IN PICS: A fairy tale wedding

Philanthropists Dinesh and Kalpana Patel share colours of tradition from their daughter’s wedding

Photographs:Nadia D Photography

The bride and the groom, Avni Patel and Abhishek Dhingra, at the mehendi ceremony of their wedding in Salt Lake City, Utah, last month.

Avni, who was raised in Utah, met Houston-based Abhishek while visiting friends in Texas.

He proposed -- through a treasure hunt -- in Las Vegas last year.

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From left, the groom Abhishek Dhingra, his mother Vijay, his father Ashok, father of the bride Dinesh Patel, mother of the bride Kalpana and the bride Avni during a puja.

The family observed all rituals as authentically as possible. The elements for every ritual were painstakingly put together and even involved a multi-week trip to India.

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On the wedding day, when Utah Governor Gary Herbert, broke away from a family reunion and specially stopped by during the wedding ceremony to deliver a proclamation heralding the wedding.

Dr Dinesh Patel, the father of the bride and a Utah venture capitalist, a pioneer in the medical device industry, a philanthropist and arguably one of the most influential Indian Americans in the state, told India Abroad, “I am told this is the first time that a proclamation of this kind -- marriage wishes -- has been issued by any Utah Governor. It could even be the first time in the country.”

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Avni and Abhishek burn the dance floor at their sangeet. This was probably the most elaborate Indian wedding Utah had witnessed and took nearly 15 months to plan.

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A family member applies tumeric (haldi) on bride Avni at the pithi ceremony.

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While the groom arrived on a horse, as is done traditionally, the couple ended the wedding on a fairy tale note, riding away on a hot air balloon.