Haldi ceremony checklist

8 to 12 weeks before

• Decide: a separate haldi for each family, or one shared event.
• Choose the format: at home, by a pool, on a hotel terrace or lawn, or in a garden or on a beach.
• Book the space, and get the venue's rules in writing: where turmeric is allowed, whether it can go in or near the pool, cleaning or damage charges, tarps and seat covers, and fees for outside vendors.
• Set the guest list: the people who will apply the paste, plus close family.
• Book decor, music (dhol or a DJ) and a photographer whose hours cover the haldi.

4 to 6 weeks before

• Agree the paste recipe with the family elders.
• Patch test the paste on the couple's skin.
• Ask the makeup artist how to avoid yellow staining before the wedding look.
• Choose the couple's outfits, knowing they will be stained.
• Add a dress note to the invitation: yellow, orange or green, or older clothes, and no white.
• Plan food and drink: a brunch or light lunch suits the time of day.
• For an outdoor haldi, book shade and a covered backup space.

1 to 2 weeks before

• Confirm the running order: start time, the ceremony, games or water play, and the end time.
• Leave a real gap before the next event for washing off and changing.
• Buy or confirm tarps, disposable seat covers, towels and wipes.
• Pack a stain kit: clear dish soap, baking soda and a spray bottle of cold water.
• Give every job an owner: who brings the paste, who runs the music, who looks after the elders.

On the day

• Set up on a tarped area with showers or a rinse area close by.
• Outdoors, plan shade and sunscreen. Use only the patch-tested paste.
• Brief the photographer on the order in which family members will apply the paste.

Afterwards

• Blot stains, rinse in cold water, and keep heat away until the stain is gone.
• Clean marble and other natural stone with a baking soda paste, not vinegar or lemon.
• Walk the space with the venue for marks before you hand it back.