What to Know Before Attending Your First Indian Wedding in Canada [2024]  

No matter where you are, a wedding is an auspicious event in a person’s life. Talking about it, people share different experiences, opinions, expectations, and many more. This might be influenced merely by personal interests. When it comes to the bride or groom, you should always try to meet the expectations based on their interests. 

Have you ever attended an Indian wedding? Even though you might not have visited an Indian wedding, you might have heard about it. For decades, weddings in India have been full of celebrations, colours, and bliss. Indians are proud of their traditions and rituals. So even though time has passed and many changes have occurred from generation to generation, traditions are still alive in India. 

But what’s your opinion about Indian weddings in Canada? Yes, Nowadays, Canadian citizens are conducting marriages by combining both traditions without sacrificing the vibrancy of India. 

Indians figured out more ways to mix and merge the traditions with new styles, turning them into something more entertaining, fun, and cheerful. This includes finding the best event planners, photographers, arrangements like traditional wear, and many more. If you are new to it, I assure you that Indian wedding ideas are joyful and unique. This might differ based on religion, people, or location. 

So, this blog piece will help you to know more about Indian weddings. 

Wedding Date

Indians who give importance to traditions and rituals don’t pick random dates for weddings. They consider a lot of factors like birth dates and astrological signs. Some also look at the alignment of the stars. 

It also includes the timings, such as the fact that some Indian weddings take place in the morning and some in the evening. They believe that selecting a specific date based on some factor ensures the happiness and prosperity of couples and families. However, this does not imply that every Indian adheres to it. It depends on their beliefs and religion. 

Wedding Destinations And Invitations

Destinations always make the wedding special. It is one of the critical factors in a wedding, making it more auspicious. You might have experienced that people are always curious to know the venue or destination

when invited to a wedding. So, it plays an exceptional role in making the wedding more graceful. 

Speaking of invitations, For centuries, Indian weddings have been almost always crowded with relatives, friends, and other people. However, with so many changes, intimate weddings are becoming more popular. Because it allows the wedding to take place in greater calm and peace without the crowd’s rush 

Traditions and Rituals

As discussed above, if you are new to Indian weddings, you should be excited about seeing the Indian traditions that are rare, unique, and creative. You will experience this from their bride’s traditional wear to the wedding ceremony. Even though it might differ based on weddings, the factors like holy thread, toe ring, etc., are some of the parts of these rituals. 

Following some beliefs and traditions, you will also experience restrictions at some Indian weddings. One of the examples is based on certain beliefs; people don’t wear black, mostly in marriages, considering it unlucky. Even though wearing sarees is not essential, people tend to dress modestly, including in ethnic wear that matches the wedding. 

Traditional Outfits

The outfits of both bride and groom depend upon their religion and traditions.  For example, Hindus mostly choose outfits like sarees, lehengas, etc. Whereas Christian brides follow white gowns and sarees. So it’s evident that tradition influences not only the events but also the outfits and makeup looks of the couple. 

Events

Some Indian weddings might last for three to five days, including events like the Mehendi event, the sangeet ceremony, the Haldi event, and more. So you will see differences in people’s attire based on the event. Let’s have a look at some of these events and their importance. 

Haldi

You might have heard about Holi, one of the famous Indian festivals. Haldi is a bit similar to it. This ceremony only includes family and close friends of the bride and the groom. The elders of the couples prepare Haldi with turmeric and apply it to the groom and the bride, following some rituals and traditions. The event is conducted separately in both the bride’s and the groom’s houses. Considering the event, the bride and her family, including all the people invited, tend to dress up in yellow shades.

Mehandi Event  

It’s apparent that you know about Mehendi (henna). The event is conducted in the bride’s house, where they invite their close family members and friends to decorate and apply henna to the hands and feet of the bride. Mostly this event takes place on the second day of the wedding event. Even though it is considered one of the north Indian events, now Indians from different parts of and outside India celebrate this event. 

Ceremony

The central part of the wedding is when the groom joins hands with the bride’s family. As the rituals and traditions continue, the bride and groom exchange garlands. You will see various traditions during this event, like Kanya Daan (the bride’s parents give her way to the groom), Satapadi (here the groom leads the bride and take rounds and perform rituals around a small fire)

Reception

Reception is a party mode after all the rituals and traditions of the wedding. Here the bride and groom chill and relax. Food, dance and music are the main factors of this event. Her relatives, friends and all the crowd invited to the wedding visit the couples and share their wishes. 

Event Planners

To make the wedding go as expected and planned, people seek the help of event planners. Event planners make your work easier by handling every part of the wedding. Their services will be based on the budget. Most wedding planners take care of the whole wedding, from the decorations to the bride and groom’s makeup styles. 

Appointing event planners not only makes you stress-free but also helps in conducting the above-mentioned event in a more interactive and entertaining manner. You will see different themes and decors based on the upcoming trends making the moments more memorable. 

Photography 

Since a wedding is a precious part of life, people always want to record every moment. So, photography plays an exceptional role in weddings. You will see photographers at every nook and cranny of the wedding, capturing the best clicks. Photography also has a role in choosing the wedding destinations that can be a perfect photoshoot place.

But one thing to remember is while performing some rituals, people don’t allow photographers to click pictures to avoid distractions. So, knowing when to click the photos while attending a wedding is essential. 

As per the current trends, wedding photography includes pre-wedding shoots, post-wedding shoots, and capturing all other events. People look for the best photographers capable of turning their marriages into the best captures to fulfill these needs. 

Wedding Feast 

Have you ever tried Indian cuisine? If not, then weddings are the best time to start. Mostly, you will see buffet food service at Indian weddings with multiple stations. It will have all the traditional foods, sweets, and many more. Since there are a lot of varieties in Indian food, you can have spicy food that is both vegetarian and non-vegetarian, etc. 

Some everyday items will be there at all Indian weddings, like rice dishes, plain bread, or simple vegetable dishes, to satisfy guests who are particular about the food they choose. There will be chefs who will help you choose the suitable dish per your needs. With this many varieties of dishes, it’s sure that Indian weddings will satisfy your appetite with endless food. 

Gift Ideas 

The wedding gifts are taken to the couple’s home. Some people think of giving gifts to the bride and groom’s interests. Other than this, some of them consider money a traditional gift. Since it is helpful, cash gifts are expected at Indian weddings. 

Final Takeaway 

Being a first-time visitor to Indian weddings, you will be more excited to experience the culture, rituals, etc. Some people might be more interested in experiencing a perfect Indian wedding in Canada.

You will find joy in colours, experience the best delicacy, and many more. Since you have read the things to know before attending an Indian wedding. Get ready for it. 

Author Bio

I am Krishna Kheshav who is a creative writer in Raj Photography. From my perspective, blissful moments are always connected with emotions and happiness, which we always wish to happen again. So, here I present our team with a vision of capturing realistic and natural moments. We don’t believe in making memories in a made-up setup like studios.