A few weeks ago, we have blogged about Arun and Preeti’s wedding trailer here, one of the longest wedding we have shot and one of the touching wedding stories we have ever told. As promised, we will be posting more photos from their beautiful wedding on this blog post.
When we met Preeti several months before their wedding, she already told us how she wanted us to tell her story. We are always flattered and we always feel blessed when couples choose us to tell their story and when we are their first choice (super blessed!). Not only we get to meet new people but we get to experience the richness of different cultures and wedding rituals. My daughter (and my mom) is our biggest fan and when we see her mesmerized when she watches our video and sees our photos, we know it is good… You don’t get to spark a 3-yr old’s interest everyday with a real wedding unless it is a cartoon, a giant purple dinosaur or Disney princess marrying a prince.
We have covered several Hindu weddings and each wedding is unique. This wedding brought us closer to the core as we witnessed the love Preeti and Arun have for each other and how each family was bonded together. We are not Indians but we somehow now know how each ceremony is called and we can tell each story with our photos.
Preeti’s Haldi and Chudda Ceremony
Preeti is the eldest among three daughters. I can relate being the eldest to 2 sisters too. Their family was closely bonded and Preeti was very close to her sisters which is why her marriage and “leaving” home was emotional…I couldn’t help but get emotional too as we covered her Haldi and Chudda ceremony. For those who are not familiar with Chudda ceremony, it is also called the bangle ceremony.
Arun’s Haldi and Sehra Bandi
Arun’s place was abuzz with excitement. This was not the first wedding in the family but everyone was busy for a big celebration. It was a happy day for the household and it was all obvious with the smiles and laughter.
Sangeeth
We have been to several Sangeeth’s already and we always look forward to shooting them. It is like being in a live Bollywood movie with all the groovy and upbeat dance presentations. The good thing about Indians is that when they party, they party hard and they party long,….until wee hours in the morning!
Venue: Sheraton Deira
Ceremony
Held at the Radisson Blu Deira, Preeti stood out with her bright red sari as she walked in the hall under the blanket stringed with fairy lights. After dinner around midnight, the wedding ceremony started and lasted until 3am and was continued in Preeti’s place and then Arun’s home. It was an emotional farewell as Preeti’s family had to “give her away” that night. She was welcomed with enthusiasm at Arun’s home where we concluded the evening (or morning). It was a long night for us but it was all worth it. Witnessing the final ceremony before their grand reception was something we would not want to miss.
Reception
Their grand reception at the Conrad Hotel was the icing and cherry on top of the cake. Including Preeti and Arun, we were all sighing because after 3 long days of celebration, this was the final night when everyone just gets to party. It is a sad farewell for us because after spending time with all of them, we get to go back to normal lives in the back office. But reviewing their photos and now blogging about it made us go back to those 3 long but fun filled days and nights. To Preeti and Arun, we have enjoyed shooting your wedding and we are thankful to be part of the start of your journey as man and wife. We wish you all the best!
