I Survived an Indian Wedding!

I'm not functioning at full capacity at the moment, but since it's 4 am and can't sleep from a combination of jet lag and Delhi belly, I wanted to share some pictures from the wedding in India we attended last week. Our friend and Nick's boss, Samant, was getting married in India, and while we had an Indian wedding of our own, I knew it wouldn't compare to those in India. We had to go!

Ours was a two-hour wedding; Samant's was 4 days. No small feat for the bride and groom, or for anyone else. I'm still absorbing all the events from those 4 days; in fact, I'm still waking up wondering what wedding function we've got going on today. So, while I process my thoughts and wake up from the haze, here are the events in photos. We were taken in like family on Samant's side, so all the pictures are from the groom's Punjabi traditions. The bride had different ceremonies which we didn't attend.

Day 1: Mendhi (henna); Sangeet (singing)

Women from the groom's side gather to dance, sing wedding songs, make jokes, and eat

Day 2: Ring Ceremony (gifting of jewelry, meeting of families and exchanging of gifts, dinner and dancing)

According to Samant, a nice luxury vehicle could have been purchased with the price of those jewels

More lavish than most western weddings, and this was just the ring ceremony

Day 3: More wedding ceremonies (that I don't know the names of); Sehra Bandhi (tying of the turban and riding the horse); Wedding procession; Reception

Sister-in-law carrying the pot of water the groom bathes in just before his turban ceremony

The little boy gets all the same adornments as a groom-in-training

Raucous and joyful wedding procession through the streets of Delhi to the reception and wedding venue

Bride is handed over to the groom

Day 4: (a continuation of Day 3 but technically the next day around 2 am) Wedding ceremony; Blessing by Hijidas (eunuchs); Wedding games with the groom's family

Finally, the wedding ceremony, but most people have gone home. Lasted until sunrise!

Later in the day, the hijidas came to give their blessing (or, a curse if you choose not to pay them; Samant's mom negotiated a rate of $500)

Family wedding-related games to round out 4 FULL days of an Indian wedding