Review: A crowd pleaser and great to work with! Very accommodating and really listens. Sometimes a bit tough to get ahold of, but the ultimate professional on the day of the wedding!
The first thing you'll want to do when choosing your wedding entertainment is to decide between a DJ or a band. I'll admit...I don't know the first thing about looking for bands! We went with a DJ because there is nothing I like better than dancing to pop or hip-hop at a wedding. We also had a very mixed guestlist (Indian and non-Indian, young and old), and knew that we wanted someone who kept up with both Indian music (and could play the classics and current Bollywood hits) and American music. Enter DJ Shilpa.
We found her (that's right - her!) through my brother's friend from Rutgers University. Shilpa went to Rutgers, during which time she started her business with her partner, Neel. She has been DJing for just about a decade now, and the two of them together are a dynamic and efficient team. They went above and beyond for us...not only dealing with the music aspects, but most of the other technical stuff going on...our lighting, our video screens, etc. We've recommended her to EVERYONE we know, and couldn't have been happier.
The good:
*We met with Shilpa several times throughout our planning process. She took TONS of notes each time and not only answered all of our questions, but asked several of her own. I'd say by the time the wedding rolled around, she knew our personalities best as compared to all of our other wedding vendors.
*Shilpa has an awesome ability to read a crowd and choose music based on this overall mood. She switched between Indian and non-Indian music effortlessly, and amazingly kept EVERYONE on the dance floor throughout the night. Too often, you will see the Indian guests exit the dancefloor when Kanye or JT are played, but this wasn't the case at all at our reception.
*We booked Shilpa when she was really starting to grow her business. She was willing to take risks and experiment with lighting and video, and excited about doing so throughout our planning process. For example, we chose to do uplighting around the entire ballroom to create a more ambient and romantic effect...although we had originally chosen amber light for the entire night, Shilpa decided at the last minute to have the lights change colors in a subtle, morph-y kind of way. It made for an AMAZING backdrop, and was a huge hit with our guests!
*Shilpa was present for the entire day...she oversaw the sound aspects during the wedding, and later, the complete setup (and music, of course) for the reception. She repeatedly checked in with us to see how things were going, but wasn't at all invasive.
*Shilpa was really honest with us, on everything from whether our screens would be too big and in-you-face, to our music choices for introductions. We tended to be on the indecisive side, so her honesty was both refreshing and extremely helpful in moving us along.
*I can't attest to what her pricing is like now, but when we booked her it was very very fair. I wouldn't be surprised if she has since increased her pricing, but in my opinion, her services are worth it (and still cheaper than some of the more well-known Indian DJs in the tri-state area).
*She knew our day's schedule backwards and forwards. It was a real help because she was pretty self-sufficient on our wedding day.
The not-so-good:
*In the beginning, Shilpa was tough to get ahold of....she tended to return our phone calls, but not our emails. It was very frustrating at the time (when you are especially manic about booking everything), but in the weeks leading up to our wedding she totally stepped it up and was there whenever we needed her. I know her business was growing fast at that time, and I think she just needed to get a better handle on managing it all.
*We put together a list of songs that we definitely wanted played at the wedding (*ahem* Journey), but never heard them! We later found out that had we provided Shilpa with the digital files ourselves, it wouldn't have been an issue. I *think* other DJs will just purchase music that you request from them, but I'm not sure. In any case...it was a minor annoyance (although someone did request Britney as our final song and all was right in my world), but something you should be aware of when working with her.
*Our lighting and other technical aspects turned out AWESOME, but it came at a price. I have no means of comparison, but I know uplighting around a room is expensive (and we had an entire ballroom to light!) I still think her pricing is fair, but you can always shop around for the technical stuff, and just leave the DJing to her. We wanted everything in one package, and didn't have the time to research other vendors, so we just went with her.
Tips:
*I think that personal recommendations are the best way to choose your wedding music! Ask around and ask early!
*Don't hold back...it's better to be honest and open with your DJ about your personalities, as well as those of your guests. If the music is good at your wedding, people will remember...providing your DJ with personal details with really help with the music selection and general tempo of the night.
*If you want specific music played at certain points, make sure your DJ has it in his/her library. If it's missing, find out whether you need to obtain it, or whether he/she will do it for you.
*Give your DJ a detailed schedule of your day's events (actually this is a good thing to do for all of your vendors).
*Make sure you go over the pronunciation of every name with your DJ (Shilpa asked us for these)...nothing more embarrassing than a butchered wedding party name!
*If you are looking for a dramatic punch to your decor, uplighting is the best way to achieve it. It can transform a room! But, it doesn't come cheap, so ask about it early and shop around. Often, your DJ will have this equipment, and you can simply do everything through their service. This might make things more seamless on your wedding day.
*We had 2 projector screens in the front of the ballroom, and a plasma screen in front of the DJ booth in the back. We ran a continuous slideshow of pictures (baby, youth, and family) on the larger screens, and had our photogs show some 'teaser' pics from the morning events on the plasma screens. Shilpa was instrumental in setting all of this up for us, and our guests loved them!
We obviously have more positives than negatives, and on the day of the wedding, DJ Shilpa was the consummate professional. We couldn't have asked for more!
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