Having that perfect wedding... in Chennai...

Traditional decor at the entrance..

Contemporary decor at the entrance...

Traditional lunch at a South indian wedding..

A wedding is a day to remember, to cherish and start a new journey from. It is also a day filled with excitement, a splash of madness and plenty of drama.. well atleast in most families...  That is probably why we find everyone, especially the bride & groom fairly stressed out once they do decide there is a wedding to be planned. Imagine the amount of things to be organised, coordinated and set in place? Phew, mind boggling right? 

To make life easy, today we have wedding planners, event companies and other freelancers who will swoop in take over and let you rest while they do all the work, and take on the craziness and stress. Something like what we saw in the movie "Aaha Kalyanam" [remake of the Hindi "Band Baaja Baaraat"]... All you need to do is hand over your book of dreams, ideas and wants, and they will make them happen, well almost all of them. 

But then there is one element that falls on the bride & groom or their families. And that involves finalising the wedding hall. Back in the days, it was pretty straight forward, weddings were held only at halls dedicated for weddings or churches, but things have changed over time. Gone are the days when it was either x or y hall, today people are spoilt for choice. They can choose to have it at a wedding hall, or a convention centre or at a hotel banquet hall or at an outdoor farm kind of place. It all depends on the ideas and dreams held by the bride and groom. Infact, parents have taken a back seat giving the kids a chance to plan things and involve them only to approve the same. It is quite nice and a welcome change, after all one needs to go with the times, right?! 

One of the main aspects to take into consideration when finalising one of the Marriage halls in Chennai would be your "Budget". The others include Capacity, the location, the amenities offered [including parking facility], nearby hotels and so on .... 

In many cases, the immediate family or even friends and visiting guests tend to stay at the rooms provided in the hall or at nearby hotels. It makes it easy for them to be at the venue on time, with no hassles or worries. This also extends for the make up artist, photographer and others involved in the wedding, who need to be there on time! Other guests will stream in within the mentioned time and that is not something the bride or groom worry too much about. Another thing they note is ensuring there are welcome drinks, bags/small token gift given when the guests leave the wedding venue and of course breakfast/lunch/dinner.... 

With wedding celebrations going on for 2-3 days, it is always good to have one single venue, making it easy for not just the main families but guests to plan their schedule as well. A mehendi ceremony, the cocktail evening, wedding reception and then the main wedding event itself - each could be distinguished with different decor, seating arrangement and this would in itself leave quite the impression. There can also be a fun photo booth in a corner, a space for selfies and a separate space in the dining room for those who are elderly or need extra help moving around. This will give them the feeling that they are cared for and enjoy the celebration more... 

If you were to look at the Wedding halls in Chennai, you will have options ranging from traditional conventional to modern contemporary ones to choose from. Fairly spoilt for choice and sometimes even overwhelming, these halls offer a range of amenities and services, some come with certain restrictions [ mainly on the food- some might insist on using a particular caterer while others might permit only vegetarian fare], giving you the power to decide based on your needs and wants... Oh and you need to make a beeline for the ones that catch your eye well in advance, else you might not have too many options.. 

These days with couples eager to have offbeat weddings, or ones that are breaking away from the traditional mould, we find that the Convention centres work best. They are aesthetically done up spaces that come with a hall that serves as the Dining hall, couple of rooms for the immediate families to stay in and are located within driving distance [ or take a cab] from anywhere in the city. 

When it comes time to plan your wedding, you know what to do right? Congrats in advance....Here's to new beginnings.... 

[Book] My Brother's Wedding by Andaleeb Wajid

I came to know of Andaleeb Wajid through a friend when he sent me her book to read & review- Blinkers off. Since then we have been in touch through Facebook and Twitter and so it was nice to meet this lively author when she launched her new book "My Brothers' wedding" at Crossword Bookstore in Chennai. It was a fun filled evening where we got to interact with her on a personal level, and hear tales of how she writes, where she got the inspiration for the book from and what else is in store from her treasure chest.... 

Book Name: My Brother's Wedding
Author: Andaleeb Wajid
Publisher : Rupa Books
ISBN : 978-8-1291-2399-2
Genre: Fiction: Romance, family drama, chic-lit [call it what you want, it is a very breezy light read]
Pages: 264
Price: Rs 295/-

My Brother's Wedding is a book based on the chaos called 'wedding in the family".  But it goes beyond the groom and his family, there is quite a bit of craziness connecting people beyond the immediate family members. It has a splash of drama, a generous amount of spice and romance as well.  It is a book that is as close to reality as you will get~!! 

I for one hate weddings. Why? To me weddings are synonymous with tempers flaring, craziness bursting everywhere, expenses sky rocketing and unnecessary squabbles coming into the scene. Weddings according to me should be simple sweet affairs, where the focus remains on the bride and groom, but instead it is all about who gives/receives what gifts, the sudden chaos within the house related to other members, an illness, god forbid a death, how elaborate the menu is, who has been invited, what are the return gifts and what not... These paint quite a disturbing image right, but then that is the reality..

“My Brother’s Wedding” opens with Saba’s blog. All of 19 years Saba starts an anonymous blog, a platform where she can vent, rant and share.  She gives alphabets as nicknames for her characters- her sis, her best friend, her cousin who she has a huge crush on, other friends and so on. The book actually has 2 parallels to it- one the main wedding related chaos and other is saba's blog.  The entire plot is set in Bangalore and revolves around how this wedding is planned and its impact on Saba's life.  

Andaleeb takes the readers through a typical Muslim household and the wedding preparations.  It is also about how families maintain a brave face when meeting others but within the four walls their lives are falling apart. There is the sister who believes her husband is possessed, a Djinn, the guy who lusts after Saba's sister at the wedding who secretly meets Saba and ultimately how all the pieces of the puzzle fall into the place and comes to a happy ending or not.. ;o)  

It took me all of 3 hours to read, the last half hour dragged on, only because I wasn't ready to be done with the book yet. :-) It was such a delightful simple breezy read, ideal for anyone who wants a light book.

For those who want to buy the book, pick up your copy from Flipkart or the nearest book store

Andaleeb also has another book ready to be launched in a month or so-->  More than Just Biryani  and she has started a blog which was about recipes but is also about this book of hers..

Blinkers Off by Andaleeb Wajid

The cover of the book had me fascinated and so did the title... Blinkers off by Andaleeb Wajid is the kind of book you should read after a packed tiring day.... The book is light, while being deep;  It is fun while being serious and it makes for a breezy read.

While reading this book, i realized once again it is not necessary for a book to be heavy duty, filled with high tech words and have complex characters for it to be interesting.

The book is all about "Noor". Like every other college girl, Noor goes through her set of conflicts and ideas.She dreams of becoming a screen play writer, ergo taking the documentary making classes very seriously. When she comes across Dennis, the suave good looking guy who is almost like a Knight in the shining Armour, her heart skips a beat and emotions run amok.  And then, there is her family... She is out late working on projects, her parents, especially her mom is unhappy with this and even comments that Noor should stop the course. And then there is her team mate Supriya, who is anything but a team mate, quite the contrary!

The day she is paired with Supriya, she wonders what is going to happen.. She is frustrated when Supriya does not even bother to contribute, but is beyond excited when the Professor picks her script to be made into a documentary. She is assigned a team of 5-6 members, all of who come with their set of baggage, all of which needs to be dealt with if the documentary gets made...

Supriya bugs her to no end, her Diva like attitude, good looks and of course the fact that she is all over Dennis... But, it is thanks to Dennis that Noor is able to get through the ordeal and get her documentary done and finished. Noor has to not only manage her team mates, but guard the Bride's dark secret, put up with Supriya and her tantrums, keep her feelings to herself and remain focussed on the taks at hand- The Documentary! As things come to a head during the wedding, Noor realizes there is no easy way out or a solution in sight, and  i guess that is the curx of Blinkers off.

The Characters are all very real, and we can relate to quite a few of the incidents in the book.. I was also left wondering if guys like Dennis actually existed in the real world and if so, where were they!! :D.. Andaleeb, any leads on this? ;-)