Bhavna's family is from Vadodara, Gujarat, India. These images are from her baby brother's Grah Shanti, Pithi, and Shaadi. Hindu weddings are my favourite type of wedding. They are colourful and noisy affairs involving the entire family. A marriage in India (or Pakistan) is considered as a union between the two families and not just the couple. It includes many rituals which span over several days, although in Western countries this may be spread out over several weeks. In comparison,…
I was not born or raised in the United States (USA). Like many people, including my wife and her family, I'm an immigrant. I've lived in the USA since I was eighteen years old, coming here in the 80s to get a college education. I love my new country — my wife and became naturalised citizens in the early 90s — and one of my favourite holidays is Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is a holiday all Americans, natural born or not can…
I know they look pensive. Perhaps because they are utterly exhausted from all the wedding-related thing they've been involved with over the last three days. Or perhaps pondering the seriousness of what they have just done; pledging themselves to each other for seven lifetimes. …
I’m attending a wedding this weekend. My wife’s brother-in-law’s nephew is getting married. Indian weddings or Shaadi tend to be extravagant colourful affairs. Women are decked out in their finest saris and jewelery, mostly 22k gold, and often have their hands and feet painted with mehndi. While not as colourful, the trend among men, especially the younger more affluent Indian-Americans, is to wear a modern upscale version of the traditional kurta pyjama. I’ve rented the Nikkor AFS 85mm f/1.4 lens…
