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EveryShaadi

Wedding traditions of Kathmandu

A valley city where Newar, Brahmin, Chhetri and Tamang weddings use red, the tika and the shehnai.

Kathmandu holds many peoples: Newars, hill Brahmins and Chhetris, Tamangs, Sherpas and migrants from the plains. Each has its own marriage customs, and the Newar community is known for its distinctive rites.

Kathmandu: Kathmandu, vue aérienne au décollage
Photo: Royonx, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

A wedding here

A hill Hindu wedding includes the tika and the lagan, the red pote beaded necklace for a married woman, and a fire rite. In a Newar family, the Ihi ceremony marries a girl to a bel fruit as a symbolic first marriage, so that she never becomes a widow in the eyes of her community. The wedding itself is later.

Where weddings happen

Party palaces and hotels in Kathmandu, temples such as Pashupatinath on some days, and homes in the old city.

The season and the calendar

Weddings follow the Nepali calendar and the lagan dates, with many in Magh, Falgun and Baisakh, around January to May.

Wedding customs of Kathmandu

IhiA Newar rite where a girl is symbolically married to a bel fruit.SindoorThe vermilion.

Also part of it, and being written: Nepali wedding (The rites of a Hindu wedding in Nepal.), Pote (The beaded necklace of a married woman.), Tika (The mark on the forehead.).

Communities and their weddings in Kathmandu

  • Newar Ihi and distinct rites.
  • Brahmin and Chhetri The lagan, tika and fire rite.
  • Tamang A Buddhist community with its own customs.
  • Madhesi Families from the plains with a groom's procession.

A wedding trail idea for Kathmandu

  1. Asan Bazaar The old trading square for cloth and spices.
  2. Indra Chowk A market known for beads and pote.
  3. New Road A street of modern shops and jewellers.
  4. Pashupatinath Temple A Shiva temple where couples seek blessings.
About this page

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.

KindRiteVowBetrothalGift customAttireAdornmentPerformanceFeast customBlessingPlayFamily roleSettingModern
StageFinding a matchEngagement and betrothalThe weeks beforeThe eveProcession and arrivalThe ceremonyThe wedding feastReception, dance and giftsAfter the wedding

Nothing matches those filters yet. Take one off, or check back: new traditions are written every day.

Photo credits on this page

The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.

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