Wedding traditions of Kandy
The hill capital of the Kandyan kingdom, whose bridal sari and drummers shaped the Sinhalese wedding.
Kandy is the source of the Kandyan wedding style. The bride wears the osariya, the groom wears a long cloth and a decorated vest, and Kandyan dancers and drummers lead the procession.
A wedding here
The couple are escorted to the poruwa by drummers and dancers. Kandyan dancers are called the Ves dancers. The ceremony follows the same arrangements as other Sinhalese weddings, with the tying of the finger thread and the pouring of water.
Where weddings happen
Hotels with views of Kandy Lake and hill estates. Some couples go to the Temple of the Tooth for blessings.
The season and the calendar
Weddings are held outside Esala Perahera, the great festival in July or August that fills the town.
Wedding customs of Kandy
Also part of it, and being written: Kandyan dance (The dance tradition of the hill country.), Temple of the Tooth (A sacred place for blessings.).
A wedding trail idea for Kandy
- Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic The temple in the centre of the city.
- Kandy Lake A lakeside area for photography.
- Kandy Central Market A market for cloth and brass.
- Peradeniya Botanic Gardens A garden used for wedding portraits.
Written by the EveryShaadi desk with AI assistance. Opening hours, venues and wedding-season dates change; check locally before travelling. Customs differ from place to place and family to family. If this is your tradition and we have it wrong, tell us.
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Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Osariya: Mr Anuradha Ratnaweera (අනුරාධ රත්නවීර මහතා), CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Poruwa ceremony: A Derivative Work by MediaJet ,, CC BY 2.0, source