Amita Rasa, Bangalore: An Exquisite Wedding Among the Hills

When Cupid pulls the strings, everything falls into place—and that's exactly what happened with Akshaan and Sanithra. Their wedding was a blend of Punjabi, Malayalam, and Telugu rituals to celebrate their roots. The wedding extravaganza took place over three days.  

This lovely couple decided to take their vows at Amita Rasa, a breath-taking venue nestled in the lap of nature. Tucked in a valley on the slopes of the Nandi Hills, the picturesque venue matched the unbridled enthusiasm of the couple on their special day.

But what caught our attention was the open setting of the venue, encircled by green hills. Add to that a spectacular floral décor that matched the scenery as well as the outfits of the couple, and we were thrilled to capture this riot of colours and beauty with our camera!   

Click here for a list of Bangalore’s best wedding venues.

The Wedding: A Celebration of Rituals and Traditions

On their big day, Akshaan and Sanithra looked picture-perfect in their wedding attires.

Dressed in a gorgeous golden traditional saree and an intricately designed matching blouse, the bride looked ethereal. A pastel pink chunni and gold ornaments served as the perfect finishing touches for her bridal look. We were elated to capture her in different stages as she got ready for her special day.   On his part, the groom complemented her by donning an off-white and golden mundu set. The groom's father helped him in getting ready for the wedding.

The groom arrived in an open car and the baraat was a fun-filled affair. He was dancing to the beats of the dhol that accompanied his marriage party. Giving him company were his family and friends, who joined in the revelry with equal enthusiasm. It was a sight to behold, with the groom's friends wearing mundu sets and dancing to the dhol beats. The highlight of the baraat was the groom's enthusiastic grandmother dancing and enjoying herself.

As is the tradition in South India, the groom made his entry to the venue accompanied by the boisterous and lilting sounds of the chenda and nadaswaram. The beaming bride entered with her friends holding the thalapoli.    

The main wedding venue was decked up with floral garlands that hung down from the ceiling. The sindoor daan and the tying of the Mangalsutra were among the major rituals that marked the wedding. Surrounded by friends and family, the couple took their vows. When it was time for the talambralu ritual, everyone had great fun—It involved the couple throwing rice at each other. After the wedding was over, the couple's friends showered them in flowers to mark the happy moment.

In the midst of everything, we made sure that all these precious moments were captured on our camera. We engaged the couple for a quick couple shoot. Making ample use of the beautiful venue and the amazing décor elements, we came up with some stunning shots.           

The Sangeet: An Extravaganza of Fun and Dancing

For their Sangeet, the couple decided on Radisson Blu, Atria as the venue. The bride decked up in a fiery red outfit and dazzled with a bright smile. The groom looked stylish in his resplendent peacock green outfit.

Joined by family and friends for the event, they had a lot of fun. Several dance performances marked the evening. The couple joined in the revelry with full enthusiasm. As everyone partied the night away, we were delighted to make the most of the event with a mix of colourful and monochrome shots.

The Friends Party: A Special Event

The Destiny Farms in Ooty played the host for this special event. This hilly venue was perfect for aerial or drone photography. The beautiful sunset added to the mesmerising vibe of the place. We didn't miss the chance to do a couple shoot before the event, with the sunset serving as a spellbinding background.

Since it was a black-tie event, all the friends were dressed in black. They performed a special skit for the couple. A lot of dancing followed, along with karaoke. The atmosphere came alive with the ensuing fun and craziness. It was an exciting experience for us to capture all the special moments at this unique event.  We wrapped up the shoot for this wedding after having captured countless memories for the couple to cherish forever.

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Rina's Venue, Chennai: An Intimate Tamil Wedding

On a day with the most perfect weather for an outdoor wedding, we entered an amazingly serene escape inside the city of Chennai to shoot a lovely wedding. The wedding venue was a quaint location, a vintage style south-Indian bungalow known as Rina’s Venue, complete with a court-yard surrounded by the trademark wooden-pillars and ornately engraved antique archways. This venue is in Sholinganallur off ECR Road.

The warm glow from the sacred fire set in the centre of the courtyard coupled with the vivid yellow from the garlands of Marigold, added such a charm to the festivities of Shruthi & Chandru’s traditional Tamil wedding . Shruthi was draped in a sari which was resplendent green, completely in contrast to the dark red ochre of the henna on her hands. Chandru was in a white dhoti and ivory turban as is completely customary.

What was memorable from this day was the endearing smile on the his face as the clock ticked closer to the moment he would set his eyes on Shruthi and the striking smiles of both the bride and the groom while they went through every ritual while the relatives and friends showered their blessings.

The walls adorned with intricate wood work with mirrors and  Raja Ravi Varma’s beautiful oil paintings screamed elegance and made for such stunning background for all the pictures.

This wedding was every bit as simple, traditional and beautiful as it sounds. We have had our fair share of shooting weddings set in palaces and other exotic locations but the charm of rustic venues never ceases to amaze us, for, there is a special kind of joy in simplicity.

A Traditional Tambrahm Wedding, Bangalore

Sunitha and Sripath's Tamil Brahmin wedding at Tamarind Tree, Bangalore was an intimate affair, which was fun and informal and yet included all traditional ceremonies.

