A day before the wedding the palm and feet of the bride are decorated with mehendi, or henna.

This is primarily a ladies tea-party; however the male relatives are allowed to be present. On the mehendi, the future bride has her hands and feet intricately patterned with a paste which is a recipe of henna, oil, lemon juice and some water tinted with tea. The application of mehendi, or henna, takes about 4-6 hours. Ideally, the bride-to-be should not wash her feet or hands until the paste has completely dried. Invitees also design their hands with mehendi. Mehendi is not only decorative, with designs of the bride and groom, and peacocks and the wedding, it also signifies the love in a marriage. The darker the mehendi, the stronger the love.