Indian bride and groom's photo at wedding reception

19 groomsmen and 8 bridesmaids!

Riddhi and Amish
Bride and Groom: Gujarati Hindu
Wedding and Reception: Hummingbird Nest Ranch
Photography and Videography: Lin and Jirsa Photography

Bride and groom at their garba at their Indian wedding
Amish and Riddhi's Indian wedding reception first dance
Riddhi worked with a designer in India and had her clothes made in Mumbai.
Indian bride wearing bridal lehenga and groom wearing sherwani for their Hindu, Indian wedding.
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Our whole wedding day was outdoors.
At Hummingbird Nest Ranch, you’re literally given a very large plot of land and the rest is an open canvas for you to customize however you’d like. There’s a beautiful villa on the property. The outside of it can be used for taking photos.

Indian wedding at outdoor venue Hummingbird Nest Ranch.
This venue is popular amongst South Asians. Check out Riddhi and Amish’s names lit on the building, setup by Amit Kotecha of 3D Sounds.

We had our wedding at the front of the property, in front of the villa and the reception in the back, in the Grand Prix Lawn.

Hindi, Indian Gujarati wedding ceremony
Tented Indian wedding reception at Hummingbird Nest Ranch.
We tented the space and focused on decorating it.

Was there a shut down time at Hummingbird?
Luckily since they’re pretty isolated, there’s no shut down time. Every single person was on the dance floor having an incredible time. When our DJ, Amit from 3D Sounds made the last song call, everyone chanted, “10 more songs!”… and he obliged.

Indian, Gujarati wedding reception
It was a gorgeous summer night and our DJ, Amit Kotecha rocked the dance floor!
Indian groom dancing the night away at his wedding reception.
Everyone was dancing and enjoying the night!

Can you share some of the wedding logistics?
I’m not from LA and neither were most of my side’s guests. We established a “home base” at a Radisson Hotel near Hummingbird. All of my pre-ceremony functions – mehndi, pooja, and pithi were held there. We utilized their restaurant, and other spaces, throughout the week and occupied about 60 rooms for several nights.

Haldi or pithi ceremony as it's called in Gujarati ceremony for the bride
Riddhi’s pithi, pooja, and mehndi were at a Radisson Hotel near Hummingbird Nest Ranch.Indian bride with her bridesmaids at the pithi of her Indian, Gujarati, Hindu wedding
Indian bride doing pooja before her Gujarati, Indian, Hindu wedding ceremony
Pooja thali for the Grihshanti pooja the day before a Gujarati Hindu wedding ceremony
The pithi and pooja were back-to-back on the same day.

Amish grew up in LA so his guests were mostly local. My mehndi was done during the day on Wednesday, in time for our side’s mehndi party on Thursday night. Amish’s mehndi party was Wednesday night, so my bridesmaids and I went for a little while. Even though my hands weren’t completely dry yet, I went and had a lot of fun as it was my first event with Amish and his side.

Mehndi night a couple nights before the Gujarati, Hindu wedding ceremony
Riddhi and Amish on Thursday night for his side’s mehndi celebration.
Indian bride and groom at the mehndi party. The bride's mehndi is still drying.
Riddhi’s hands were still drying when her bridesmaids picked her up to take her to Amish’s mehndi party.
Antakshri played by uncles and aunties at the groom's family's mehndi party a few days before their Indian wedding
Uncles and Aunties having a grand time playing antakshari at Amish’s mehndi party.
Indian uncles performing a qawwali song at the mehndi night of this Gujaati, Hindu, Indian wedding
Uncles getting their qawwali on wearing the taqiyah hats!

Garba
Our garba was at the Calabasas Community Center. They do a fair number of South Asian wedding events – especially garbas and it was convenient for everyone to get there. We loved our decor that night. We wanted a pretty traditional look and Sacheen’s Decor and Events is pretty well known for that.

