Chini and Varun: A Festive Indian Wedding at the Washington Duke Inn

Over the years I have been fortunate to have so many incredible clients. But, sometimes, you have couples that you just LOVE. And for me Chini and Varun were one of those couples. From the very start we had so much fun putting together their big Indian wedding!

Chini and Varun’s love story began at Duke and it was only natural to come back to where it all started. So they selected the Washington Duke Inn to host the days and days of festivities!

The highlight of it all was Saturday. The afternoon started with a traditional Baraat (procession of the groom and his family and friends). The baraat was filled with lively Indian music provided by DJ Rang‘s team and Varun rode in a the traditional white horse. At the end of the baraat Varun was ceremoniously greeted by Chini’s family and then guests moved inside for the Hindu ceremony. One thing I have learned over the years is that no Hindu wedding is the same. There are so many symbolic acts and traditions that vary from region to region. Chini was my first Indian bride to be brought in on a palanquin. A little scary for her but, so fun for the rest of us to see! The Hindu ceremony involved two priests, representing each side’s faith from different regions in India. So, it was a long but, beautiful ceremony!

After the ceremony guests had some down time to relax, make outfit changes (another thing I love about Indian weddings, the multitude of outfit changes), and came back to the ballroom for the reception. This is where Chini and Varun let the colors really pop! There were stunning gold sequin linens from CE Rentals and flowers from Tre Bella in bold colors of orange, pink, purple, and even red. At each place setting guests received a small small wooden elephant as a favor. The guests feasted on amazing food by Raaga Catering and then danced to both Indian and American music for hours until it was time for the flower petal send off!

We hope you enjoy these fabulous images from Crystal Stokes Photography and get inspired for your own big day!