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| Wedding Essentials 2 0 1 4
a real-life wedding
WEDDING CEREMONY ATTIRE
The bride's wedding lengha was traditional and elegant--it made
Puja feel regal. Her gown was emerald green, accented with
goldwork embroidery along the borders, designed by a well-
known Indian fashion designer. Traditional jewellery completed
her look. In keeping with Hindu custom, she carried bridal
garlands. She chose orange orchids and pink roses.
The groom wore a custom-tailored sherwani from India. Its
rich ivory tones were complemented by matte gold detailing.
For her bridal attendants, Puja chose pink saris for her
relatives and orange saris for her friends. The gold work
embroidery accents of Puja's lengha was repeated on the
women's saris.
Puja's parents and Joe's parents were resplendent in
traditional Indian attire for the ceremony.
On their wedding day Puja and Joe laughed
when the pundit surprised them by speaking in
Italian during the Hindu wedding ceremony.
Although Joe kept his composure, Puja cried
when the pundit called their parents to the
mandap, the wedding ceremony altar--a
covered structure with pillars, and explained
how, from that point forward, their parental
responsibilities were passed to Puja and Joe,
as husband and wife.
Puja's fondest memory was when Joe tied the
mangalsutra on his bride. This is the sacred
necklace that symbolizes the eternal union
between the two, how Joe would now care for
and love Puja forever.
For Joe, the sweetest memory was hearing Puja
walking down the aisle at the Hindu ceremony.
"The suspense was intense at not being able to
see her for the first part of the ceremony."
What Joe loves about Puja: "I love her
sincerity and honesty. She's very caring and
loving and has a wonderfully buoyant and
jovial personality. She has amazing taste in
movies and music, which is a necessity!"
What Puja loves about Joe: "I love Joe's easy-
going, even-keeled demeanour. Everyone feels
better around him! He approaches obstacles
as opportunities, with contagious positivity.
He inspires me to be a better person, giving
me the strength and confidence I need to live
life with grace, in a kind, gentle way. It's the
biggest gift I have ever received."
Joe's advice to grooms: "Do as much of the
footwork as you can and be patient. When the
bride is making a decision, ask her for her top
three choices and then give your opinion on
those only. You don't want to find yourself in
a week-long conversation about what shade
of pink something should be..."
Puja's advice to brides: "Get a wedding
planner...even if only for the day. It will take
loads of stress from you. I didn't do that but
only managed because of my incredible groom
and a sister who took on lots of details that
day. The stress of the possibility of something
going wrong was on my mind constantly in
the weeks before the wedding."
Best piece of marriage advice: Puja's friend
advised her to take part in activities her
husband likes and not to complain... Joe says
that lots of people have told him that `a happy
wife equals a happy life'!