Some more party venue news

One Continent Atria has opened in Abids near Taj Mahal Hotel. It has very classy interiors and a decent sized banquet option(for 400 people) adjoining an open terrace.They have an elegant private dining roomas well.And a lounge bar that can cater to dance parties.

Leo Continental is reinventing itself in a swanky new avtar with enhanced banquet facilities and a new restaurant . It's all set to looking good post August 15'th when it's getting inaugurated.

Another place to experience is the wading pool at Leonia Resorts. They actually provide seating in the pool for party guests.

The old Haveli is no longer available for parties as the hall is being rebuilt. It is expected to open sometime in September.

Updated event venue list

I've now put up the latest list with over 50 event venues in Hyderabad and Secunderbad. The party venue list includes:

1. Alankritha Resorts
2. YogiBear Putt and Children's Park
3. Sanjeevaiah Park
4. Jalavihar
5. NTR Garden's Party Area
6. Hyderabad Marriott
7. Hotel Green Park
8. Pingle Venkatramana Reddy Hall
9. Hotel Minerva Grand
10. Hotel Basera
11. Hotel Taj Tristar
12. Zoroastrian Garden
13. Bantia Gardens
14. Chowmoholla Palace
15. Durgam Cheruvu
16. Party Cruiser on TankBund
17. Novotel
18. ITC Grand Kakatiya Sheraton
19. Golkonda
20. Fortune Katriya
21. Taj Deccan
22. Taj Krishna
23. Taj Banjara
24. Shilpakala Vedika
25. Haveli
26. Country Club
27. Dhola Ri Dhani
28. Tandoor
29. Pepper Pods
30. Minerva Grand Banjara Hills
31. Minerva Coffee Shop
32. Leonia Resort
33. NKM Grand
34. Chillies
35. Aditya Park Inn
36. Taj Mahal Hotel
37. Hotel Silver Park
38. Hotel Nakshatra
39. Asrani International
40. Leo Continental
41. Tabla
42. Katriya De Royal
43. Moksh
44. The Grand Solitaire
45. Cedar
46. Pavillion
47. Kasani GR Hotel
48. Inner Circle
49. Walden Care
50. Indu Hospitality
51. One Continent Atria

I have tried to provide exhaustive information about each of the venues in terms of location, prices of vegetarian and non vegetarian food , capacities of the various banquet options in each of the venues and the facilities provided ( children's play area, dias, music system , lighting ,seating etc)

Ideas for a teenager's party

If you are a teenager and want to throw a cool party for your friends either because it's your birthday or you are graduating from school or as an ice breaker party to get to know your new college juniors or seniors , I have some ideas that I find are popular with teens to add to the entertainment value:

• Once you decide on where the party is to be held , keeping in mind the no. of guests, the ease of access , quality of food etc , divide the party zone into 3 sections as shown in the picture above.
• The Dance Zone would need the following:

1. A music system with an amplifier , a mixing console ( for the DJ to mix tracks) , >2 speakers( that support mid , low and high frequencies of sound), twin deck , atleast one microphone

2. Dance Floor lights including power cans , strobe lights , reflector balls and smoke generator

3.Last and definitely not the least- a good DJ who can rock the party

• A bartender for serving mocktails is a good option- try and get someone who can really entertain with tricks , fire juggling etc .
• A karaoke station can be built into the dance zone for karaoke buffs- the DJ himself can moonlight as a karaoke jockey
• A tattooist( for permanent / temporary tattoos) or a body piercer ( for the more adventurous) is another option.
• Some ideas on food - finger foods rock ( no one wants to hang around with a big plate of food) - go easy on the junk food and opt for soya burgers , whole wheat pizzas , juices which are definitely more popular than greasy fries and chips
• A fruit station to serve fresh juices /milkshakes , a make your ice cream or toss your pasta counter ,a chocolate fondue or a cheese fondue are some other ideas that would be new and different.

On the other hand - if your party is a sweet sixteen party where there will be predominantly girls - there are some more ideas for you in addition to the ones above:

• Rent a projector and watch a really cool movie on the big screen with chocolate coated popcorn and soda
• Have a tarot / crystal ball reading with your friends - hire a professional tarot or crystal ball reader
• Have a makeover party- hire a makeup and hair stylist to give you and your friends a new look - have some cool music playing and get someone to click before and after pictures.This is a good afternoon party idea

Have a rocking party!

update on the events venue listing

I've added 5 new venues :
1. Shilpakala Vedika
2.Country Club
3.Sajjan Goth Hall at Dhola ri Dhani
4.Haveli
5.The newly opened Tandoor at Begumpet White House Building
Do check out the updated list.
The more popular places especially in monsoon are now the hotels , shilpa kala vedika and places like Dhola ri Dhani's sajjan goth hall.Tandoor has a very nice ambience and the food is excellent.

Hyderabad event venues

Here's a list of venues in Hyderabad for parties, weddings and other special occasions. I thought I would share this information, that I have compiled in the course of my work as an event manager in Hyderabad.The list in this spreadsheet is not exhaustive, but covers most of the popular and convenient venues. Some party venues like Jalavihar, Chowmoholla Palace, Durgam Cheruvu etc are still not common and therefore have some amount of exclusivity. The hotels listed offer excellent service, good food and a nice ambience for most parties. All the places have parking facility available, although, for the parks, Tank Bund and Durgam Cheruvu only paid parking is available.

