Indian Wedding

CEBU, Philippines – The Indian wedding of Ramesh and Dimple took ten months to plan with the assistance of wedding coordinator Stanz Catalan. The ceremonies took four days to complete at the Shangri-La's Mactan Island Resort & Spa, with everything carefully choreographed to conform to Indian traditions.

The Civil Wedding Ceremony was held at the beachfront on Day 1. It was the first time I saw camera-carrying drones. Wow! On Day 2, the schedule felt like you were going to school.  From 1 to 4 p.m., it was the Engagement and Mehdni Lunch followed by High Tea from 4 to 6 p.m. Then, Sangeet Dinner was held at the Marquee from 8 p.m. to 12 midnight, followed by After-Dinner Party until 6 a.m. Unfortunately, I could commit to be present only during the dinners the next four days.

Cultural and religious food rules and restrictions were strictly observed in the wedding activities. No beef, pork or eggs were served. Meats, lamb and chicken were allowed but the bird had to be deboned and skinned off. Seafood like fish (fillet only) and shellfish (shrimps and lobster, shelled off) were also served. Vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes were clearly marked at the buffet table and food stations. 

At Beach Buffet Dinner, there were eight food stations: Pass-around cold (4), Pass-around hot (4), Cold appetizers (5), Hot appetizers (2), BBQ Station (6), Buffet Station (9) and Dessert Station (7) or 37 dishes in all. I had to plan my moves very well - simply one tablespoon of each dish, in order to be able to taste all the food served. It was a very rare opportunity to be invited to this kind of wedding!

My table companion was the Hummus dip (chicken peas, tahini, olive oil, lemon juice) with Pita bread, while waiting for the guests, who arrived in trickles, with the majority coming 30 minutes or an hour late. There was no need to announce that food was now served, because guests helped themselves upon arrival. Well, different strokes for different folks!

I found the Lemon Marinated Lobster irresistible, Mock Meat Sausage BBQ different but tasty, and the Vegetable Manchurian (Indian Chinese recipe with deep-fried veggie balls and chilli hot sauce) wonderful.

Day 2 was the Pre-wedding ritual, Engagement and Mehedni Lunch. The bride's hands and feet were adorned with geometric patterns designed to "ward off evil, promote fertility and attract good energy."

This was followed by the Sangeet Dinner (traditional dance) at the Marquee.There were eleven food stations and the number of dishes: Pass-around cold (3), Salad Buffet (5), Chat Station (6), Dosa Station (3), International Station (5), Mongolian Station (2), Chinese Station (5), Korean/Thai Station (5), Japanese Station (5), Indian Station (6) and the Dessert Station (8) or a total of 53 dishes.

My interest was focused on the service at the Chat Station with the Puri (Indian street food) and traditional Indian dishes that were served: Black Dahl, Butter Paneer, Chana Masala, Methi Malai, Butter Chicken and Rogan Josh. The Black Dhal (black lentils) was very good, the Mock Meat Bulgogi better, but what I liked best was the Massaman Lamb Curry.

All these, excuse me, was merely Days 1 and 2, and I was able to join only in the dinner portion of the Ramesh + Dimple = Rample Wedding Feast.