Field Notes • Vikram & Sahana

Turmeric, Silk and Fire

ESSAY 05 • FIELD NOTES • PHOTOGRAPHY BY MONISH KUMAR

"Some weddings change colour every few hours. You just try to keep up."

Sahana seated under the haldi mandap as family scatter petals around her

It started in yellow: turmeric, marigolds, coloured smoke and a lot of dancing. Nobody stayed clean, least of all the bride.

Later came a quieter hour: a rose-pink lehenga, a sheer veil, and warm light for portraits. After the noise of the haldi, it felt like a different day.

Sahana lifting a sheer pink veil

At the ceremony I photographed them through the flames of the sacred fire, the heat softening everything in front of the lens. Small things mattered too: hands, a coconut passed between them, garlands of red and white.

Hands passing a coconut between Vikram & Sahana during the ceremony

And at the very end, sparklers on either side as they walked out together. Read their full story.