Dilpreet and Manvir

Dilpreet and Manvir’s beautiful Anand Karaj ceremony at Guru Nanak Darbar Gurdwara, Gravesend. The largest Gurdwara in Europe, this magnificent temple has so many astounding features, inside and out, markedly the iconic stained glass window, featured here behind the happy couple.

In our pre-wedding consultation, we discussed what they wanted to include in and omit from their composition, deciding that the window would be the main theme for the background, behind the important holy book (the Guru Granth Sahib).

In the Diwan Hall, where this painting is set, there’s a large gold domed palki, which houses the holy book and obscures most of the window. I usually, therefore, paint an angled view of this scene, positioning myself on the left-hand side, in order to include both the window and the palki, with the couple on the right side of the canvas.

Dilpreet and Manvir wanted a face-on, more symmetrical viewpoint, with them in the centre of the composition, which would mean that the huge dome would be obscuring most of the iconic window. They knew that the dome would be in all of their photographs, so wouldn’t be forgotten, and none of their photos would show the whole window (I had to get right behind the palki to see what the parts behind it look like) so decided to omit the dome from the painting, while still including the holy book between them. A wonderful thing about painting is that you can create an imaginative composition by using a little artistic license.

After the ceremony, some guests came over to see the painting and kindly translated the Punjabi embroidered on the chanani (overhanging the palki)… “Why are you wavering? God will look after you” …a comforting message about faith that speaks straight to the heart.