Real Weddings: Benita & Sunny

By Mae Wagner

Benita bride and Sunny groom Black Hispanic American Hindu Indian wedding multicultural New Jersey, New York metro hotel ballroom ceremony

After meeting on a dating app and having been together for some time, Sunny devised a plan to create the perfect proposal for his future wife Benita. The pair had originally planned a trip to Paris in 2020, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, they were unable to go. Not being able to wait any longer to propose, Sunny decided to improvise. Benita, a graduate of Greensboro College, is a property manager for commercial office buildings in the Washington, D.C. area, where the couple lives. One evening, Sunny, who works as a policy analyst at a global policy think tank and was a graduate of Rutgers University for his bachelor’s and George Mason for his master’s, arranged for Benita to go out and get drinks with friends. When she returned she found a private “Paris” oasis in her own backyard, complete with a French backdrop, string lights, a photographer, and their dog dressed in an adorable Parisian outfit. Sunny was down on one knee popping the question. “It was a very easy yes,” Benita recalls happily. Against the odds, Sunny was able to make the proposal just as magical as if they were truly in France. Benita and Sunny wed in June of 2022 in Mahwah, NJ, about an hour northwest of New York City. The couple incorporated two different wedding ceremonies into one: an American and a Hindu. Benita is Black and Hispanic while Sunny is Indian, and the pair wanted to honor and represent these separate cultures at the same time. The two ceremonies were an all day event with 200 people in total attendance. The Hindu ceremony was bold and colorful, while the American contrasted it by being minimalist, with a simple white and gold color scheme. During the American ceremony, Benita’s father walked her down the aisle, and the two had a very emotional moment. The Hindu ceremony was much longer, with guests being served snacks and a traditional Indian drink called a mango lassi to enjoy while witnessing the nuptials. To make things easier for those unfamiliar, a Hindu Wedding Guide program was placed on every seat. For his wedding procession, called a Baraat, Sunny rode in on a handsomely decorated horse. Benita was walked down the aisle by her uncle for the Hindu ceremony, because her parents already had a role with the groom before the bride’s grand entrance, as per Hindu wedding tradition. During the reception, guests danced the night away to an eclectic mixture of funk, Ranchera, Hindi, 90’s, and pop tunes. It was a wedding filled with lively expressions of love, tradition and the uniting of both families.

Wedding Details

LOCATION: Mahwah, New Jersey

TIME OF YEAR: Summer

WEDDING STYLE: multicultural, contrasting, bold

CEREMONY & RECEPTION: Sheraton Mahwah Hotel

MENU: Appetizers included a live falafel station, a live grilled cheese and tomato soup station and tandoori chicken. Passed hors d’oeuvres included samosas, bean and cheese quesadillas, Mexican bhel. Then a buffet including paneer makhani, chicken tikka masala, navratan korma, dal makhani and chole.

DESSERT: wedding cake

FIRST DANCE SONG: “Slow Down” by H.E.R and Skip Marley

INSPIRATION: Black and Hispanic American and Hindu cultures

SPECIAL FEATURES: a magic mirror photo booth served as the seating chart and then converted to snapping fun pics during the reception; two-part wedding; groom rode in to the Hindu wedding on a decorated white horse per tradition; bride received henna; the couple gave out mini customized Tabasco bottles and Reese’s peanut butter cups as favors to symbolize the couple’s love for spicy and sweet things; guest book was Jenga game pieces; the couple DIY’d their welcome bags for out of town guests that included liquid IV packets, mini water bottles, hand sanitizer wipes, chips, granola bars, mints, Tylenol, and a welcome program outlining the weekend’s schedule and festivities; a Hindu Wedding Guide program was placed on every seat; snacks and mango lassis were served during the Hindu ceremony as is tradition; couple did a first look

HONEYMOON: Athens, Mykonos, Santorini and Milos, Greece

COLORS: