Buses will be available to take guests to and from our hotels on Friday. Masks will be required for the shuttle. Please meet your bus by 5 pm for a 5:15 departure. Look for the Phadke-Baker sign on the bus. Waldorf Astoria: Shuttle pick up is on Walton St. outside the courtyard entrance Westin: Shuttle pick up is on Delaware across the street from the hotel. Return shuttles will be available starting at 9:45 pm. The last shuttle will be at 12 am when the event ends.
We will have a hospitality suite open to all guests on Saturday. It is located in the Presidential Suite on the 26th floor. Please stop by for beverages and snacks between 9 am-4:30 pm, and a light lunch will be available between 12-2 pm. We will also have mehendi artists in the suite from 12-2 pm (and they will be available at the event from 7-9 pm).
Here’s more information about the precautions we’re taking for a safer celebration: Our wedding Friday at Chicago Illuminating Company is an indoor-outdoor event. The ceremony and dinner will take place outdoors, while the indoor cocktail and dancing area will be well ventilated with several open doors. Our event Saturday starts in the Waldorf Astoria courtyard and then continues in the hotel ballrooms. While it is indoors, we have two rooms in addition to the main ballroom where people can gather, so the max capacity is more than twice our guest count. All of our guests over 12 have reported full vaccination status for COVID. To make our wedding safer for everyone we request that you still get tested for COVID prior to attending. We recommend the Binax test because it’s reasonably priced and you can do it at home. We suggest taking this around 24 hours prior to the event in case a false positive result requires follow-up testing. We have extra tests if you need one!
We feel so fortunate to be able to have a large celebration with our family and friends. Your attendance at our wedding and adherence to our COVID safety protocol is the best gift we could ask for! If you do choose to give us an additional gift, we have provided an option to donate to a non-profit organization benefiting the Chicago community. Donation information for our two chosen organizations, The Greater Chicago Food Depository and After School Matters, are below: The Greater Chicago Food Depository helps provide food to local food pantries, soup kitchens, and shelters. Please visit our fundraising page at https://www.myfooddrive.org/drive.php?alexandneena. There are two options - adding specific food items to the cart or click skip and donate. Chicago Food Depository is a tax-deductible donation and all proceeds donated through the virtual food drive page will be used to purchase food for the community in need.
After School Matters provides after-school and summer programs for teens across Chicago, including arts, communications & leadership, sports, and STEM. Donations are tax-deductible and 84.5% of donations go to program expenses. Visit https://www.afterschoolmatters.org/give-now/ In the Tribute Gift section select the box "This gift is in honor or memory of someone" From the dropdown, select this gift is “In honor of” Enter Neena & Alex’s Wedding Thank you for helping support the Chicago community!
We are excited to celebrate some of our favorite Indian wedding traditions with you and invite you to wear Indian clothing for the Saturday celebration. Women: There are many different types of outfits, including - Lehenga (2-piece top and skirt), salwar kameez (pants and long top) which comes in many variations – Anarkali, sharara, palazzo, straight cut, sarees, fusion gowns. Men: Sherwani, kurta If you’d prefer not to wear Indian clothing, women can wear a cocktail or long dress. We suggest bright bold colors, patterns, beading, etc. Men can wear a suit. Here are some ideas for websites if you’d like to find attire online: Amazon Etsy https://www.utsavfashion.com/ https://www.kalkifashion.com/ https://www.azafashions.com/ https://www.indianweddingsaree.com https://shopkynah.com/ https://www.perniaspopupshop.com/