Upala KBR (DNA; May 20, 2014)

Aditya Chopra makes romantic films, but prefers not to display romance in his personal life. However, he pulled out all the stops for his wedding and gave his bride Rani Mukerji the celebrations that she always dreamt of. The first time around the producer had a big fat Punjabi wedding, but this time it was a Bengali shaadi all the way.

The wedding was planned in Italy but it was entirely a traditional Indian one. Says a source, “Adi planned his wedding with as much precision as he does his films. He knew that his bride and her family wanted a traditional Bengali wedding, and that’s what he gave them. So all rituals were completely Bengali, including the blowing of conch shells, ululation, and where the brother takes his sister on a piri (a wooden seat) around the fire. Before the ceremony started, Krishna (the bride’s mother) received Adi into the family with the bor-boron ceremony.”

Adi even flew down a pundit to Italy and wore the traditional dhoti-kurta and topor (white conical headgear traditionally worn by grooms). Rani wore a similar headgear called mukut. Both Adi and Rani’s wedding clothes were designed by Sabyasachi. Rani wore a traditional red and zari Benarasi silk sari. Rani even had white and red dots on her forehead with a big red bindi in the centre as Bengali brides wear.

Adi and Rani did the saat paak where the bride encircles the groom seven times, still sitting on the piri covering her face with paan (betel leaves). “The couple even had shubho drishti, when the bride finally puts down the leaves and their eyes meet. No Bengali wedding is complete without the ululation and blowing of conch shells and Rani’s wedding had that too. Rani wore aaltaa (red dye) on her feet as a Bengali bride is supposed to wear that on her palms and feet.”