About the Couple
Bulgarian writer Ilija Trojanow and Mumbai's German Consulate official Katrin Simon wanted a wedding which reflected "how important India and its people meant to them." Since their few years of stay in India, the couple have forged many special bonds, while Ilija has passionately studied Indian traditions and scriptures.

"An Indian wedding is very unique. And very unlike some other functional, conveyer-belt kind of weddings" explains Ilija: "Moreover, in India, people are very open, and accept foreigners into their circle easily. The rituals and meanings of a vedic wedding ceremony had special significance for us. And our wedding was a way to convey our love for India and our appreciation to all friends here."

About the Wedding
The celebrations started with a bachelor and bachelorette bash. Ilija and his friends decided to choose a rustic theme for his last few days of singlehood. They hired a ladies dance bar post the working hours of 1 a.m. The dancing girls were given the option of staying on for the party and the party began when the bar's usual customers left. Ilija and his friends danced at the podium while the girls leered at the men. Soon, they couldn't resist the temptation of dancing with the men, and the party continued till 4 a.m. Katrin and her lady friends partied at the discotheque Insomnia that night.

"There had to be a personal element, in every one of our functions", explains Ilija. "So the Sangeet at Breach Candy Club had our singer friend Pammi Hanspal make a performance. And the same was fused with a performance by my tabla Guruji." The next day's wedding saw 150 guests from India and all over the world, come for the typical phool, baraati aur phere function at CP Tank. "We gave away a small booklet for all, on the Hindu marriage ceremony, so the one's who were new to it, could learn more. It covered the requirements for the marriage ceremony and its elements i.e. proposal of a marriage, soliciting the blessings of the elders, handing over the daughter, expressing expectations from married life, the sacrifice, walking seven steps together, the completion prayer and the blessings."

After the wedding, one of their friends commented: "Many Indians choose not to go through this type of ceremony because of its length. But the whole ceremony is just around two hours long, and its so nice to see the foreigners go through this. Witnessing such an event makes one feel great."

At the sit-down dinner at The Taj Ballroom, the menu courses revolved around their places of stay in life. So there were Bulgarian starters, a main course of German and African (Katrin grew up in Germany and Ilija in Kenya) followed by Indian desserts. In between the courses, there were performances by their close friends. Rock band Infra Red, ace dancer Astad Deboo and theatre actors Radhika and Sohrab Ardeshir.

View their wedding photos at http://www.weddingsutra.com/KatrinwedsIlija/photoalbum