Bollywood stars tie knot in India’s royal wedding

MUMBAI - Agence France-Presse

Bollywood’s famous couple Saif Ali Khan (L) and Kareena Kapoor step out on a balcony to greet waiting fans after getting married in Mumbai. AP photo

Bollywood glamor couple Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor, who have been dating for five years, finally tied the knot in Mumbai on Oct. 16 in a much-anticipated Indian celebrity wedding.

Kapoor, 32, and Khan, 42, India’s answer to Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, held a quiet official ceremony at the groom’s home, which will be followed by an evening reception at the grand Taj Mahal Palace hotel.

The newly-weds married in front of close friends and family, before emerging to pose and wave to the large press pack and fans waiting outside. Kapoor was dressed in an embellished red shawl, while Khan wore a simple grey kurta.

“It was a registered marriage with three witnesses, Kareena’s father Randhir Kapoor, her mother Babita and Saif’s mother Sharmila Tagore,” marriage registrar Surekha Ramesh told the Press Trust of India news agency.

The couple, dubbed “Saifeena” by the media, come from famous acting families and their wedding attracting frenzied media attention.

“Party time” ran the headline in the Mail Today, which offered breathless coverage of a pre-wedding function in Mumbai on Oct. 14. “Dressed every inch like a bride-to-be, Kareena dazzled in an orange-yellow lehenga (skirt) and a shimmering golden choli (top),” it said.

Another celebration is reportedly planned at the Pataudi Palace, the ancestral home of Khan in northern Haryana state.

Khan became the new Nawab (Muslim prince) of the former princely state of Pataudi last year after the death of his famous cricketing father Mansur Ali Khan.