or Texas.



Neha and Rahil are planning their big fat Indian wedding and look forward to this new chapter in their life together.&nbsp;

Our Story 1

Big Fat Indian Wedding

Welcome & Mehendi

When:&nbsp;Saturday, December 29th, Afternoon&nbsp;

What:&nbsp;The Mehendi ceremony is a pre-wedding event that refers to the application of a henna paste in elaborate intricate designs on hands and feet. An immensely colorful event, the Mehendi ceremony officially kicks off the wedding festivities!&nbsp;

Where:&nbsp;Pool-side Lawns, Falaknuma&nbsp;

Wear:&nbsp;Colorful Indian/Smart Casuals&nbsp;&nbsp;

Sangeet & Cocktail

When:&nbsp;Saturday, December 29th, Evening&nbsp;

What:&nbsp;The&nbsp;sangeet, which translates to&nbsp;"sung together" is a pre-party to the wedding where Neha and Rahil's families come together to sing, dance, and revel in the joy of the upcoming union. There will be food, music, dancing, live performances,&nbsp;and loads of fun!&nbsp;



Where:&nbsp;Main&nbsp;Lawns, Falaknuma&nbsp;



Wear:&nbsp;Festive&nbsp;Indian/Cocktail&nbsp;&nbsp;

Neha's Pithi

When:&nbsp;Sunday, December 30th, Morning&nbsp;

What:&nbsp;The Pithi is one of the most auspicious pre-wedding ceremonies.&nbsp;Also known as &nbsp;haldi&nbsp;(turmeric), it is a symbolic blessing from family and friends to the couple, hoping for an eternal and well bonded marriage of&nbsp; two individuals.&nbsp;Haldi is seen in the Hindu religion as a step to purifying and cleansing the body and providing a radiant glow to the skin (just before the big day!).&nbsp;Family and friends will&nbsp;gather to smear a&nbsp;paste of turmeric powder, rosewater and sandalwood powder on Neha.

Where:&nbsp;TBD&nbsp;

Attire:&nbsp;Yellow!&nbsp;

Wedding Ceremony

When:&nbsp;Sunday, December 30th, Afternoon&nbsp;

What:&nbsp;Traditional Hindu&nbsp;ceremony (Baraat, Jai Mala, Pheras) followed by dinner.&nbsp;



Baraat



Rahil will be&nbsp;led to the marriage venue in a procession accompanied by his family and friends known as the&nbsp;baraat.&nbsp;They will be welcomed&nbsp;by Neha's parents, extended family and friends.&nbsp;



Jai Mala



Neha and Rahil&nbsp; will put&nbsp;fresh flower&nbsp;malas&nbsp;(garlands) on&nbsp;each other's necks, followed by an&nbsp;exchange of gifts.&nbsp;The ceremony is not just the meeting of two souls, but is a union of two families, a merge of traditions, values and customs that make the entire wedding complete.



Pheras



Neha and Rahil will be&nbsp;seated in front of a holy fire, or&nbsp;agni, as a priest chants&nbsp;mantras&nbsp;from the Holy Scriptures. Fire is regarded as a purifier and a sustainer of life. In a ritual called&nbsp;mangalphera, Neha and Rahil will&nbsp;walk around the fire four times, praying and exchanging vows of duty, love, fidelity, and respect,&nbsp;while the family members make offerings into the fire. Friends and family shower the couple with flower petals during the&nbsp;pheras.&nbsp;At the end of the ceremony, in a ritual called&nbsp;saptapadi, the bride and groom take seven vows, sealing the marriage forever. These vows are traditionally spoken in Sanskrit, and are one of the most ancient aspects of the Hindu ceremony.&nbsp;



Dinner



Post wedding, dinner, merrymaking, and&nbsp;pictures galore!!!&nbsp;



Where: Falaknuma Courtyard



Wear:&nbsp;Indian Formal/Western Formal

Events

Getting There

In order to attend the major events, please plan to arrive in&nbsp;Hyderabad&nbsp;by&nbsp; noon on&nbsp;Saturday, December 29th and stay until brunch on&nbsp;Monday, December 31st. Airport pick up and drop will be provided. Please let us know when you've booked your tickets.&nbsp;

You can either fly into our home city Mumbai a few days prior to the wedding (Recommended, to get over jet lag and shop for Indian clothes) and take a domestic flight from Mumbai to Hyderabad, which is only 1 hour long. OR you can join&nbsp;us directly in Hyderabad.&nbsp;

Of course, we encourage everyone to come earlier and stay later to enjoy India!&nbsp;&nbsp;

For flights from the US&nbsp;to India,&nbsp;we highly recommend Emirates. Internal flights between Mumbai and Hyderabad are via&nbsp;domestic operators&nbsp;like&nbsp;Jet Air, Spice Jet, or Go Air and will approximately be $50-75 one-way.&nbsp;VISA&nbsp;Information: Non-Indian passport holders should plan to apply for an eVisa through <a href="https://indianvisaonline.gov.in/evisa/tvoa.html" target="_blank">this link</a> a couple of weeks before their intended date of travel. &nbsp;&nbsp;If you need help booking tickets, or additional information about the visa process, please don't hesitate to reach out to Neha or Rahil.&nbsp;

Accomodations

You will be hosted at one of the two sister properties, Taj Falaknuma and Taj Krishna. Rooms will be assigned by the bride and groom. Transportation from the Hyderabad airport and between the two hotels will be provided.&nbsp;

Once rooms are assigned, you will receive an update from us with contact information for the logistics manager. At this point, we will also share a list of documents you should plan to bring with you and any other details you may need.&nbsp;

Shopping

There are many options for shopping for Indian attire, if you'd like to wear it (no pressure, but it might be super fun!!!)&nbsp;

In the US:&nbsp;





- BorrowitBindaas.com &nbsp;(very similar to Rent the Runway) 





- Little India (Artesia, CA) has many Indian stores you can visit.&nbsp;





In Mumbai:&nbsp;





Neha can help with store recommendations but here are a few:&nbsp;





- Fab India, Santacruz West&nbsp;





- Kalki, Santacruz West





- Raas, Santacruz West&nbsp;





- Seasons, Santacruz West,





- Sakhi, Santacruz West&nbsp;





- Bawree, Santacruz West&nbsp;





- Friendship, Santacruz West&nbsp;In Hyderabad:- Neeru's, Road No. 1- Kashish, Road No. 1, opposite Taj Krishna- Soch, Road No. 1- Patterns, Road No. 2 (allows online ordering)- Meena Bazaar, Road No. 3 (Banjara Hills)

Neha & Rahil

Neha & Rahil

Photos