India is a beautiful land rich with cultural heritage, languages abound, and diversity after every state border. With a deep rooted belief in rituals and religion, our land is a wonderful eclectic mix of the new and the old. And when it comes to weddings, the diversity is pretty breathtaking. Especially when it comes to the bride.
A bride is the most sought after person at any wedding, no matter which region or religion she belongs to. Each eye patiently waits for a glimpse of the bride, and everyone awaits her arrival with bated breaths, and rightly so. So go ahead, and take a look at some of the beautiful bridal looks from across India which show how diverse our country is:
1. The north Indian bride
The quintessential north Indian bride is decked in bright colours, usually red, that denotes prosperity and happiness, and is considered to be highly auspicious.
2. The Punjabi bride
The beautiful Punjabi bride essentials include similar paraphernalia that makes a typical Hindu wedding. Mehendi being a really important element, the bride adorns it on her hands and feet.
3. The Sikh bride
The pretty Sikh bride can be seen wearing either a lehenga or an embellished salwar kameez in a vibrant colour. She also wears kalire and a chooda that are an important part of most Punjabi and Sikh weddings.
4. The Kashmiri bride
Kashmiri brides are said to be really beautiful, in fact as beautiful as Kashmir itself. They usually wear a pheran, a kalpush-the headgear, along with traditional jewellery.
5. The Marathi bride
Yellow, green, red and purple are considered to be really auspicious, and the brides usually wear paithani sarees in these colours. The mundavalya is a unisex ornament worn by both the bride and the groom. It’s usually a two-stringed pearl across the forehead, with two strings dangling on the sides as well.
6. The Bihari bride
Bihari brides usually go for yellow and red sarees, with a good amount of gold jewellery, and an odhni in yellow colour that is given to the bride by her maternal uncle. It denotes prosperity and is quite common in the northern region of the country.
7. The Bengali bride
The Bengali bride wears a traditional saree in red or maroon, with intricate zari work. Just like the mehendi, bengali ladies adorn their feet with aalta – a red pigment. Their forehead is painted with red and white designs and for the final finish, they wear a mukut– a headgear adorning the hair.
8. The Manipuri bride
A Manipuri bride wears a raslila skirt, continuing the rich tradition of performing arts in the community. She represents a gopi, and enacts it out when the groom plays the shahnai around the tulsi plant.
9. The Assamese bride
Assamese weddings are as exotic and beautiful as the land itself. An Assamese bride wears a mekhla chadar in an off-white colour embossed with elaborate designs in gold. It looks very much like a saree, but is actually two or three different pieces that make the wedding ensemble.
10. The Pahari bride
A Pahari bride is incomplete without her big nose ring, along with the traditional odhni which is called pichhori.
11. The Gujarati bride
Red is the colour that usually adorns a Gujarati bride. She wears a gharchola, a saree with a white base and red designs (usually, big checks), wrapped in the unique gujarati style.
12. The Odiya bride
The Odiya bride wears either a lehenga or a saree in rich colours like red, maroon or orange with fine gold jewellery. Aalta adorns her feet, and a head wear rests on her skull, very similar to the Bengali one.
13. The Coorgi bride
Coorg women are said to be the most prettiest in India. And the brides definitely are a rare beauty to look at. They wear sarees on their wedding day, draped in the unique Kodagu way, which is tucking the pleats on the backside of the waist.
They adorn themselves with gold jewellery, and on their feet are elegant silver jewels, which has a toe ring for each toe attached to the ankle chain.
14. The Rajasthani bride
A traditional Rajasthani bride wears a heavy ghagra choli, with elaborate zari work, and the popular gotta patti work. The jewellery includes a choker known as Aad and Rakhri, the circular maang tika.
15. The Parsi bride
A Parsi wedding is known as a lagan and the Parsi bride is a beauty to reckon with. Dressed in a white saree, and minimal jewellery to go with, Parsi women makes for beautiful brides.
16. The Telugu bride
The traditional Telugu bride wears a rich saree in bright colours, along with gold and pearl jewellery, with flowers that adorn her hair.
17. The Kannadiga bride
A Kannada wedding is very similar to a traditional Hindu wedding, with red being a very important and auspicious colour. The Kannadiga bride wears a saree in the traditional way, with ornate jewels that include an elaborate maang tika and baaju bandh.
18. The Tamilian bride
A traditional Iyer and Iyengar bride wears the 9 yard kanjeevaram saree in rich colours. Her waist is adorned by the traditional waist belt called odiyannam, and her forehead sparkles with nethichutty.
19. The Malayali bride
A Malayali christian bride wears an off white saree or the traditional kasavu saree on her wedding day. With Kerala being a hub for gold, the bride is decked in gold.
20. The Marwari bride
The Marwari bride is usually dressed in a lehenga choli, with traditional jewellery.