The South Asian Student Association held its biggest annual cultural event Friday evening — a mock wedding in the Summit Trail Solarium. 

Aleena Siddiqi, a junior biology major, and Jose Luis Nacpil, a sophomore hospitality and tourism management major, were the pretend couple for the wedding. Siddiqi is the vice president for SASA and Nacpil is the vice president for ASA.

Siddiqi, the bride, said the event is “an opportunity for people to step out and feel the vibe, see what’s going on and eat some good food,” referring to this event as a “big fat Indian wedding,” referencing the 2002 romantic comedy “My Big Fat Greek Wedding.”

Being from the Philippines, Nacpil said his knowledge of South Asian culture was “zero to none,” explaining it is a whole different world. He also mentioned he was surprised by the colorfulness of the culture and how there are many different religions compared to his home country. 

“This mock wedding has been such a learning experience,” Nacpil said. 

The wedding was inspired by a traditional Hindu wedding and had five different dance performances. The performers, dressed in traditional South Asian wear, danced choreography organized by Ekjot Kochar, a freshman hospitality and tourism management major and external affairs chair for SASA. 

Traditional Punjabi food was served to the guests. This included chicken biryani, white rice, butter paneer and naan. For dessert, gulab jamun was served along with yogurt for guests who struggled with the spice of the other foods. Kochar said these foods were catered for the event.

Once the guests finished eating, the wedding ceremony began. During the ceremony, both Sidiqqi and Nacpil sat down while two people walked around them, throwing flower petals. The petals represent a blessing of good luck and prosperity. 

After the wedding ceremony, the couple had their first dance, and the dance floor opened for guests, leading to nearly an hour of dancing and a completely sweat-drenched groom, until the event ended.

Siddiqi said this event meant “the absolute whole world” to her, and although she has lived most of her life in rural areas, far from big cities, seeing all of her friends committed to celebrating her culture was “absolutely insane.” 

Siddiqi said this will be a core memory from college, and she appreciates the hard work SASA and ASA members put into the event.

Correction: This article originally contained incorrect information regarding the event organizers and event details. This information has since been changed.