Garba for a Gujarati Hindu wedding
Amish and Riddhi wanted traditional garba decor. The Calabasas Community Center is perfect for garbas as it’s spacious and has high ceilings.
Dandiya brought from India for the garba raas for this Gujarati, Indian, Hindu wedding ceremony
These beautiful dandiya were generously made by a close friend as a gift to us.

Tell us about your clothes.
Since I work in the fashion industry clothes were pretty important to me. I worked for Manish Malholtra for two years in Mumbai and still have friends there, so they helped me during my 6 week trip prior to my wedding. Everything was custom made from scratch for my garba, wedding and reception as well as Amish’s wedding sherwani. I wanted our ceremony outfits to coordinate so I took care of that.

The bride's garba chaniya choli worn at the garba function the day before her Gujarati Indian, Hindu wedding
Riddhi designed her clothes with the help of her fellow designer-friends in Mumbai. Love the detail on her sleeves and the blue band at the bottom of the blouse for her garba. Perfect pose Riddhi! =)
back of the bride's choli at her garba raas function
Beautiful design of the back of Riddhi’s choli as well her matching gold hair jewelry.
The Indian bride, dulhan, wearing her wedding lehenga. Gujarati brides often wear a mix of red and white for their Hindu wedding.
Riddhi looks stunning in her wedding lehenga with detailed embroidery.
The Indian bride and groom wearing their lehenga and sherani before their Gujarati, Indian, Hindu wedding ceremony.
Riddhi designed Amish’s sherwani for the ceremony so it would match her lehenga.
Indian Gujarati grom posing for a shot before his baraat and Indian, Gujarati Hindu wedding ceremony
Bride in her wedding reception gown made in Mumbai
Riddhi, with the help of her fellow designer friends, also designed this delicate, intricately embroidered, gown for her wedding reception.
Indian bride and her husband speaking at their wedding reception.
She spent 6 weeks in India, designing clothes and wedding shopping. The colors for the reception were purple and gold.
Indian groom wearing purple socks


Bridal Party Clothes
The most work was my bridesmaids outfits which were also custom made. I did everything myself from selecting the tailor, to selecting fabrics, trims, and embroidery. It was definitely a process especially since I got them lehengas for the ceremony and gowns for the reception.

Indian bride with her bridesmaids wearing lehega designed and made by the bride in Mumbai.
The bridesmaids wore lehengas designed by Riddhi. Beautiful how the colors contrast with her lehenga and match the decor for the ceremony.
Bridesmaid and groomsmen at this Gujarati, Indian wedding reception at Hummingbird Nest Ranch.
The groomsmen wore varying necktie styles. Amish asked each of them to select their preferred style.

The ceremony lehengas were identical and the reception gowns were different shades of purple which corresponded to the
19 (yes I said 19) groomsmens’ neck ties. There were 8 bridesmaids so one of our biggest challenges was the entrances for the ceremony and reception! We ended up pairing each bridesmaid with two groomsmen and three remaining groomsmen entered together.

Bridesmaids wearing purple gowns at an Indian wedding reception.

Indian groom posing for a photo with his 19 groomsmen wearing kurtas and dupattas. The groom is wearing a sherwani.

19 groomsmen?
Amish has this amazing ability to keep in touch and stay close to his friends. All 19 of them are people he speaks to pretty regularly.

How did you bring all of these clothes back from India?
I brought back two of my outfits with me. My mom and dad went to India and my grandmother came from India as well – so among those additional 6 suitcases, we got everything. My MIL also went to India and took care of Amish’s garba outfit and the groomsmens kurtas.

lehenga for an Indian wedding
Notice the hanger. It says Mrs. Tolia! So cute!
sherwani for Indian groom for his Indian wedding

What was your wedding day schedule?
We did a back-to-back day with the baraat>ceremony>cocktail>reception. I got ready at Hummingbird the day of the wedding. Unfortunately there was an accident on the freeway so it took 45 minutes to get there, when normally it should only take 15 minutes.

