Who Runs the World? Girls! - From Planning to Slaying a Picture Perfect Wedding Where the Bride Tribe Did It All

Image Courtesy: The White Box

We're the 90's kids. We grew up listening to the stories of the damsel in distress being rescued by her prince charming. A somewhat similar scenario played out at the weddings we attended as children, where the shy, demure bride waited for her prince to swoop in on a horse and take her away to her new life.

But. We ARE THE 90's KIDS! When have we stuck to the status quo? Like everything else that we put our minds to, weddings too will be done in our own way. Shy Bride, Who that???? Today we have a mesmerising story of a true blue Indian millennial wedding, where the bride and the groom were in it, Together - every step of the way.

Not just that. Even the arrangements were done in a way that was more than Hatke! Ladies and gentlemen, let us take you to the world of a very special wedding - conceptualised, visualised and materialised by an all-women Crew.

1. Where it all started

Image Courtesy: The White Box

Introducing our BRIDECHILLA - Shreshi and her forever after - Rohit. The two met in college and have been inseparable ever since. So much so that for the longest time the thought of an official marriage didn't even cross them because they already felt as if they've been married for a long time, 9 years to be precise.

2. The proposal

Image Courtesy: The White Box

In September of 2018, they took a fateful trip to Vietnam that proved to be the catalyst for this story. enjoying their coffees and the country, the topic came to be that of marriage and they thought, maybe, it won't be such a bad idea to officiate things after all. With that in mind, they made up their minds for a simple court marriage with their close friends and family as the only witness. (Or so they Thought!).

3. Florist? Venue? So much planning 

Image Courtesy: The White Box

And we are not exaggerating! They came back on the 17th of September and broke the news to their families (who had been eagerly waiting for something of the sorts for ages now!)

And, we all know how Ghar Ki Shaadi works and you can never have enough functions or the followed Naach Gaana! 

And just like that, in 0.6 seconds the hopes of having a court marriage gave way to a full blown 2-day event - complete with a variety of Marathi (Rohit's family) and Bihari (Shreshi's family) customs.

And yet, they didn't give up entirely on their dream of having a wedding that was uniquely their own. According to Shreshi, "We wanted a wedding that truly represents who we are and what all we stand for!" And so they had their own version of the big fat Indian wedding, right in their backyard, with even the wedding outfits designed by the bride herself.

4. Beauty with Brains! That's her

Image Courtesy: The White Box

Talking about the mastermind behind this supremely gorgeous wedding, we really don't have enough words to describe her awesomeness - Shreshi Singh. A writer and spoken word artist, Shreshi had been working with the NGO Pratham Education Foundation before moving to New York post marriage.

As such, it was very clear to her what are the things she wanted and didn't for her special day. For instance, she had discussed not having the ritual of Kanyadaan because her late father is no longer here to give her away. When the Pandit ji insisted on having it done, she straight up refused to have an ad-hoc ceremony, right there at the Mandap.

That's not all that makes us think that she is legit #BrideGoals. In November, with just one month left for her wedding, she was at a Yoga training camp, aiming for tranquillity instead of stressing about the zillion arrangements. And she came back from the camp, cool as a cucumber, and had the most kickass wedding by 22nd December. Talk about #DoingItRight.

5. Bringing some Lindy Hop in life

Image Courtesy: The White Box

So how do you make arrangements for an uber cool wedding without stressing yourself about it? You DANCE through it! Confused? So were we, before Shreshi told us this super cute and romantic anecdote of theirs.

One of the favourite hangouts of our Mumbaikar Couple is Cafe Zoe in Lower Parel. Which, amongst other things is known for their Lindy Hop Nights. A dance form that Shreshi and Rohit loved. So naturally, it had to be a part of their wedding. The Bride and Groom-to-be learnt it from the Choreographer at Zoe, Chetanya who gave them private lessons for their first dance.

But that wasn't it, on the night of their Mehndi, nearly 50 of their close friends learnt the Lindy Hop (Overnight) and joined the bride and groom on the floor on their Cocktail evening, shortly before breaking into the all-time favourite Kaala Chashma!

But the highlight of the evening was definitely Rohit, the 'Outright finance guy', (Shreshi's words, not ours) singing a very special song he wrote for her. Talk about 'madly in love'.

6. From photographer to decorator - the bride tribe did it all, y'all!

Image Courtesy: The White Box

Coming back to the pre-wedding jitters, 18th December, exactly 4 days before the wedding - the reality of the enormity of the situation really hit her. At around 9:30 p.m Shreshi realised, that she hadn't even finalised her makeup artist. A quick call to Ritika Vats and a quicker night ride later she was at the latter's place, where the two quickly finalised the wedding look and more.

Not just the hair and makeup, Shreshi wanted all the arrangements for her wedding to be overlooked by women, and she found most of them in her own Bride Tribe. The wedding decor was headed by her best friend, Ektaa Mohinani of Deluxe Decorators. And with Jituli Punjabi from The White Box as her photographer and videographer, the triad was complete, and our bride couldn't be happier by what these amazing ladies have pulled off - A.K.A the wedding of her dreams.

7. Recreating traditions and rituals

Image Courtesy: The White Box

For Shreshi, the idea of Kanyadaan, which literally translates to 'Donate your Daughter' seemed extremely absurd right from the time when she was a young girl. the idea of girls being 'donated' never made sense, and she could never get a satisfactory answer to that question. But she decided to take a stand on it when her father passed away. She decided never to have this ceremony performed at her wedding. 

In her words, "This decision, I think came from the place of my hatred for society's perspective towards a fatherless daughter. First, they pity you saying things like" Bechaari Ladki, who will find a groom for her?" Can you smell patriarchy? Then they expect you to come and request them to perform these ceremonies that apparently can only be performed by a married couple? Why? What about the girls whose fathers are not with them when they get married? Why can't the mother do it then? Why must they have to go ask some relative whose marriage is well intact to do it for them? It doesn't make sense to me. So, it wasn't happening at my wedding. "

Even though they had instructed the Pandit Ji to not ask for it, he did but Shreshi refused to which his reply was, "What a funky bride, doesn't listen to anybody, I have never seen a bride like her" and a gleeful smile was all the response she gave him.

This was hands down one of the most fun, a progressive and unique wedding we've seen in a while. Not only did Shreshi and Rohit have a traditional wedding, as per the wishes of their families, they also managed to add very unique and personal touches to their nuptials which made it stand apart from the rest.

The biggest takeaway from the whole ceremony was the amalgamation of new and old, love marriage and traditional setup, and how it was an eye-opener for all the guests as well. BEYONCE WOULD BE PROUD!!

Know of more couples who are bringing their own version of the traditional Indian wedding to the fore? Tag them in the comments!