I have included the following event venues in Hyderabad:

1. Alankritha Resorts
2.YogiBear Putt and Children's Park
3. Sanjeevaiah Park
4. Jalavihar
5. NTR Garden's Party Area
6. Hyderabad Marriott
7. Hotel Green Park
8. Pingle Venkatramana Reddy Hall
9. Hotel Minerva Grand
10. Hotel Basera
11. Hotel Taj Tristar
12. Zoroastrian Garden
13. Bantia Gardens
14. Our Place Restaurant
15. Chowmoholla Palace
16. Durgam Cheruvu
17. Party Cruisers on Tank Bund
18.Novotel Accord
19 .ITC Grand Kakatiya Sheraton
20.Golconda Resort( Masab Tank)
21. Fortune Katriya
22.Taj Deccan
23.Taj Banjara
24.Taj Krishna

The location, capacity, facilities available, whether lighting , supplies, sound system,food etc is available and the rental charges / rates for each of the venues has been included in the list .If anyone has any further information to add to this list, do mail me, so that I can update accordingly.

New Ideas on party decoration

I had a refreshing 10 day break in the Ooty area which has inspired me with so many fresh ideas especially with flowers. When decorating entryways , we typically build arches with standard gerbera /roses and greens on a cloth backdrop. Other options are to make arches with balloons on an iron frame or to construct a plywood arch with rainbows/ theme related cartoon figures / stars etc.Another new option could be to fabricate , say a globe - decked with flowers of all colours or a flower rainbow or a 10 foot iron basket decorated fully with flowers. In fact, in the Botanical Gardens , the flower decorators had outdone themselves by constructing an Eiffel Tower replica( 15 foot high) covered with flowers . Such flower decked structures would look especially stunning in an outdoor party setting- say in Jalavihar glass house area or the lawns in the Taj Hotels or in Sanjeevaiah Park .

Another new idea , from the Mysore Palace - is a palace theme for a wedding - with baroque style backdrop - grand stained glass panels - pillars with gold leaf work -murals of wedding rituals - antique mandap - the darbar throne replica inside the mandap for the ceremony-- if we are ambitious then the grand archway for the entryway.This would be spectacular again in an outdoor environment.

Another idea for an outdoor wedding decoration would be complete with lush greenery , a waterfall , a few bells and chimes , the mandap decorated with spring flower bowers , a swing decorated with flowers for the couple to sit during the ceremony , the fire kund surrounded by terracotta figurines - this would make for a very ethnic and close to nature sort of an ambience refreshingly different from the standard closed mandaps.

A fancy bridal shower

The closest equivalent to a bridal shower in the Indian context is the Mehendi ceremony which is a sort of rite of passage for the bride .

Bridal showers are becoming fairly popular in India, with the brides friends throwing that one last party to their bachelorette friend .There is the fun element of games , music and dancing which gives everyone a chance to bond and unwind a few days before the marriage ceremony.There is also the custom of all the friends and women relatives bringing over gifts for the bride -they could either get anything they want or it could be something relating to a theme- for e.g ,gifts could center around the fact that the bride loves to be a perfect hostess - it could include things like decorative jars for preserves and sauces , wine racks , punch bowl , candy dishes, wine glasses, ice bucket , elegant coasters, candles/holders, flatware etc.

Here are some pointers for throwing bridal showers -

• Who throws a bridal shower - it's usually the bride's friends/family who plan the shower - the bride , her mother and the groom's mother are all consulted about the guest list - it could be a women's only or a couple's only shower also.
• Once the bride's friends decide on the budget , they can either informally invite people over phone or send formal printed invitations or in the case of an informal party - they can send whacky or unusual invitations ( invitation in a bottle - for say a " Beach" theme party)
• A suitable venue has to be fixed keeping in mind the number of guests , the convenience etc.See here for a list of party venues in Hyderabad.
• Engage a caterer to supply the food - they typically charge around Rs 270/- per plate.
  
• If there is a theme , the party venue has to be decorated accordingly - the gifts and the bridal favours could correspond to it.The music , games etc can also correspond to the theme.
  For e.g for a "Romance" theme - pink could be colour of choice for the decoration( balloons, streamers, banners , flowers ,lamps, bride's childhood pictures etc) , soft love songs could play in the background ,candles and flowers will add to the ambience. Going with the theme , a "Flying Wishes" experience will touch a chord in everyone- Ask each of the guests to write a wish /promise to the bride in a piece of paper- allow enough time to the bride to read each one of them- slip these papers inside empty balloons , fill them with helium and tie with a ribbon - let go together.
• By segmenting your shower into three stages, you can keep the party flowing.Don't let it get stale or your guests will get restless. For a three hour party, allow about 45 minutes to an hour per phase.

• First Stage - Introductions, games, setting the mood. As people arrive, introduce them to everyone, serve beverages and hors d'oeuvres. Get one person to conduct easy ice breaking games to get the people mixing.

• Second Stage - Dinner and dessert.

• Third Stage - Play any games or other activities you have planned. The bride then opens her presents. As the guests leave give them the party favours.