There's no shortage of grandeur and spectacle at an Indian wedding. Elaborate floral installations, larger-than-life entries, choreographed performances and meticulously designed celebrations have become familiar territory. But somewhere between the perfectly coordinated details, couples are asking a more interesting question: how do we make this wedding feel like us?
For some, the answer lies in rethinking traditions. For others, it's about incorporating shared interests, family memories or little details that might mean nothing to a stranger but everything to the people in the room. A handwritten letter tucked into the décor, the familiar scent of rain at a mehendi, or a wedding ritual that invites guests to participate rather than simply watch can often leave a more lasting impression than another elaborate installation.
Wedding planners Nikita Dubey and Sahil Rathod, founders of Shubhtithi, have been exploring precisely this approach. Their celebrations have included everything from a Netflix-themed sangeet and an interactive cake-decorating session to personalised wedding vows revealed through puzzles and a reception that doubled as an awards night.
What connects these seemingly different ideas is the belief that wedding personalisation shouldn't stop at the couple's initials on a dance floor or a customised hashtag. The most interesting details often come from understanding their personalities, relationships and the stories they want to share with their guests.
In this edition of Manifest Approved, the duo shares creative ideas from weddings they've planned, offering inspiration for couples who want their celebrations to be memorable for reasons beyond their scale.
Manifest: Personalisation has become a big part of Indian weddings. How can couples make even the smallest details feel meaningful?
Nikita Dubey and Sahil Rathod: We believe the most memorable weddings are those where you can see the couple's personality reflected in the smallest details. Sometimes, something as simple as a handwritten note can create a far more meaningful connection with guests.
For instance, while planning Priyal and Kunal's mehendi and Pooja and Ronak's pre-reception dinner, we introduced personalised letter walls. The couples wrote individual letters to their family members, which we incorporated into the décor. It gave guests something personal to discover and read, turning an otherwise decorative element into an emotional part of the celebration.
For us, that's where thoughtful personalisation makes a difference.
M: Can something as simple as a fragrance become part of a wedding's design?
ND and SR: Absolutely. We often think about wedding décor in terms of what guests can see, but a memorable celebration can engage more than just the visual senses. Fragrance has an incredible ability to evoke a particular mood or memory, and when used thoughtfully, it can become part of the storytelling.
For one of our projects, Priyal and Kunal's rainforest-themed mehendi, we wanted to take the concept beyond lush greenery and visual décor. We introduced gili mitti ki khushboo attar, which recreates the familiar fragrance of rain-soaked earth.
It was a subtle addition, but it helped bring the rainforest theme to life in a way that décor alone couldn't.
M: Couples are looking for ways to involve their guests beyond the usual performances. What's an interesting idea you've explored?
ND and SR: At Jeet and Pranoti's engagement, we decided to give the traditional cake-cutting ceremony a more interactive twist. Instead of presenting a fully decorated cake, we invited guests to take part in decorating it themselves. Everyone could add icing and contribute in their own way.
What would ordinarily have been a brief cake-cutting moment became a shared activity. We enjoy introducing these playful elements because they encourage guests to interact, have fun and become part of the celebration in a more personal way.
M: Wedding rituals are often deeply traditional. How can couples introduce a contemporary element without taking away from their significance?
ND and SR: We feel there's plenty of room to experiment with how wedding rituals are presented without changing their meaning.
For Khushi and Devansh's wedding, we wanted to rethink the usual ritual cards that explain the ceremonies to guests. Instead, we placed a puzzle on every chair. Once solved, it revealed a picture of the couple, while the reverse featured the vows they had written for each other.
It introduced an element of curiosity and participation while keeping the focus on something deeply personal to the couple. We believe that when contemporary ideas are introduced with sensitivity, they can make traditional ceremonies feel even more meaningful.
M: What's one of the most unconventional sangeet themes you've worked on?
ND and SR: We love it when couples come to us with interests or quirks that can become the starting point for an entire celebration. Sometimes, the most unconventional ideas work because they're genuinely connected to the couple rather than being chosen simply because they're trending.
One such celebration was Kevin and Dimple's sangeet. The couple shared a love for Netflix, and we decided to build the evening around that interest. The celebration featured Netflix-inspired popcorn, Coke and their personalised hashtag, #DimSumsKev.
We also wanted their entries to be just as entertaining. The groom made a dramatic Rajamouli-style entry, while the bride arrived through a life-sized popcorn installation.
It was a fun departure from a conventional sangeet, but what made it special was that the theme came directly from something the couple enjoyed.
M: How can couples make their reception more entertaining for guests?
ND and SR: Receptions can sometimes become quite formal, particularly when the evening revolves around greeting guests, photographs and dinner. We like looking for ways to make these celebrations more interactive, so guests have opportunities to enjoy themselves and connect with one another.
For Kevin and Dimple's reception, we decided to take a completely different approach and turn the evening into an awards night. Rather than making it a conventional awards ceremony, we created categories inspired by the personalities of their family members and friends.
Guests participated through live voting, with playful titles such as "Swag Waale Uncle", "Emotional ATM" and "Pet Pooja-ji".
The idea was to bring humour and familiarity into the celebration. Everyone could recognise someone in those categories, and the voting gave guests an active role in the evening. It's these little moments of shared laughter that can make a reception feel more relaxed and memorable.
M: Finally, how can couples rethink the traditional mandap while keeping the ceremony meaningful?
ND and SR: The mandap is one of the most significant spaces at an Indian wedding, but that doesn't mean its design always has to follow the conventional four-corner structure.
For Priyal and Kunal's wedding, the couple wanted something more contemporary and playful. Instead of creating a traditional mandap, we worked with the hotel's existing backdrop and developed a design that complemented the setting while keeping the ceremony at the centre.
It allowed us to create something different without taking attention away from the rituals themselves.
For us, thoughtful wedding design isn't always about adding more décor or creating something grander. Sometimes, it's about knowing what to retain, what to reinterpret and how to make a familiar tradition feel more personal to the couple.