In A Walk Down Memory Lane, Designer Rina Dhaka Takes Us Through Her Wedding Day

Long before Indian weddings became cinematic spectacles with mood boards, planners, and all the razzmatazz, they were intimate, instinctive, and deeply personal. For designer Rina Dhaka, her wedding was all about those emotions. It was a celebration rooted in Rajputi tradition, youthful rebellion, and old-world family warmth. At just 22, Dhaka walked into her new life dressed in a traditional Rajasthani poshak. But beyond the heirloom textiles and customary rituals, her wedding was also filled with spirited defiance, bonfire anecdotes, Punjabi bolis that lasted till dawn, and a love story that quietly challenged caste conventions of the time. Looking back today, the ace designer reflects not only on the memories from her big day, but also on how Indian weddings have transformed and evolved in the current scenario.  

Manifest: Tell us about your wedding day. What do you remember most vividly?  

Rina Dhaka: My wedding took place in 1991 on a cold December evening in New Delhi. I was very young and wore a traditional poshak with a borla. I bought the poshak from Rana’s, one of the oldest sari stores in Jaipur, known for creating ensembles for royal families. The entire wedding was deeply rooted in Rajasthani tradition. 

M: A fun moment from your wedding that still leaves you in stitches? 

RD: I still laugh about how cold it was during the celebrations. We actually ended up making a bonfire using all the tissue papers the caterer had. My father, of course, had to eventually pay for all of it later. 

M: Your love story was quite unconventional for its time. What challenges did you face? 

RD: I married my boyfriend and initially, my father wasn’t happy because we weren’t from the same caste. Back then, caste was still a very real consideration in marriages, and I suppose I was a bit of a rebel for wanting to make my own choices and marry the person I wanted to be with. But ultimately, love won. Today, my husband is completely adored by my father, and he is the apple of his eye. 

M: Did you reinterpret any wedding traditions in your own way? 

RD: Absolutely. We reimagined several traditions. My husband had his own sangeet ceremony, which, traditionally, women weren’t even allowed to attend, while at my sangeet he was naturally present. It became this beautiful mix of convention and change, tradition and individuality. 

M: How different were weddings back then when compared to today? 

RD: Back then, we didn’t have digital inspiration boards, planners, or curated wedding ecosystems. We only had inherited traditions, old textiles, family albums, and memories to guide us. Ironically, we spent years resisting many of those things. We would fight with our parents because we found our relatives from the villages, their dhotis, and old-world customs embarrassing. My father came from a zamindar Rajput background, and at that time those symbols of heritage felt outdated to us. Today, the very same things have become a matter of pride. 

M: What do you think defines the biggest shift in Indian weddings today? 

RD: Weddings today have evolved from deeply personal family gatherings into immersive, highly-curated experiences shaped by fashion, cinema, and large-scale production. Three decades ago, weddings were joyous but far simpler. I remember fighting with my father because I wanted to wear a black velvet outfit for my sangeet, which was considered unconventional then. My dear friend, the late Jivi Sethi, picked up the dhol and everyone danced to Punjabi bolis till the early hours of the morning. Those were genuinely fun times. 

M: Having planned your son’s wedding as well, how do you view modern weddings now? 

RD: The transformation has been drastic. The industry evolves almost every day. Today, everything is seamlessly planned and produced. You can hire specialists for every single detail, even to revive forgotten customs, folk songs, or old wives’ tales associated with weddings. Earlier, all of this came naturally from within the family. The aunts led ceremonies, grandmothers sang folk songs, and the women of the house carried rituals forward with warmth and intimacy. Every ceremony felt deeply personal. 

M: Do you think modern weddings have lost some of that intimacy? 

RD: In many ways, yes. Weddings today feel like a fascinating confluence of influences—part Bollywood spectacle with elaborate song-and-dance performances, part white wedding with dramatic entrances, and part fashion show complete with catwalk moments, production design, and theatrical staging. And while I enjoy the grandeur, I still believe what makes a wedding truly unique is the ability to bring it back home in spirit, and to preserve traces of old family values and traditions amidst all the opulence.