After dating for 8 wonderful years, my (now) husband and I tied the knot on the special date of 8.8.8 (Aug 8, 2024) this year.
What makes our wedding magical and special is that we focused on creating a boutique, unique and gender-equal celebration with eight key elements:
Symbolic Date and Colors: We chose 8.8.8 date for its meaning of abundance and infinite love, complemented by a gold and ivory theme and outfits symbolizing the SUN (prosperity) and MOON (purity and new beginnings).
Female Priestess: Our Hindu Vedic wedding rituals were performed by a female priestess.
Vows: We took seven vachans (vows).
Gender Equality: Rituals included a Mangalsutra for Pooja and a bracelet for Neeraj.
Equal Parental Participation: Both sets of parents played significant roles in the ceremonies.
Kanyavar Pratigrihana: Instead of kanyadan, we embraced a ritual celebrating the union with joy from both families.
Boutique Wedding: Our wedding featured personalized touches like a custom love story newspaper, ringing bells for positive aura, and a thumbprint board to capture guests presence
Collective Blessings: All guests were involved in some wedding rituals and together blessed us.
Regarding my bridal outfits – I wore two distinct looks: aWisteria Gold lehenga with a custom love story veil by Kresha Bajaj that represents a modern, independent bride, and a traditional Kancheevaram silk saree by Tarun Tahiliani that honors South Indian roots.
After dating for eight wonderful years, my husband Neeraj and I decided to say “I do” on a date that holds special significance for us: 8.8.8 (August 8, 2024) which symbolizes infinity and abundance.
We chose to celebrate our 2-states love with a gender-equal Vedic Hindu ceremony, beautifully officiated by a priestess.
One of the most poignant moments was when we (both) tied the mangalsutra (and bracelet) at 11:11, a time that felt like a perfect blessing from the universe.
Surrounded by our closest loved ones, it was an intimate celebration filled with raw emotion and authenticity. Everything came together in such a beautiful way, making it a day that felt truly touched by magic.
Quick background about us:
I’m a Sales manager at Google
Neeraj is a Customer success lead at a startup.
We both live in Austin Texas.
Together we do ventures such as travel content creation, owning a photography company and leading a Social Club in Austin.
