Pre-wedding ceremony held at Aishwarya Rai's house 2007

Mumbai, April 19 2007

Mehandi, a traditional Indian pre-wedding ceremony, has been taking place at Aishwarya Rai's Mumbai home in the run up to India's biggest ever celebrity union.

Fans stood outside her residence for hours, until finally as night fell, the former Miss World's groom Abhishek Bachchan, and his family, arrived by bus.

However, they saw very little of the wedding party, which included another A-List Bollywood star, Abhishek's father Amitabh Bachchan, due to the tight security outside. The actual wedding takes place on Friday, April 20th.

Traditionally, the Mehandi ceremony is mainly held at the bride's place on the eve of the wedding ceremony. It is mainly a ladies function where female friends, family members and relatives of the bride come together, and put traditional tumeric paste designs on the bride's hands and feet. It's also common for the couple

and their family to perform choreographed dance routines.

Designer Neeta Lulla says she's designed a sari and a red and gold embroidered skirt for the bride to wear at the ceremony.

A red and blue air-conditioned tent with huge mirrors is being readied in a garden adjoining the Bachchan's suburban family home for what is billed as India's " wedding of the year."

Bachchan and Rai were engaged to be married in a private ceremony in January.

Family friends have told the media to respect the family's wish for privacy.

Category:

Entertainment

Tags:

• aishwarya rai
• abhishek bachchan