Kelly Clarkson’s Yellow Diamond Engagement Ring

Jan 30, 2013 Precious Platinum

American Idol winner and songstress Kelly Clarkson got engaged to boyfriend Brandon Blackstock when he proposed with a canary-yellow diamond and platinum engagement ring that he co-designed with jeweler Johnathon Arndt. The ring appears to have a 5 carats radiant-cut diamond surrounded by white diamonds and is set in Platinum.

The Tarun Tahiliani Sale

Jan 29, 2013 Bridal Shows & Wedding Exhibitions

Calling all fashionistas! The much awaited Tarun Tahiliani sale is here! Some really exquisite outfits are on offer at some unbelievable discounts from 50 to 80 percent. The sale is on only till 31st January, 2013. So hurry!

Locations
C 19 Defence Colony & DLF Emporio, New Delhi
Villar Ville, Colaba, Mumbai
Mi Casa Building, Bandra (West), Mumbai
8-2-577/1/C Road No 7, Banjara Hills, Hyderabad

SAB TV Family Celebrations at Taj Lands End

Jan 24, 2013 Celebrity Wedding Pictures

Ravi, son of Media Mogul Gautam Adhikari of SAB TV tied the knot with his childhood sweetheart Rubaina Gajiyani. The celebrations commenced with an intimate family Sangeet, after which was the traditional wedding and finally a grand reception at the Poolside Lawns of Hotel Taj Lands End.

Ravi and Rubaina

When we met Ravi and Rubaina at their pre-wedding shoot at his family home Adhikari Villa in Juhu, we asked Ravi how he met Rubaina. The shy groom smiled and replied. “Ask Rubaina”. His to-be- bride was only too happy to tell us more. “We met at Tuition classes. We were both in the eleventh standard, a year later Ravi evinced his interest in getting to know me. Only later did he tell me it was love at first sight.” Two years ago, we interacted with the Adhikari family when Ravi’s sister Urvee married Karan Vyas. This time Urvee spoke excitedly about how much more fun it was to plan her brother’s marriage. “In fact”, adds Urvee, “Now I am seriously toying with the idea of becoming a Wedding Planner. But I guess planning your family member’s wedding is quite different from doing it professionally.”

Urvee and Karan Vyas. Bharat Dabholkar, Poonam Dhillon.

The Sangeet

Ravi and Rubaina’s Reception at the Poolside Lawns was held on a breezy night at Mumbai’s most popular Wedding Reception venue. Chhagan Bhujbal like Gautam Adhikari, known to be a stickler for punctuality, was the first guest to arrive. Gautam Adhikari and all the family members were there at the venue at 8.00 pm sharp, and while most guests trooped in by 9.30 pm, many other guests couldn’t come till 10.00 pm thanks to the Friday evening traffic and the celebrations continued till midnight.

The Reception

Photographs Courtesy- DKreate Photography
www.facebook.com/dkreate.photography

South Mumbai’s Power Elite at the Hitkari-Misra Sangeet

Jan 21, 2013 Celebrity Wedding Pictures

The Sangeet & Cocktails Evening hosted by Debbie and Arun Hitkari to celebrate the wedding of their son Arjun with Gayatri Misra was a fun and elegant affair, at the Taj Mahal Hotel, Mumbai. Society diva Debbie and her businessman husband Arun are very popular in Mumbai’s society circles, and The Crystal Room was full of prominent social and business personalities, and beautiful women in exquisite lehengas. The venue was decorated with pink roses and jasmine, and after the choreographed performances, just before midnight, Mika stepped in and kept the young and the old glued to the dance floor.

Gayatri and Arjun, Groom’s Parents Arun & Debbie Hitkari

Mika Singh, Sheetal Mafatlal

It was Shaadi week continued for many guests who had just returned from the Kothari- Bhartia wedding in Chennai. Also present were many head honchos from the Tata Group where Gayatri’s father Ajoy K Misra works as the Director of Tata Global Beverages, in London. We spotted YES Bank Head Honcho Rana Kapoor with all his family members, a lot of guests walked up to greet newly weds Raakhe Kapoor and her dapper husband Alkesh Tandon. Seen dressed in ethnic finery were Praful Patel, Pallavi Jaikishan, Pinky & Sanjay Reddy, Sharmilla Khanna, Bijal Meswani, Surendra & Alka Hiranandani, Rashmi & Sudhir Behl, Mana & Sunil Shetty, Deepika Gehani, Sheetal & Atulya Mafatlal, Dilip & Shalini Piramal, Tanaaz Doshi, Ramesh & Kiran Sippy, Neeta Lulla, Lilette & Ravi Dubey, Seema & Jaideep Mehrohtra, Shobhaa & Dilip De with daughters Avantikka, Arundhati and Anindita.

