Anita and Haady: a Persian wedding… the reception

August 12, 2009

Jashn-e Aroosi (Jashne Arosi, Jashne Aroosi), the actual feasts and the celebration, features feasting, music by entertainers, and lots of enthusiastic dancing. The wedding day Jashn-e Aroosi is very similar to a western-style wedding reception, but with distinctly Irani styling. The ones I have seen feature huge spreads of fresh fruit, women dressed in traditional clothing serving tea to guests, tables full of sweets. [ MORE INFO ABOUT JASHN-E AROOSI HERE ]

Los Angeles Persian wedding reception

This wedding gets its own barrage of posts, because I am kind of in love with the detailed attention that goes into the planning for a Persian wedding celebration. All of the Iranian people I know LOVE life’s beautiful things… flowers, fresh food, family, dancing, fancy clothing, bling. So you can see why they as a people group would excel at weddings! It’s an excuse to go shopping, catch up with friends from out of town, and eat the best food ever. (Side note: I am also starting to understand why my own off-the-rack J.Crew wedding dress didn’t sit well with my mother-in-law!)

Anita and Haady’s reception was breathtaking. They utilized the terrace of Anita’s family home up in the foothills of LA, overlooking the entire city skyline. The space was well-planned and lit up with twinkle lights and candles as it got dark. As a bonus, the wedding fell on the 4th of July so we were treated to about 30 different fireworks displays throughout the evening.

Los Angeles Persian wedding reception

Of course the dancing was spirited, the food was delicious, the fruit bowls and candy dishes overflowing. It was an intimate wedding and the guests (all pictured in final photo above) stayed late into the night.

As a final note, one of my favorite portraits of the day. I did a similar shot for Suzy and Rod, who were married at the same location in April.

Los Angeles Persian wedding reception