Inside Ritu Dalmia’s Wedding With Longtime Partner Michaela Tedsen

Celebrity chef, restaurateur and LGBTQ+ rights activist Ritu Dalmia has tied the knot with her longtime partner Michaela Tedsen in South Africa. While the chef took to Instagram recently to share heartwarming pictures from the ceremony, the couple got married earlier this month on the 5th of November.

In a series of candid photos simply captioned “Mrs. and Mrs…”, the chef can be seen posing with her wife and the loved ones who made up the wedding party.

The couple chose the Leeu Estates Hotel in Franschhoek, South Africa, for their venue. “We chose South Africa because the country is very close to our hearts. It’s one of the first in the world where gay people were legally protected,” said Ritu Dalmia, in an interview with Hindustan Times. 

For their wedding looks, the chef chose a pair of colourful striped pants, paired with a beige waistcoat and a black blazer on top. Michaela went with a red and white dress with matching shoes. 

The couple’s cake was a delightfully vibrant floral creation which was pronounced “delicious” by the chef in the caption. 

Align with her pathbreaking contribution to the country’s culinary landscape, Ritu Dalmia has been at the forefront of the fight for LGBTQ+ rights in the country. In 2016, she was among the five activists who filed a petition challenging Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code in the Supreme Court which criminalised homosexuality.

“We all need to have freedom to think, speak out. When two consenting adults agree to be together, no one should tell them how to love,” she had written in an op-ed back then. While the rights of LGBTQ+ community in India have come a long way from what the state was a decade ago, the complete freedom to love and marry who you want still seems to be a long way ahead.

Here’s wishing Ritu Dalmia and Michaela Tedsen a lifetime of happiness!