Tamarind Tree, Bangalore, with its huge trees and stone steps, provided the ideal traditional venue for the ceremony offering a rich visual treat to us as photographers. The décor was also traditional Indian, with a touch of the western aesthetic; the mandap, entryway with the name board, and the seating area were all done up with flower garlands in reds, yellows, and oranges. Brass vessels filled with flowers adorned the stone steps, while marigolds strung in jasmine hung from the tree branches, adding dashes of colour to the monsoon wedding.

Click here for our complete Tambrahm Wedding Guide or our complete Tamarind Tree Bangalore Wedding Guide.

Dressed in kanjeevaram with jasmine on her hair, Sunitha had minimal jewellery on and looked every bit an elegant South Indian bride as she stepped into the venue amidst a mild drizzle. The red of the flowers and the lush greenery in the backdrop seemed to complement the bride's attire. Sripath made his entry in a traditional dhoti tied around his waist, amidst a flurry of guests in multi-coloured kanjeevarams, typical to a Tam Brahm wedding.

Tamil Brahmin weddings have a series of unique and fun rituals, many of which lighten the air and help bring the two families together. One of such is the Kasi Yatra, where the groom leaves the worldly life and take off to Kasi just before entering the mandap. Wearing a pair of traditional slippers and holding a stick, he walks out, and then coaxed by relatives, he returns, and the ceremonies resume. When Sripath started for Kasi Yatra, Sunitha's father and family convinced him not to go for sanyas and offered his daughter in marriage. 

Following the Kasi Yatra, Sunitha and Sripath exchanged garlands, lifted up by their relatives amidst nadaswaram music and cheering. The bride and groom then sat on the beautifully decorated Oonjal or swing, where they were blessed by elders and given sweetened drinks and bananas.

The Oonjal is an indispensable part of Tam Brahm wedding, symbolising the togetherness and the life ahead. As the swing goes up and down, it indicates the ups and downs in human life and how together a couple can tide over any situation. As elders sing Oonjal songs, they also perform drishti to ward off evil eyes that had fallen on the couple, if any.  

The father of the bride washed the groom's feet. The bride's mother applied kajal in the groom's eyes as part of the ritual.  The thali or mangalsutra is tied around the bride's neck by the groom as she sits on her father's lap.

Then Sunitha's dad held her hand and offered it to Sripath. Known as Kanyadaanam, the ceremony is meant to denote that the father is handing over his daughter to the groom to be taken care of well. In the olden days, the brides used to be very young and would fit easily into their father's laps, which was probably the origin of the ceremony, but it is continued today, giving way to a lot of mirth and fun.

Sunitha changed into a gorgeous traditional nine-yard sari for the thali ceremony held at the mandap, which was indeed beautiful to watch, providing us with a multitude of click-worthy moments. The rituals concluded with the couple performing homam together.

Now that the most important ritual was over, the mood lightened, and a series of fun rituals followed. The bride and groom were made to sit on chairs facing away from each other as the guests clapped and cheered. A cake-cutting ceremony for a tiny birthday guest was also part of the agenda of the day. The entire ceremony was informal and intimate, with close family and friends in attendance, adding charm.

We finished with a couple-photoshoot of the bride and the groom, amidst love and laughter and countless memories to cherish. 

Tamarind Tree, Bangalore: A Sparkling Punjabi Telugu Wedding

And we got a chance to capture the union of the adorable couple, Jigyasa and Abhilash who tied the knot at The Tamarind Tree, a beautiful venue in Bangalore. Kanjeevarams, Marigold, jewellery, laughters and of course, the love, made the South Indian wedding functions memorable as ever! But what stole the show was the smiles on their faces!

Click here for our complete Tamarind Tree Bangalore Wedding Guide.

South Indian weddings are known to be rich in traditions and simple yet tasteful affairs. The union of college mates Jigyasa and Abhilash at the The Tamarind Tree, Bengaluru was one such dazzling event. The two became friends during their days at the Indian School of Business, Hyderabad and their friendship blossomed into a special bond. So, when the time came to tie the knot, the much in love couple decided to plan their wedding to give it a more intimate feel and their fun personalities reflected in colorful décor. The venue had a beautiful old-world charm to it evident in the beautiful antiques and contemporary pieces of art that adorned every nook and corner providing an interesting backdrop for this colorful funfiled event.

The sangeet ceremony was held at the beautiful banquet hall in the Royal Orchid Resort with minimalistic yet classy décor and the stage adorned with illuminated fairy lights added an air of warmth and romance to the atmosphere. The bride looked no less than a fairy herself in a pink chikankari lehenga made especially for her at Faaya, Banglore.

The couple danced their hearts off and no one could resist taping their feet to those groovy numbers. It was an intimate affair with just close friends and family where everyone had a gala time.

For this traditional South Indian Wedding, the décor was entirely orange marigolds and gold bells in sync with the minimalistic and sophisticated feel. The bride looked ravishing in a beautiful Kanjeevaram sari with gold and pink border which she had gotten during her trip to Kanchipuram. While the heavy gold jewelry and the customary mogra gajras completed the look, the kaleeras added a touch of funk to the otherwise simple traditional attire. She went for the dewy bridal look that’s much in trend with simple makeup and just a touch of color to the lips.