Any traditional Indian wedding customs?

My fiance and I are planning our wedding. I am having one problem though, I am Italian by heritage, and the first member of my family to marry out of my families heritage. I am marrying an indian man, whos parents and a large part of family come from india. I would very much like to incorporate some of there traditions/customs into our wedding. He has asked not to have a tradtional ceremony so it would mainly be things for the reception. We are having an Indian jungle theme (5 ft trees made of flowers entirely of flowers all around the room and 3 ft trees for centerpieces. We will be having monkeys, frogs, birds, etc all made of flowers each table has a diffrent animal.) But this is just decoration, what can I do to make his mother more comfortable and happy with our wedding?



I dont know if this is relavent but his family is from Uttar Pradesh and hindu.

Any traditional Indian wedding customs?
Well, I'm Indian and my fiance is caucasian. We're having some Indian elements in our wedding. I'll be wearing an Indian lehenga choli I'm purchasing online. My wedding attendants (I'm not having bridesmaids) will be wearing saris. We're planning on having henna.



We also don't want the whole traditional thing (it's way too much and way too expensive). We're also playing Indian music for the reception. We're also purchasing Indian invitations.



Hm, I think that's all I can think of. If you want, you can do your wedding under a mandap, which is sort of a canopy/tent for the bride and groom and priest and parents. He could wear Indian clothing (sherwani).



Just talk to your fiance about what Indian elements he'd like to keep.



I also have to agree with the vegetarian thing. Many Hindus are vegetarian, so you'll have to be careful to have food for them. Our wedding is entirely vegetarian, because both my fiance and I are vegetarians for ethical reasons, but we're not really having many Indians come to the wedding (it's a really small wedding).



I'm curious how this jungle theme will work, it sounds weird, but I'm sure you have a better picture of it than I do :) His mom probably will feel odd about the decorations, because usually Indian weddings involve tons of flowers and images of Ganesh (that elephant-headed god that everyone's seen). Most Hindu weddings I've been to use tons of flowers, and there isn't really a theme, so his mom might feel weirded about by animals made of flowers.
Reply:i would suggest calling his mother and asking for her input. i think it would look favorable upon you to include her in that way and will probably help her feel more comfortable simply because she knows that you cared and respected his heritage enough to ask for her input. best of luck!
Reply:Remember that cows are sacred animals in India, so be careful about serving steak at the wedding. And, people from India usually are gentle and polite, and never tell you if they are offended. You might consider having some vegetarian selections for your guests. Talk with a caterer who knows Indian food, and ask for him to recommend some selections for your menu. Also, consider some Indian music selections to play while people are eating dinner. I think if you try to have menu selections that are compatible with their culture and dietary preferences, they will appreciate your consideration and attempts to make them feel comfortable, even if you don't hit the mark exactly.
Reply:I don't know how you will feel about this but the Indian culture has a wonderful tradition of incorporating henna into weddings.

There are many traditional designs (mainly done on the hands and feet) that are absolutely BEAUTIFUL! You can do it yourself or have a friend help you. In Los Angeles you can hire someone to do it professionally but I've done it on myself and friends many times and it's not too difficult.



Here are some pics - Enjoy and congratulations!

http://www.hennacaravan.com/wedding.html