Next up was the Hindu wedding ceremony for Andy’s cousin and her fiance Kunal. Please excuse any butchering of terms or traditions, this is just what I gathered was going on. The first part was called the Baraat, the groom rode in on a horse followed by his family and friends. It symbolized the groom’s ride into the village to retrieve his betrothed.

I’m not sure the significance of Kunal’s headdress/mask.

But the horse was decorated beautifully.

The “wedding procession” followed Kunal through the reception hall’s gardens and grounds.

His family wore the burgundy scarves.

Not everyone in attendance was Indian, but a majority of the people participating in the procession were.

The hall decorated, before the ceremony began.

There were flowers everywhere, all real carnations!

Kunal came into the ceremony first, escorted by his dad. (I also don’t know why he was wearing money…)

Andy’s dad actually had a part in the ceremony too. As the bride’s uncle he even got a “dot!”

The bride’s uncle walked her down the aisle while her brothers carried a lace canopy over their heads. They all headed towards the groom and both sets of parents who were up front.

We didn’t have the greatest seats, but still got to see a bit of the ceremony. The Hindu priest actually didn’t speak any English, so he would give directions to the bride and groom and Kunal’s family would have to translate.

I snuck around back to at least get a picture of the whole room.

There was a lot of flower throwing, walking in circles and chanting and here they’re doing something with an eternal flame. The whole ceremony lasted a bit over an hour, which I guess is really short (they traditionally can last 4-5 hours!)

A shot of one of the bridesmaids after the ceremony. Their saris were so beautiful!

Rachel and Kunal all decked out!

Although we didn’t really understand everything that was going on, it was very neat to sit in on the ceremony. It’s an opportunity not a lot of people get to have.