My sisters Wedding Shenangians- Part 1- Paath / Prayer Ceremony

27 September 2016

Punjabi wedding outfit

Hey guys! I've finally decided to do some outfit posts from my trip to India (I've previously written about my trip here).
This 5 post series is dedicated to my sister's wedding. Her wedding was in the second week of December (yep! a wee while ago!) and I was in India for 2 months to attend this family occasion as well as heaps of other weddings (21 functions!) that I will write about at some stage (no promises!).

You see weddings are a big deal in the land I come from. We have our dream looks sorted even before a boy is found. We research outfits, go through latest designer clothes, mix n match patterns, make our own fusion outfits on paper and then take countless trips to the tailor to perfect every single bead and sequin (I do this, do you?). So yes! weddings are a labor of love & every outfit speaks volumes of our design credentials. Of corse we have the likes of Manish Malhotra & Sabyasachi Mukherjee, the premier Indian designers who make breathtaking outfits but they come at a price that most of the middle class refuse to pay. Its more like how about have one designer outfit for the price of your whole wardrobe. umm..no thanks! But seriously no offence to those that buy from the big wigs. If you've got the moolah..why not? Saves you so much time and energy.

sikh wedding outfit

I personally like to get involved in my clothes. I like to tweak details. I'd like embroidery on one outfit and the cut on other. I'll pick color inspiration  from my favorite Jockey undie (true story!). I'm weird like that! This needs so much work and we Indians take pride in the process. Its what makes weddings fun & challenging.
So this series is an ode to the craftsmanship of Indian tailors, embroiders, small scale businesses that make our weddings colorful. What will we do without our bhaiyas?

When at weddings, I'm involved like really involved. I lose sense of being and time. I'm never a blogger but always a sister/helper/dancer. So believe me when I say that I have no solo photos at my sisters wedding.  Some candid face shots yes! but no solo full length outfit shots that I can show you. I was mostly found dancing crazy with some equally dazed people. There goes a disclaimer for the not-so-appropriate-for-the-blog photos. Enjoy!


north indian wedding outfit

Also worth a mention is that I'm a Punjabi by descent & Sikh by religion. Punjab is a North Indian state. Our weddings tend to be quite lavish and full-blown-out-there. Not all Indian weddings involve same traditions and ceremonies so please don't judge all Indian weddings with the same eye. We have 29 states and so many religions that its even confusing for us Indians. Everyone does it differently. But most of my Indian readers will be able to tell a Punjabi wedding from another Indian wedding. Told you we go Over The Top!

easy green smoky eye makeup

We had about 5 functions at my sisters wedding so I plan to do 5 posts to cover each occasion. Of corse there were many other pre and post wedding formalities but I'll save those for some other time!

- Prayer Ceremony (Sukhmani Sahib Paath)
- Henna Ceremony (Mehendi)
- The Lady Sangeet Night (The crazy night of dancing before the wedding day)
-The main wedding event (It was a morning wedding)
- Reception (A gathering organised by groom's side to welcome girl in their family, Night event)

Prayer Ceremony-
As I mentioned before, we belong to Sikh religion and we believe that its auspicious to start any event by seeking blessings from Almighty, Our holy book, Guru Granth Sahib Ji.
So to mark the start of wedding festivities, the first function was the Prayer/Paath ceremony. It is a very simple family affair with a not so huge gathering by Indian standards (200?)- Some friends , relatives and neighbors from close by. Because this one starts super early in morning, I didn't have a huge amount of time to get ready. (Do I have to tell you how I'm not a morning person?). The makeup was natural (yeah green eyeshadow- go figure!) with a pop of pink lipstick to match my pink dupatta/veil. I think the lipstick was MAC's Girl About Town. I tied my hair in a braid as we are required to cover head during ceremony. I don't like my hair poking out from every corner of my face so braiding them was a very practical approach.

punjabi salwar suit

green eyeshadow for indian wedding makeup

The outfit is a Pastel mint Punjabi Salwar Suit (Fitted top, puffy pants). The shirt is hand embroided by my mum in traditional Punjabi embroidery known as Phulkari (In literal sense, Phul = flower, Kari = work/embroidery). It is my favorite embroidery style and I almost always wear one Phulkari outfit during any wedding I attend. Phulkari signifies happy times. The thread colors were chosen by mum. I love this so much!

phulkari salwar suit

The multicolored threads make it easy to pair the outfit with any color dupatta which guarantees a different look each time. I love outfits that deliver variety.

phulkari emroidery punjab

The mint color is quite modern and the traditional details on it make the outfit unique. I wouldn't be able to find such a combo in stores.
It took months for my mum to make this one so I'm going to cherish this one forever. Yeah! I'm quite attached to my clothes emotionally. I love to have stories behind every outfit. I also want them to wear them again n again. So most of the outfits you'll see in this series will be either DIY or recyclable in one way or another.

phulkari punjabi salwar suit

After the religious ceremony ended, we had tons of food, danced a little and posed a lot!

Did you like this outfit? Are you emotional about your clothes? Do you like to go traditional or on-trend?
Talk to me in the comments below!

See you tomorrow
Nishu

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