What a celebration!  I don’t even know where to begin.

Roshni and Samir’s wedding was magical and everything they wanted and more!  They were honestly glowing the entire time!

I’ve been thinking about this recap for a few days now, and I really don’t know how to put into words how much fun we all had.  Every minute of every event was so full of love and happiness.  Personally, I loved hanging out with Roshni and her family a few days before the main events started, reuniting with all of our friends, spending time with my parents and sister, seeing Roshni and Samir finally get married, etc.

Instead of writing a play by play about everything, I thought I would share some of my favorite moments AND lots of pics!

1. As I mentioned in my previous post, I stayed with Roshni for a few days before the wedding.  The night I got to her house, her parents were hosting a pizza party.  One of their friends makes the BEST pizza (homemade crust and all).  Basically, their kitchen area morphed into a pizza parlor.  It was awesome.  We ate outside on their beautiful deck and enjoyed several pieces each while talking about how excited we were for the days to come.

Later that night, we hung out in the basement and told our favorite Roshni stories!  Before going to bed, we helped Roshni’s mom decorate the house for the next day.

2. Roshni’s pithi ceremony was special because it was the first official wedding event.  The pithi is a religious event where multiple prayers are said, and the bride is covered in a turmeric paste to purify her before the wedding.  I still remember my own pithi ceremony and how real everything felt in those moments.  I had that same feeling watching Roshni go through it all!

3. I gave Roshni and Samir one of their wedding gifts on Wednesday night because I wanted them to look through it before all the craziness started.  I used the site Mixbook to organize a memory/photo book for them.  Then their family and close friends created unique pages with pictures and messages for Rosh and Samir.  From the expressions on their faces as they flipped through and read the messages , I knew they loved it.  I am so thankful to everyone who contributed!

4. Thursday night was the mehndhi/henna party at Roshni’s parents house.  And by party, I mean party!  There was so much delicious food, including paneer tikka masala and Bombay sandwiches.  And don’t even get me started on the dessert!  There was also an open bar and great music.  I think my favorite part was watching Rosh get her mehndhi done.  Personally, I love mehndhi and how it takes everything to a new level, especially for the bride!

5. Friday morning things changed a little for me.  I woke up, said hi to my friend Ankita, and realized that I lost my voice overnight…pretty much completely.  I sort of freaked out because not only was I MCing the Sangeet later that night, but I was also playing Roshni in the skit we put together.  AND I was giving a speech on Saturday night.  Ankita and I stopped at a Walgreens on our way to the hotel and picked up a few things to treat whatever it was I had.  Luckily, I was ok that night…I think everyone understood what I was saying.

But things got worse on Saturday and I went from having a very scratchy sounding voice to nonexistent one.  My sister actually delivered my speech for me as I stood next to her.  I was VERY upset that I couldn’t do it myself but having Aekta do it actually worked out just fine.  She did an excellent job being my voice that night!  In fact, lots of people said she sounded just like me!

6. The Sangeet (a music/dance party for both the bride and groom’s side to celebrate the upcoming wedding) on Friday was an absolute blast!  Vishnu and I successfully (or at least I think so!) MCed the program.  We also pulled off two really fun dances.  One of which can be found here!  The whole night was just awesome.  Even though I only got four good hours of sleep, it was well worth it!

7. On Saturday, all of the bridesmaids got their hair done and their saris put on together.  Everyone was so excited and looked so beautiful!  Roshni picked out gorgeous blue saris for us to wear.  A little bit later, Roshni joined us as we waited for the ceremony to begin.  I know I’m biased, but she was the most beautiful bride ever!  She looked SO relaxed and happy!

We even got to witness Roshni and Samir’s first look!  Look at how big his smile is – the sweetest thing ever!

The bridesmaids also took turns going down to watch the baraat (the groom’s welcome procession).  Samir and his groomsmen (including Vishnu) were having a blast dancing!  They then got on a pedal trolley and made their way around the hotel all while dancing and screaming.  It was awesome.  I also happened to catch their boomsmen (what they called themselves!) song!

Then came time to walk down the aisle.  I was a little nervous about tripping but it all worked out!  Haha.  I teared up while watching Rosh walk down the aisle with her uncles.  Again, she looked SO happy and just really really ready to get married!  She took everyone’s breath away!

8. After the wedding, we relaxed a little and then got ready for the reception.  It was such a blast!  We also did one more organized dance as a group.  This was actually the first time Vishnu and I performed a dance together (he’s not really into dancing the way I am!).  And then after dinner and the most amazing wedding cake ever (chocolate cake with caramel cream and chocolate ganache!), we literally danced for three hours nonstop!

9. This isn’t particular to any one day, but it was so fun watching Roshni get ready for each event.  Her excitement was contagious, and she looked absolutely stunning.  And equally as fun was helping her after each event.  So many bobby pins and safety pins!  The night before the wedding I literally tucked her in and made sure she went to sleep so that she could wake up at 4 am to get ready!

10. And finally, the best part of all is knowing that two of my very best friends are finally married!  Roshni and Samir are incredible human beings that deserve all the happiness in the world.  Can’t wait to see where their love takes them next!