HOUSTON — Weddings are milestone events but especially for Indian families.
They are often weeklong affairs full of ceremony, family, friends, and fun.
Jeevitha and her fiancé first met over the internet thanks to the help of relatives.
She recalls, “He kept flying to Houston to meet me.”
Four years later, he traded that plane for a horse. The grooms' arrival processional, atop a horse or sometimes even an elephant, is just one of the many traditional elements of an Indian wedding.
There is the sangeet, a music-filled night of entertainment and Bollywood-style dancing. There is also a henna party where the bride and girlfriends get elaborate temporary tattoos on their arms and feet.
The bride’s mehndi often includes her groom's name.
“Basically he has to find it. It’s hidden really well.” Jeevitha said of her henna tattoo.
The wedding itself has several important ceremonies. These include circling the fire symbolizing the steps in a couple’s life and the bride receiving her mangalsutra, which is a necklace that denotes marriage, like a wedding ring.
Counting the pre and post-wedding events, the festivities can last up to 10 days.
“We'll have five to eight different events including the reception,” said wedding planner Therese Cole-Hubbs.
Cole-Hubbs, a polish girl from Cincinnati, owns Electric Karma, which does only South Asian weddings.
“I’ve done 879 Indian and Pakistani weddings. I've been doing it 30 years," said Cole-Hubbs.
She said she only does Indian and Pakistani weddings Because they are magnificent. She said the cultural emphasis on tradition, family, and extended relationships makes weddings an affair to remember.
Take for example — size.
“Usually around 350, 500 up to 1000,1500 guests. Each of the ones I've done in India was over 5,000,” she said.
The entire town is invited for what is a street festival of sorts.
“Everyone supports the couple because they have raised this child together,” said Cole-Hubbs.
That's reflected during the ceremony, where relatives have key roles and are front and center on the big day.
“It's really a merging of two families and that for Indians it’s a huge, huge thing," said Jeevitha.
Of course, that can mean a huge price tag, especially for glamorous affairs.
Cole-Hubbs estimates the price tag for 350 guests over three days of upscale events ranges from $250,000 to $300,000.
“They are saving from the day they (children) are born,” Cole-Hubbs said of the parents of the bride and groom.
To pay for big events, today the bride and groom's families often split the bill. Of course, the vast majority of weddings are much less extravagant.
Regardless of cost, traditions and family are the defining elements.
Sometimes weddings aren't just fun a love affair for the bride and groom.
“It’s a perfect opportunity to see who all is single," said Cole-Hubbs.