Screengrabs taken from YouTube video uploaded by Mango News
Gone are the days when brides were demurely led into wedding mandaps by friends and family. This bride from Ahmedabad took a non-traditional route by riding up on a bike.
For her grand entrance, Aesha Upadhyay Vyas 'Riderni' (that's what she calls herself on Facebook) rode her Royal Enfield Bullet 350 - a Raksha Bandhan gift from her brother - to her wedding earlier this month, dressed in her bridal finery and aviator glasses. The 26-year-old computer science professor is a bike enthusiast and has been riding since she was 13-years-old.
Aesha's entry on two wheels was her own idea, happily embraced by her family. "When her marriage had been fixed, she insisted that we do something different. We discussed various options and that's when she came up with the idea. Why don't I drive into the mandap on a bike,'' her father Sailesh Upadhyay told NDTV.
Riding in her sari was no problem, Aesha's a pro. "I would borrow my uncle's Bullet and have undertaken some interesting journeys. I once went to Goa and back on my Bullet, accompanied by a group of fellow Bullet lovers," she told
Ahmedabad Mirror. "I also went to the Om Banna Temple, otherwise known as the Bullet Baba Temple."
Aesha now has someone to ride pillion - her husband, Canada-based professional Laukik Vyas, does not know how to ride bikes. "He was very receptive to the idea and excited. So when I entered the venue he wasn't shocked but very excited to see me drive in... since he knows driving bikes is my passion,'' she said.
Aesha plans to continue riding bikes even after she moves to Canada. All we can say is, more power to you.
Watch the bride in action in the video below: