Sky-high celebrations

Imagine the mighty Himalayas overlooking an intimate ceremony of your creation Prayer flags flap in the wind and clear blue skies of Ladakh hold it all together This was the pictureperfect wedding Sarvesh Shrivastava and Shruti Sitara Singh masterminded Shrivastava a Mumbaibased musician goes by the moniker SickFlip Singh is a creative director and strategistThe union territory takes up a large part of Shrivastavarsquos heart ldquoIt has undoubtedly played an instrumental role in my personal as well as professional journeyrdquo he says ldquoI have been there four times and each time I have been inspired by new insights My connection with nature grows with every visit and I come back with unforgettable memoriesrdquo Each trip has had distinct context and the most recent one in April 2022 was no differentrdquoHe first experienced the cold desert when he was in Std X 14 years ago He accompanied a school friend and his family ldquoWe drove through the most surreal landscapes and those 20 days felt nothing short of a dreamrdquo The next two trips were in 2013 and 2014 with his ldquohomiesrdquo The Outbox Project and Sabit These inspired his first conceptual EP called The Ladakh Project which became the starting point of his career as an electronic artiste in IndiaSingh loves the mountains equally ldquoWe discussed unconventional ways of beginning our journey togetherrdquo says Shrivastava ldquoWhile we agree with the concept of marriage we gravitated towards adding some more depth and substance to our union The idea of performing our own sacred rituals in a place that holds significance to us felt like a step in the right directionrdquo adds SinghThe pair was accompanied by Shrivastavarsquos brother Samresh who acted as officiant and some close friends from Mumbai They found their dream spot seven minutes away from their hotelmdasha vast empty expanse overlooked by snowcapped peaks ldquoOur hearts were fixed we knew this was our placerdquo they said ldquoWe gathered stones from the location painted them and arranged them in concentric circles Finally we found some barks to hold up prayer flags It took about three hours for all of us to create this sacred spacerdquoThey devised four rituals for the occasion handpicked from various cultures which they connected with The first one was the sand ritual The bride and groom each take a fistful of different colours of sand and take turns pouring them into a bottle They blend into one just as the couplersquos lives are meant to They took the sand they found at the location to use for the ceremonyThe handfastening ritual came next which has its origin in many ancient cultures It is a symbolic gesture that physically binds the two partners together to tread one path together body and soulThe red blanket ritual symbolised love and warmth Singh and Shrivastava were each wrapped in a blanket ldquoThe blanket on me was Sarveshrsquos motherrsquos and he had my motherrsquos shawlrdquo says Singh The officiant knotted them together to ldquolockrdquo their unionThe final rite was of lsquoUnity Tearsquo a Chinese wedding ritual ldquoWe each selected a favourite blend of tea to represent usrdquo Singh says ldquoMine was rose and Sarveshrsquos was chamomile They were brewed together and served to the attendees to mark the end of the ceremony but the beginning of the new chapterrdquoTheir wedding clothes came from the Ladakhbased label Zilzom Itrsquos run by Stanzin Palmo who has worked with Singh in the past and has been a fan of Shrivastavarsquos since The Ladakh ProjectldquoThe ensemble speaks volumes about the geography culture and traditions of a communityrdquo says Singh ldquoThe silk brocades and the handspun woollens speak of a beautiful yet mysterious placemdashLadakhrdquoDespite a harsh climate and Shrivastava being down with a severe headache brought on by altitude sickness the entire experience was matchless ldquoAs soon as the ceremony began the most beautiful memories of my life were etched into my mindrdquo he concludesWant a indie hatke wedding Herersquos how1 Get a close friend or family to officiate and pronounce you man and wife2 Incorporate rituals from different cultures that resonate with you3 Get a local designer to design your clothes4 Be spontaneous and open to adapt to the topography of the location and design an innovative venue