Imagine getting married in the coolest place ever – the top of Mount Everest, That’s exactly what Moni Mulepati and Pem Dorjee Sherpa did back in 2005.
When Moni Mulepati’s relatives kept questioning her about marriage, little did they know she’d take their questions to new heights – quite literally. “I’ll get married in a unique way. When I get married, it’s going to be big,” she’d tell them. And she deliver on that promise.
On May 30, 2005, Moni Mulepati and Pem Dorjee Sherpa made history by becoming the first couple to marry at the summit of Mount Everest.
Moni Mulepati, born in 1981, and Pem Dorjee Sherpa, born in 1982, met during a 45-day advanced climbing course in December 2003. Mulepati, a member of the Newar community, had developed an interest in climbing while studying in Thailand. Dorjee, hailing from the Khumbu region of Nepal, had already summited Everest before their wedding climb.
The couple’s decision to marry at top Everest was not just a personal milestone but also a statement that transcended cultural boundaries.
Their wedding ceremony, though brief due to the extreme conditions, was deeply meaningful. The couple exchanged garlands and applied red powder to each other’s foreheads, a symbolic gesture in Nepali culture to exchanging wedding rings.
Mulepati became the first non-Sherpa Nepalese woman to summit Mount Everest, breaking new ground for women in mountaineering. Their wedding also promoted tourism and showcased the beauty of Nepal’s mountains on a global stage.
Upon their return to Kathmandu, the couple received a hero’s welcome, celebrated as local celebrities. Their story became a source of inspiration, that love can indeed fight all obstacles, whether they be physical mountains or societal expectations.