The menu by Grand Chef Hemant Oberoi was served in the Ballroom. Awadhi, Thai, Italian and Mediterranean, with a vast dessert section with traditional winter sweets too- we loved the Til Chikki with chocolate and the delectable ‘Louki Halwa’ at the Halwa counter.

Debbie Hitkari and the bride-to-be both glittered in ensembles by Abu-Sandeep. The groom wore a Tuxedo.

Niranjan & Kamal Hiranandani, Mr Raymond Bickson, MD & CEO Taj group and his wife

Mana and Sunil Shetty, Dilip and Shalini Piramal

Nisha Jamwval, Tanaaz Doshi, Pria Kataria Puri, Deepika Gehani

AR Rahman performs live at Wedding in Chennai

Jan 18, 2013 Celebrity Wedding Pictures

India Inc ushered in the New Year with the wedding of Nayantara, daughter of Chennai industrialists Shyam and Nina Kothari with Shamit Bhartia. The celebrations started on 14th January at venues like the ITC Grand Chola and a sprawling ground and ended on 17th January with an afternoon wedding and post wedding function at the Kothari Mansion in Nungambakkam High Road. The Kotharis and Bhartias kept the event private and access to the media was not permitted, but some relatives and guests including Amitabh Bachchan Tweeted about the Wedding. ‘It can’t get bigger than this- AR Rahman performs live at a wedding, first time ever’, a family friend Tweeted. Amitabh Bachchan who was there with his entire family Tweeted about music maestro Yanni’s performance at the pre-wedding party. ‘Yanni and his mesmerising group of performers at the wedding in Chennai. What an evening.’

Bride Nayantara wore creations by Tarun Tahiliani and Abu Sandeep (each a masterpiece is what we hear) while industrialists, politicians, bankers and close family and friends excused themselves from work to be present at the wedding of the decade. With so many VVIPs in the city, the Kotharis, their staff and the Wedding Planners had a logistical feat to pull off while the bride’s mamas, Mukesh and Anil Ambani (Nina Kothari’s brothers) and their wives played gracious hosts. The guests could’t stop marveling about everything- the super duper arrangements, the exquisite decor created with flowers from all over the world and the divine, authentic cuisine by the best vegetarian chefs from all over India. The wedding-related responsibilities of the girl’s side over the celebrations move to the boy’s home turf Delhi, where the Bhartia’s host a Reception on 21st January.

Bride’s Mami Nita Ambani at one of the functions

A Pre-Wedding Wildlife Experience

Jan 18, 2013 Destination Weddings, Wedding Photographers

Nikita, a Teacher & Writer and Sandeep, a Chartered Accountant are getting married in February, in Mumbai. Both ardent fans of WeddingSutra they wrote in to tell us how we inspired them to think of something special for their Pre-wedding shoot. They chose a unique location- ‘Baghvan’ the enchanting Taj Safari lodge in Madhya Pradesh.

Nikita and Sandeep on their Engagement Day

Says Sandeep: “When I start thinking about the shoot, something candid and natural is what appealed to me. A locale like a Lodge set deep in the wilderness grounds seemed most exciting.” Adds Nikita: “I was thinking of a pre-wedding shoot for a long time but since Sandeep is a little shy about posing, I didn’t broach the subject till recently but when we got talking we knew we had to take time out for this. And we were clear what it has to be- fun, natural and very ‘us’.”

Baghvan’- Taj Safari Lodge in Madhya Pradesh

The couple are also happy that the stay in Baghvan and shoot with popular wedding photographer Dev Purbiya will be a good break from work and wedding preps. “Though I am not taking any stress at the moment, except for a bit of running around during weekends”, says Sandeep. His fiance tells us more: “I have been having my moments when I realise that my whole life is going to change. It is overwhelming and sometimes hard to keep my emotions in check. The whole ordeal of shopping, packing and the mental preparedness of the big move is kind of daunting. So while most of the time I am very happy and excited thinking about the Big Day, I de-stress with a good book and sitcoms. And this holiday on the edge of Pench National Park, in a cottage alongside a picturesque locale surrounded by the shaded canopies of beautiful forest trees may be the best stress-buster, better than the most relaxing or pampering spa treatment.”

Balinese Inspiration in Bangalore

Jan 17, 2013 Destination Weddings

Priyanka and Ankur’s two-day wedding celebrations were held in Bangalore. Their wedding, a mix of Punjabi and Manglorean traditions, were held at Templetree Leisure. Here are the photographs of their fun-filled Sangeet at Templetree, an environment-friendly space, with a destination wedding feel. .

