What Goes Into the Pre-Ceremony Events of an Indian Wedding?

  As Indian wedding photographers and videographers, our team understands the grandeur and excitement that comes with an Indian wedding. But, we also understand the enormous amount of planning that it takes to organize such an event. We also know that not everyone quite understands all the amazing and meaningful moments that go into an Indian wedding. We would like to share the basics of an Indian wedding to help anyone who may be planning- or plans to attend- an Indian wedding.

Obviously, Indian weddings are full of rich and meaningful traditions. In order to cover them all, we will be breaking down basics of Indian weddings into two separate posts. Here, we will showcase the Pre-Wedding/Ceremony traditions followed by the ceremony itself in a future post. So keep an eye out for the additional information!

Pre-Wedding Events

The pre-wedding rituals are a very important part of the entire Indian wedding event. They are believed to hold an enormous amount of importance and are used to set the tone and promise of the impending wedding. Normally, these events last for about a week and do an amazing job of drumming up the excitement and joy for the bride and groom as well as their friends and family.

Pithi: A pithi is a good luck ceremony where friends and family apply a pithi to bride and groom’s skin. Pithi is a yellow paste made of turmeric, rose water and chickpea flour and is believed to brighten the skin tone.

Mehndi: This is a vibrant and exciting celebration that is normally held the night before the wedding. There is usually a professional mehndi artist that applies henna to the hands and feet of the bride in intricate and meaningful designs. These designs are believed to symbolize beauty, joy and spiritual awakening and offering. Looking for more information about planning a mehndi? Check out our posts about the basics of a mehndi.

As professional Indian wedding photographers and videographers, we have had an enormous privilege capturing some really amazing Indian wedding events and traditions. Our team has a skillful eye for the important and key moments that go along with the traditions and cultural aspects of an Indian wedding. Feel free to check out our impressive Indian wedding photography to see the beauty and grandeur of Indian weddings.