Politicos, stars throng Saif-Kareena's grand Walima

From Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's wife Gursharan Kaur to Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi to celebrities like Nandita Das and Imtiaz Ali, the Dawat-e-Walima (wedding reception) of star couple Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor here Thursday saw the who's who from politics and Bollywood in their finery.

Dressed in elegant sherwanis and colourful ghararas, lehengas and saris, some of the country's noted personalities attended the grand event, hosted by Saif's mother, veteran actress and Begum of Pataudi, Sharmila Tagore. The celebrations marked the culmination of a five-day wedding gala for Saif, 42, and Kareena, 32.

"Bless the couple and join in our happiness," Sharmila, who looked regal and resplendent in a gold sari, told reporters here outside the well-decked government bungalow at Aurangzeb Road here.

Among other attendees at the event were ministers Farooq Abdullah, Rajiv Shukla, Jyotiraditya Scindia, Kamal Nath, Congress' Renuka Chowdhary and Marxist leader Sitaram Yechury, Bharatiya Janata Party leader Arun Jaitley, Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia, former Samajwadi Party leader Amar Singh, and politician-writer Shashi Tharoor with his wife Sunanda.

Celebrities from the world of cricket included Bishen Singh Bedi, Kapil Dev and Ajay Jadeja, while Ritu Kumar, Meera and Muzaffar Ali and Manish Malhotra represented the fashion fraternity.

Malhotra, who took care of Kareena's entire trousseau, only hinted that the new bride, daughter of Randhir Kapoor and Babita, wore a gold gharara with shades of pink for the event. Saif, son of the late Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi, is said to have worn a black sherwani by designer Raghavendra Rathore.

Lyricist Prasoon Joshi and sarod player Amjad Ali Khan also came for the extravaganza, and wished the couple "all the best".

With a guest list so eclectic and VIP such as this, the security was upto the mark. At least a force of 300 security personnel were appointed for the event since 6 p.m. Thursday, an official told IANS.

The bungalow was decorated in cream and gold, with mogra flowers and traditional brass hanging diyas. A major attraction at the entrance was an intricately embroidered carpet, said to be an over a century old possession of the Pataudi family.

According to the buzz, the interiors for the function were inspired by the Mughal period, and the set up had several royal artefacts.

This was the last in the wedding revelry of one of the most awaited unions of tinsel town. The celebrations began with a pre-wedding bash at Kareena's Mumbai residence Sunday, followed by a registered wedding at Saif's Bandra residence Tuesday afternoon.

The couple exchanged vows at a Mumbai hotel in the presence of Bollywood's glitterati, including Shah Rukh Khan with wife Gauri, Karan Johar, Tusshar Kapoor, Priety Zinta, Anil Kapoor with daughter Sonam.