Almost two weeks ago I was lucky to take part in the cultural traditions of a set of my clients that literally stopped traffic. You may have seen on the news or read in DCist. You may have even been one of the onlookers lining Connecticut Ave. and DeSale Street at Rush hour. Neil and Shilpi, a lovey couple I have been working with since the fall, began to wrap up their week of celebrations with the ceremony uniting them in marriage at the Mayflower Hotel on Friday May 1st.
The celebration began with the grooms family and friends parading down the street at 5pm on Friday afternoon, singing and dancing while the groom follows on elephant, or horseback when an elephant is not available. We of course, had both. (Hence the actual "zoo" at rush hour) For us, this celebration lasted about an hour, as we were lucky the rain decided to hold off a bit. At the end of the parade, the groom is received by the bride's mother and is then escorted into the mandap, the four poled canopy the ceremony takes place under. For this event, Neil was received and welcomed by Shilpi's mother and then he and the guests went into a cocktail hour before the ceremony. A dinner and celebration followed the ceremony at the Mayflower Hotel on Friday evening.
The festivities didn't stop there as the couple who had been together since they were 14 danced the night away on Saturday at their main reception held at the National Building Museum. Guests enjoyed 2 hours worth of cocktails American style to mix and mingle with friends and family. They then proceeded into an authentic Indian dinner buffet and dancing for the rest of the evening. The setting was stunning and just what the bride and groom wanted. The black, white and red lounge the couple had in mind for the cocktail turned dessert space was a nod o the bride's love of everything Hollywood and glamorous. The red carried into the more traditional dinner and dance setting mixing with tones of purple and white.
Special thanks to all the wonderful vendors I worked with to pull this enormous event together. The families were thrilled with the end results and the bride and groom were over the moon!
Venue: National Building Museum, Chris Frame
Caterers: Occasions Caterers, Joel Wolke
Ascot Caterers, Ajay
Photography: C.B. Art Corner, Purvak
Fotobriceno, JC
Lighting: Digital Lightning, Alysha and Vince DiGiorgio
Decor: Syzygy Events, Julie Shanklin
Entertainment- Extra Hot DJs, Bobby
Sara
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