COVID-19 restrictions did not stop an Indian bride and groom from throwing a big fat wedding for their guests, albeit virtual. The pair hosted a wedding reception in the metaverse with hundreds of friends and family joining in from across the world.

The couple, Dinesh SP and Janaganandhini Ramaswamy, were allowed to have 3,000 guests join their virtual celebration Sunday. “Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, I had to cap the number of friends and family at 100 for my marriage and reception,” Dinesh told The New Indian Express. “So, I decided to solemnize my marriage in the presence of a small group of people … and hold my reception virtually on metaverse. I was also working on blockchain technology for the past one year.”

Metaverse refers to virtual 3D environments where users sitting miles away from each other can virtually meet; their avatars can also interact with each other on the virtual platform. Dinesh’s virtual wedding is reportedly believed to be the first-ever metaverse wedding in India, according to the New York Post.

Dinesh, who comes from the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu, also found a special way to honor the bride’s father, who passed away last year. The groom had an avatar specially created for his deceased father-in-law as a wedding present for his wife.

“My father-in-law passed away last April," Dinesh said ahead of the wedding, according to CNN. "So, I'm creating a 3D avatar that looks similar to (him), and he will bless me and my fiancée. That's something we can only do in the metaverse."

The bride’s late father was the guest of honor at the much-talked-about virtual wedding celebration, and his avatar greeted the guests whose avatars made it to the reception.

A 15-member team from the company called TardiVerse pooled in their efforts for about a month to make the metaverse reception come true. Being huge fans of Harry Potter, the couple chose a Hogwarts-themed party for their reception.

Guests, using their laptops, phones and tablets, were able to choose a generic avatar as they joined the virtual wedding. They were also able to enter their names and step into metaverse with the click of a button. Apart from interacting with other guests, those attending the virtual wedding were also able to shake hands with the bride and groom on their big day.

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Representative image Credit: Pixabay
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