“Bollywoodizing” your Debut Party

Bollywood has become a colorful trend since Indian cinema entered the Hollywood scene. With its entry into the mainstream, it has influenced more people with their style. More people are even using Bollywood as a theme for their parties. Since you’re a fresh young girl, the colorful Bolllywood can be perfect for you.

Throwing a Bollywood themed party will give you and your guests serious but unique fun. If you want your party to be glamorous and edgy, there’s no better way than to “Bollywoodize” it.

Invites

For your Bollywood themed debut party, you can make your invites into a Rangoli. One of the most popular art forms in India, Rangoli is a sandpainting decoration created with the use of finely ground white powder. You can make beautiful patterns for your invites using lots of colors like the Rangoli. By making your own Rangoli-patterned invites, you can showcase your creativity to your friends and family!
Making a Rangoli invite is easy. All you need are colored sands in various colors (mostly available in craft stores or at bookstores), PVA glue, a pencil and a heavy card stock. Research for Indian patterns in the internet or look at books about India for inspiration. Use your pencil to outline the design. Fill in the parts you want to have the same color with PVA glue then dust them with the colored sand.

Ask the people you want to invite to come dressed like a Bollywood star to complete the Bollywood feel of your party. Coming in Indian traditional costume may also do the trick.

Food

The meal you will serve your guests is of course one of the most important parts of your debut party. Food can either make or break your birthday celebration, so make sure that as much as possible, you serve the best food. You have so much to choose from Indian cuisine. Plan your menu in advance so that you can still take into consideration your guests’ individual tastes and preferences even if it’s Indian food.

Indian food are typically spicy. Plus, they are designed to be served with a combination. Even though you are salivating for a chicken curry, it’s better to combine it with other recipes or food items like Indian bread. By complementing the main dish with other dishes, your guests will enjoy their meal more. Learn to create a complete Indian meal.

A complete Indian meal consists of starch (bread or rice) and one or more dishes (vegetable and lentil combination, meat or fish dish) and chutney. Ask your caterer what they can serve according to your Indian theme. For your food’s presentation, line your plates with banana leaves and serve the food on them.

Decorations

Bollywood is a very colorful world! Color plays an important role in the culture of the Indians and each color has its own significance may it be cultural or religious in meaning. To sprinkle your debut party with color, we suggest you do the following:
– Decorate your table with complementary table cloths and set it with reed mats.
– Decorate your sofas with colorful throw pillows in various lively hues.
– Create a unique centerpiece for each table. Place a glass bowl at the center and fill it with water. Then add floating candles on it, or put flowers or glass beads that stand out because of their colors.
– Instead of using many lights to light the room, use more candles instead. Just be careful not to let them near the cloths. Place them strategically to avoid it becoming a fire hazard. Lighting a hundred candles in your venue will make a breathtaking atmosphere. Furthermore, most people look best by candle light.
– Place a stunning red carpet on the floor to accent the Bollywood feel.
– Play Bollywood music at your party to set the right mood for your guests.
– Burn incense in the room but don’t use a fragrance that’s too strong. Do a sniff test first before purchasing.

Dress

The most exciting thing about having a Bollywood themed debut party is having to dress up in pretty colors. Indian clothes are very colorful and there are several styles commonly worn throughout the country.
You can have your designer incorporate the common forms of Indian dresses to add a cultural appeal to your party.

The most common and one of the oldest dress is the sari. Many regional costumes are based on this basic style. Sari is made of either cotton or silk and can either be patterned or in a solid color. Sometimes they can be embroidered, sometimes they can be hand dyed. Sari can also be covered in metallic embellishments or tiny mirrors. Wrapped around to form a skirt and then draped over the shoulder, the sari is worn with a choli, which is a fitted blouse. If you are having your dress custom made, you can customize the choli as well as your sari according to your taste.

Another type of dress for women is the Ghaghra Cholis, which is made up of the ghaghra, a long pleated skirt, and the choli. This costume can be seen throughout the country. The Ghaghra cholis is covered with many tiny mirros and are full of beads. They can also be dyed in various detailed patterns.

The Salwar Khameez on the other hand is made of a khameez, which is a long tunic, and the loose pants called salwar. The Salwar Khameez has its origins in Northern India and they can be made from either cotton or silk. This has undergone many variations depending on the fashion trend. You can have your debut dress patterned against this costume if you want to be comfortable during your party.

The fun part about dressing up for your party is planning your design months before. There are many variations you can do with each Bollywood costume, so make sure you have ample time for the production of the dress you will be wearing on your 18th birthday.

Ask you friends to dress up in Indian costume as well. It doesn’t have to be elaborate. As long as it’s colorful, it will do. Or if you have the budget, you can distribute a colorful scarf or a sari to your guests and have them wear it however they want!

Accessories

Indian women wear lots of accessories all the time, and you can see this in pictures of Bollywood actresses. With a Bollywood theme, you don’t need to worry about over-accessorizing because in Bollywood fashion, it’s really all about adorning yourself with accessories. Aside from wearing lots of jewelry, you can also have fun with the art of Mehndi.

The Art of Mehndi

For your Bollywood party, adorn yourself with intricate patterns and designs on the body parts where you want to draw your guests’ attention on like your face or your hands and feet through the ancient art of Mehndi.

If you want a completely unique outfit for your Bollywood-themed 18th birthday party, get a Mehndi a.k.a. the Henna Tattoo. You can make the design as complicated or simple as you want it to be and the great thing about it is that it is painless, natural and non-toxic. You can search for elaborate or simple designs in books, magazines or the internet and have these designs painted on your skin as Mehndi. It can also last for a few days to as long as a month, therefore, you can have a little remembrance of your party days after the celebration.

The Mehndi, an ancient Indian body art, is a tradition that dates back to 5000 years. But since it was reinvented as a modern fashion accessory (thanks to Madonna and Demi Moore), it can be worn by young people like you as well. Since it doesn’t require the skin to be pierced, getting a Mehndi is completely painless and safe. It’s just like getting a Henna Tattoo on your feet, hands and arms as a form of accessory. Mehndi is drawn with the use of a paste made from finely ground leaves of the henna plant. The Indian henna tattoo typically uses reddish-brown Mehndi with which to draw very fine ornate lines of floral or lacy patterns as opposed to the large floral designs you can see in Arabic designs. Indian mehndi designs usually incorporate the peacock (national bird of India), and elephant with a raised trunk (good luck symbol), and the lotus flower (national flower).

Now that you have an idea about how to go about this theme, enjoy brainstorming even more with your parents, friends or siblings and plan a very unique birthday party ahead!

Mehndi Photo Source: Urdumag