We didn’t have time buffer built in the schedule so while our timings didn’t get offset we ended up not being able to take all the photos we wanted. Lesson learned to future brides, build some time buffer into your wedding day to easily absorb unexpected circumstances.

Indian bride getting ready for her Hindu wedding ceremony. Lulu from Dolled Up By Lulu is getting her ready.
Riddhi getting ready with Lulu from Dolled Up By Lulu.
Indian bride giving gifts to her bridesmaids before her Indian, Gujarati, Hindu wedding
Riddhi distributing gifts to her bridesmaids, the morning of the wedding.
Bridesmaids gifts distributed before the wedding ceremony.
Indian bride with her bridesmaids before the Gujarati, Hindu, Indian wedding
Indian bride ready for her Indian wedding


Indian bride wearing her lehenga going to meet her groom wearing his sherwani, for the first look before the ceremony started.
Amish patiently waited while I got ready and we did our first look before the ceremony started.
Indian bride and groom wearing their lehenga and sherwani. The groom seeing his bride for the first time ready for their wedding ceremony.
Amish twirling his bride Riddhi before their Indian Hindu wedding ceremony.
Adorable shot of Amish twirling Riddhi during their first look photo shoot.
Baraat at Indian Gujarati wedding
Indian Gujarati groom dancing at his baraat.
Indian Gujarati groom riding in a McLaren for his wedding baraat.
guests dancing at the baraat at Gujarati Indian wedding

The baraat started at the front of Hummingbird. A little over half of our guests were from his side so he had a big baraat. He came in on a Mclaren.

What were your wedding day priorities?

Food, rentals and music, in no particular order. Food and music make or break the experience for your guests and rentals  as Hummingbird is just a space – it was important to decorate to create the atmosphere we wanted. The venue is so beautiful. You don’t have to do much but still it’s one of those places where you have to bring in everything – from electricity to water.

Indian wedding ceremony setup with a rent canopy.
It was a hot day so Riddhi and Amish wanted to ensure that their guests were comfortable.
Inside of the tent mandap area for the Hindu Indian wedding ceremony.
Indian wedding ceremony decor with red theme
Indian bride walking down the aisle for her Indian, Hindu, wedding ceremony.
Indian groom wearing his sherwani watching his Indian bride wearing her lehenga, walk towards him for their India, Hindu, wedding ceremony.
3D Sounds handled all of the lighting for their outdoor wedding reception in a tent.

All of our rentals were from Bridal & Event Lounge. We worked with Atrina before the wedding and Danielle handled our day-of coordination. They were amazing. They came through with everything we had envisioned and wanted. They were a very important part of our wedding because we depended on them for so much. They provided all of the tables, chairs and decor for the wedding and reception.


What was going through your mind while you were walking down the aisle?
I was looking at Amish and smiling the whole way down the aisle and thinking, “don’t fall”.

We didn’t have an antarpat so I could see him looking at me as well.

What did you do for lighting?

Amit from 3D Sounds handled all of our lighting. During the day, Hummingbird doesn’t need any lights, so it was just for the evening that we needed to consider. We put a tent up and Amit from 3D Sounds placed lighting to complement the lights already at the property.

Hummingbird Nest Ranch at night shot by Lin and Jirsa for Indian wedding reception.
The perimeter of Hummingbird Nest Ranch is already very well lit so we didn’t have to worry about that.
Gobo arranged by Amit Kotecha at #D Sounds for Indian wedding reception.
Indian bride and groom's photo at wedding reception
champage chilling at the bride and groom's table at Indian wedding reception


Who did most of the planning?
We both did. Amish was very involved during the last four months in particular,  as I started a new job. He literally did everything during those last few months.

One of the great things about Hummingbird is their flexibility. You order all of the beverages and have it delivered directly to the venue; and can bring in any caterer you’d like. Give yourself time to figure out the correct amount of beverages to order. 

