Charanjit + Raman - Colourful Sikh Gravesend Gurdwara Wedding

My first wedding of 2023 was one I’ll always remember, my first ever Sikh wedding! Charanjit and Raman were one of the most chilled couples I’ve ever shot, they made my job so easy.

They were married at Gravesend Gurdwara and had the reception opposite, at Dream Days venue. I’ve always though the temple looked beautiful, but inside it is just stunning. So many places for gorgeous couple photos, which I obviously took full advantage of! The couple both looked amazing in their outfits and Charanjit even had a little micky and minnie mouse hidden in her beautiful henna.

I loved learning about all the traditional rituals that happen throughout the day and Charanjit was so patient in explaining them all to me at our meeting so I knew what to expect and what was super important to capture. The Milni was a lovely ritual, where both sides of the family come together before the ceremony to greet and give each other gifts. I particularly loved shooting the evening Doli, which is the final departure of the bride from her parental home, to her new home with her husband. It started off high energy, with the bride’s sisters stopping the groom from entering their family home by quizzing him about the bride and charging him a fee to enter. This escalated to silly string and confetti canons. At this point I had become trapped in a crowd in the corridor, ha!

Once Raman was allowed entry it became really emotional as everyone started to see the couple off. It was definitely an experience, I loved every minute of their day!