Your wedding day deserves a venue that understands your culture, your family, and the scale of your vision. At The Willows in Ilford, we’ve spent years becoming one of London’s most trusted Asian wedding venues, hosting celebrations for Pakistani, Indian, Bengali, Gujarati, Punjabi, Sri Lankan, Afghan, and South Asian families across East London, Essex, and beyond. From intimate gatherings of 80 to celebrations of 900, our flexible spaces and all-inclusive packages are built to give you the day you’ve imagined — without the stress of managing a dozen different suppliers.
Chandlo Matli The first ceremony, marking formal acceptance of the match. The bride’s father, with four male relatives, visits the groom’s home and applies a red chandlo, a vermillion mark, to his forehead. The wedding date is fixed during this ceremony.
Gol Dhana The engagement ceremony, named after the jaggery and coriander seeds distributed as symbols of sweetness and prosperity. Rings are exchanged, and the couple seeks blessings from five married women for a lasting marriage.
Mameru The maternal uncle’s ceremony, held a day or two before the wedding. The bride’s mama arrives with gifts, a traditional Panetar saree, jewellery, and ivory bangles called chura, in one of the most honoured visits of the entire week.
Garba and Sangeet Music-filled evenings built around traditional Garba and Dandiya dance. Often held on the Mehendi night as a warm-up to the festivities. This is where the whole extended family, and often the whole community, comes together to celebrate.
Saat Phera Unlike the seven pheras common in many Indian traditions, Gujarati couples take four pheras around the sacred fire. Each one represents a core promise: dharma, artha, kama, and moksha, duty, prosperity, love, and spiritual liberation.
Garba nights need genuine open floor space. A full circle of dancers, sometimes the whole guest list at once, doesn’t fit into a room built around banquet tables. Ask any venue directly whether their main hall can be cleared for proper Garba and Dandiya dancing.
Vegetarian catering matters here more than in many other Indian traditions. Many Gujarati families keep a fully vegetarian kitchen. Confirm this with any venue directly rather than assuming a general Indian menu will cover it properly.
For many families, the main burden in preparing an Gujarati wedding isn’t the celebration itself — it’s the unending coordination of independent caterers, decorators, entertainment companies and vendors, all of whom have their own contracts and needs. Our all-inclusive Gujarati wedding packages are meant to take that tension away completely.
When you choose an all-inclusive package at The Willows, you’re getting the full wedding experience in one agreement – our venue, our award-winning food crew, our décor setup and our specialised events management. You have one staff, one invoice, one clear vision — yours.
Gujarati wedding guest lists are famously generous, and we love that. Our Grand Ballroom can seat over 500 guests in a single pillar-free space, while our combined venue capacity reaches over 1,000. Whether you are hosting an intimate gathering of 80 or a full-scale wedding of 900, we have a space that works, and a crew that makes it feel just right.
Here’s why The Willows is different from other Gujarati wedding venues in Essex and why our couples book us years in advance:
✓ Grand Ballroom — pillar-free, 500+ seated
✓ Multiple suites for multi-day celebrations
✓ Civil Ceremony licence held on site
✓ All-inclusive Asian wedding packages available
✓ Halal-certified in-house catering
✓ Private tasting sessions for every couple
✓ Dedicated Asian wedding coordinator
✓ Prayer room facilities on request
✓ Segregated reception options available
✓ Customisable mood lighting throughout
✓ Stage, backdrop & décor packages
✓ Ample free on-site car parking
✓ Easy access — Elizabeth line to Hainault
✓ Accessible from Essex via A12 / M25
✓ Trusted supplier network (photography, florals, entertainment)
✓ 2025 & 2026 dates still available
Find answers to the questions we’re asked most about booking and hosting your event with us.
Yes, a Garba or Sangeet night is a distinct, high-energy event, and our spaces are built for exactly this, open floor space for group dancing and room for a dhol player or live music.
Yes, vegetarian catering is standard, and many Gujarati families keep their entire wedding menu vegetarian or Jain-friendly, our kitchen can plan around this from the start.
Yes, our spaces take a Mandap and ceremonial staging, with the room reset into a reception layout afterwards.
Yes, this can be booked as its own smaller gathering ahead of the main wedding, in a space suited to a more intimate family event like the Premier Suite.
Gujarati weddings often run uptop 800 guests once extended family and community are included, comfortably within the Grand Ballroom’s 800 capacity.
Yes, this is a common request and something we support regularly, ask your coordinator about connected-date availability when you enquire.
Yes, a private room can be arranged for the bridal party, ask your coordinator what’s available for your date.
The bride’s father formally visits the groom’s home, applies a red vermillion mark to his forehead, and the wedding date is fixed, marking official acceptance of the match.
Garba and Dandiya dancing bring the whole community together, often on the Mehendi night, and are considered one of the most joyful, essential parts of the entire wedding week.
Yes, our grounds give a strong natural backdrop, ask your coordinator about timing this around your event schedule.
Start enquiring nine to twelve months out for a multi-event booking, so all your connected dates are held together at the venue.
Yes, our dry-hire option means you’re free to bring in any external caterer of your choice, alongside our fully equipped kitchen.
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