How We Met
Robert & Shital met through their friends, Sameer Bhatia and Sonali Bhatt. They met on Thanksgiving weekend in November, 1998 when Robert was visiting Chicago from Washington DC. Before marriage, their relationship was long-distance, since Shital was still completing her degree in Indiana while Robert was in DC and later in San Francisco.

Robert proposed to Shital on December 28, 1999 - her birthday - in San Francisco. The proposal and "question" was preceded by a full day of clues that led to different locations throughout the city, including a day spa, Godiva Chocolatier, Fisherman's Wharf, Alcatraz, and finally historic Coit Tower, where Shital said "Yes". The formal ceremony and engagement took place at Shital's home in Indiana on May 7, 2000.

Our Wedding
The pre-wedding events included a Mandap Mahurat, Griha Shanti, Mehendi party and a Garba celebration. The next day was the Wedding, Laxmi puja and the Reception.

The garba celebration took place at a large community center in the suburbs of Chicago, Illinois. The wedding took place at Manav Seva Mandir, a temple in the suburbs of Chicago, Illinois that both families have attended for several years. The reception was held at Crown Jewel of India Banquets, also in the suburbs of Chicago. Crown Jewel specializes in South Asian receptions and was able to accommodate the special dietary and event needs that are unique to our cultural preferences.

The theme for the entire wedding was Red, White and Silver. Everything from the wedding invitations, the wedding hall decor, the mandap and the reception centre-pieces were designed using these colors. Food throughout all the events was limited to North Indian vegetarian cuisine and Gujarati, Punjabi appetizers, entrees and desserts.

What Shital wore
Shital's clothes came from a variety of boutiques in India. Her garba zari sari was a gold and maroon one, from Roopam. Her wedding sari was in traditional red and white silk, and came from Aso Palav in Ahmedabad. Shital's reception outfit was a gold silk chania-choli from Kala Niketan, it was embroidered with glittering gold thread and embellished with tiny decorative pearls and glass beads.

What Robert wore
Robert's clothes were all hand-tailored and custom made by Dadu Tailors in Ahmedabad. For the garba, Robert wore a beige and white silk Kurta. For the wedding ceremony, he wore a hand embroidered Sherwani in maroon, gold and beige silk, with matching safa and shoes. And for the reception, he was dressed in a jet black 3-piece Jodhpuri, with red and white silk embroidery. Since there were so many outfits (over 20) that were custom-made by Dadu Tailors for the groom's party, the tailor himself came all the way from Ahmedabad to attend the wedding in USA.

Words of Advice from Robert and Shital
Proper planning is the cornerstone of success for any wedding. Our advice, "start planning as early as possible". Planning includes budgeting, site selection, delegation of activities, guest management and event management.

The best advice we can give is to prepare a master-list of activities that need to be accomplished in preparation for the big day. Preferably, this list should be in an electronic spreadsheet so that it can easily be maintained and shared with others. The spreadsheet should list the activity, the person responsible to complete the activity, the cost associated with the activity, and the estimated completion date. This list should be updated and re-prioritized on a weekly basis, and completed items should be marked appropriately. It's amazing how many activities will make it onto this list (check out the WeddingSutra checklist for list of activities)- our list had over 300 to-do's!

For those couples who are fortunate to have their families managing the entire process of preparation; tell your parents the top three things (or your three wishes) you'd like for your wedding, and leave the rest to them! It's important not to "sweat the small stuff" and have confidence in others' ability to get the job done well.

Our Recommendations on "Great Resources for an Indian Wedding" in the US
Some of our favorite resources include WeddingSutra.com, WeddingDetails.com, and the light-hearted but well written book, Weddings for Dummies.Recently-wed family members and friends also make for a great resource. Good honeymoon resources include American Express Travel and American Airlines Vacations.