Did you use chiavari chairs for the wedding and reception?
Yes, but we couldn’t use the same set of chairs. We had to rent two sets. The way Hummingbird is setup, moving the chairs from the ceremony area to the tent for the reception would have been totally visible to our guests, and we didn’t want that.

gold chiavari chairs at Indian wedding reception
We brought in two sets of gold chiavari chairs – one set for the ceremony and another for the reception.
Indian wedding cocktail hour outdoors.
Guests enjoying the outdoor cocktail hour.

Wedding planning advice from the bride

  1. Build room in the schedules for uncontrollable situations.
  2. Give everyone in your wedding party schedules so they know where they need to be at each time.
  3. Have someone who’s responsible for keeping everything on time.
  4. Think from the perspective of a guest and what would make you comfortable if you were a guest. If it’s going to be hot, make accommodations to shade the ceremony area, provide beverages.

Wedding Professionals Team

Desserts at Indian wedding reception.

Cake/dessert: We didn’t have a cake. A friend of mine Chenin Aglipay is a caterer, Chenin Kei Desserts. She did our dessert table with chocolate chip cookies, chocolate covered strawberries, and 3 types of truffles flavored with our favorite candy bars, brownies, and more.

Caterer:
Manohar’s Delhi Palace to this day people tell us how good the food was. We didn’t even talk to any other caterers. We knew we wanted them.

Catering services: Ramon’s Staffing; he’s very well known and does a lot of South Asian weddings in Southern California. They really know how to work with the size, the long day and multiple events. They were great. They set up everything from water stations to tray passed hors d’oeuvres and replenishing dinner items. They were important for our guest’s comfort and made the day flow smoothly.

gold charger plates and purple napkins at Indian wedding reception
Indian wedding reception place setting
Indian bride and groom dancing under the stars at their Indian wedding reception.
Our first dance was to, “Lay me Down” by Sam Smith and John Legend.
Groom's mehndi function setup and ready for the guests to arrive with traditional Indian wedding decor.
traditional Indian wedding decor at home

Decor:  Garba and other pre-wedding events: Sacheen’s Decor & Events, is very good at traditional Indian decor. She did a great job! She was so good at creating a grand look.


DJ and Lighting:
Amit from 3D Sounds 
Many of our friends and family recommended him and they were right. We liked working with him. He was very attentive and it was easy to explain what we wanted – he just got it.

Indian bride in her wedding lehenga with her bridesmaids wearing lehengas before the Indian Gujarati HIndu wedding.

Hair and Makeup: Dolled up by Lulu; she was very patient and upbeat despite the time delay.
She brought a team to get the bridesmaids ready as well.

Indian bride mehndi for her Indian Hindu wedding ceremony

Mehndi: Beauty by Rachana.

Panditji:
Sarla Rajyagor, she had done my cousin’s wedding. She spoke in English and she was flexible to tweak the program for how we wanted.

Planner:
Atrina and Danielle from Bridal & Event Lounge. They did our wedding day and did great work. They had a big job since we had so many rentals from them and they executed everything we wanted flawlessly.

Bridal and Event Lounge brought in all of the decor for the Indian, Hindu wedding ceremony for the mandap, chairs, florals
Table decor at Indian wedding reception
Bridal and Event Lounge owns a lot of decor inventory. That gave us peace of mind and and is a major advantage of working with them.
Indian bride posing with her lehenga for her Hindu Indian wedding ceremony.

Photography and videography: Matt Saville from Lin and Jirsa. Lin and Jirsa shot our mehndi, garba, wedding and reception. We love our photos! And having the drone was really worth it.

Indian bride wearing a robe with her new last name.


Indian bride and groom posing for a photo with their groomsmen.

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10 thoughts on “19 groomsmen and 8 bridesmaids!

  1. I’m in love with the wedding lengha!!!! Is there anyway to get in contact with her? I’ve been looking for a gujarati style lengha for my wedding. Someone please help! My wedding is in March 18, 2018. The lengha is what I’ve been dreaming of to be but changing the blouse and dupatta. – Pri

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