Located near Sarjapur Road, Templetree boasts of thatched roofs and the open feel of Balinese architecture, and is perfect for brides and grooms looking for a venue that is modern in appearance and organic in design. Sunaina Joseph, Co -Founder of the resort tells us that the idea for setting it up came up after her own wedding. She elaborates: “Me and my husband were clear about not wanting to get married in a hotel-like set up, we wanted a destination wedding experience. We got married at a resort a few hours away from Bangalore, it was a great experience but an operational nightmare. We then decided to open a venue in the city, that would offer a stress-free wedding but with the look and feel of a destination wedding.”

For more information visit www.templetreeleisure.com

Photographs Courtesy- srikanthvasudevan.com

Our Prewedding Photostory

Jan 14, 2013 Wedding Photographers

Niket and Pranali shared with us photographs of their really cute pre-wedding shoot. Their story photographed by Anamika Singh communicates a beautiful message– there’s no such thing as a perfect union and none of us are perfect. With ‘happily ever after’ comes adjustment, learning to understand what the other wants. Great concept guys, we kept going back to the photos, and smiled!

Conceptualisation and Photography
Anamika Singh- The Memory Keeper
http://www.facebook.com/AnamikaSingh.TheMemoryKeeper

Adhikari Family get Wedding Ready

Jan 9, 2013 Celeb Weddings to Watch out for

“My brother Ravi is getting married in mid-January”, Urvee Adhikari Vyas, the charming fashion designer and daughter of business baron Gautam Adhikari (of Sab TV) called to invite us. Ravi Adhikari is marrying his childhood sweetheart Rubaina, a Nutritionist. At a relaxed photo shoot at their home Adhikari Villa in Juhu, they spoke to us about their Wedding preps.

Ravi and Rubaina

Anjana and Gautam Adhikari tell us they toyed with the idea of a Destination Wedding but then decided on a home town wedding. “We considered Goa and Rajasthan, but finally decided on Mumbai, with the different functions at Hotel Novotel, Hilton and Taj Lands End.” Adds Urvee: “When I got married two years ago, the Wedding was managed by Erina and Natasha of Divinity Weddings, we’ve appointed them for Ravi’s wedding too, so co-ordination is quite a breeze, they know us well and we know them.” The groom-to-be adds: “Dad has decided on the budget, my sister and brother-in-law are taking care of the details so I’m relaxed because I have the least responsibility.” Karan Vyas, Urvee’s husband tells us: “The ladies in the house have taken most of the creative decisions, and I prefer it that way- logistics and co-ordination is more fun than deciding on colors or decor elements.” Ravi and his sister conclude: “And we have the sweetest mom, who says ‘Yes’ to whatever everyone decides on.”

Standing- Anjana & Gautam Adhikari with Ravi and Rubaina. Seated-Karan Vyas & Urvee with the to-be-weds.

Photographs Courtesy- Medhavi Kotecha
DKreate Photography
www.facebook.com/dkreate.photography

Music, Masti and Mehendi in Mamallapuram

Jan 7, 2013 Destination Weddings

When Wedding Planner Pritie Jain invited us for Poonam and Akash’s shaadi at Radisson Blu Resort, Mamallapuram we were delighted to travel there. Firstly because bride Poonam is a huge fan of WeddingSutra, and since we’ve stayed at the resort earlier and we were only too happy to visit the tranquil temple town again.

Akash and Poonam

Mamallapuram is a two hour drive from Chennai airport, there are two resorts for those looking to host an intimate celebration or a big, fat wedding- Radisson Blu Resort, owned by South India’s GRT group and Fisherman’s Cove run by the Taj Group of Hotels. Radisson, with a newly-renovated ballroom, lawns by the beach and open space next to the swimming pool (the longest in India) offers versatile spaces for different celebrations. Shabin Sarvotham, the General Manager tells us that they’re now hosting several weddings every month, of different communities and families from India and abroad. Poonam Lunawat and Akash Mehta’s celebrations were fun and hectic; they exchanged vows by the beautifully decorated poolside and the Radha Krishna theme lunch was held the next day, by the lawns. The reception was in the banquet hall after which was a Sangeet with performances by friends and families. A huge variety of South Indian specialities and North Indian delicacies made it tough for us to decide what to sample and relish. And how can we forget the delicious coffee at the filter kaapi counter. Now back in Mumbai, we long for something as good as what we felt was the best filter kaapi.

The Wedding celebration by the poolside

Mehendi and Festivities

Music and Masti in the lawns

Celebration over in Radisson, we dropped by at Fisherman’s Cove. A wedding set-up was taking place there, and with simple decor, the lawns of the resort with an old-world charm, looked picture-perfect!

Vivanta by Taj Fisherman’s Cove

Photographs Courtesy- Abhinay Omkar
Wedding Planners- Bling Mushrooms
www.facebook.com/BlingMushrooms?fref=ts