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Witness the glory of India’s first ever wedding drone show at Umaid Bhawan Palace!
Wedding Planning - May 9, 2024
An American couple with Ukrainian and Indian roots, Oksana and Sid’s love story is as unique and vibrant as the tapestry of traditions they have woven together, spanning continents and cultures to create a wedding that beautifully embodies unity in diversity.
From courting over the phone for 6 months before their first date to a dreamy proposal on a helipad atop the iconic Burj Al Arab, and an engagement celebration in the Maldives, their wedding promises to be a kaleidoscope of colours, flavours, and traditions, symbolising the strength that comes from embracing diversity. Ashi Tanwar and Shobhit Jain of WeddingSutra Favorite – Event Casa takes us on the journey of curating this incredible experience.
Can you give us an overview of the couple?
Meet Oksana, our radiant bride with fondness and love for Bhagavad Gita and Gita Purana. Boasting a bachelor’s degree in Economics from Columbia University, a Master’s in Sustainability Studies from Harvard, and a background at the United Nations, she now navigates sustainable investments, embodying the perfect blend of economic prowess and environmental stewardship in the corporate world.
Our dashing groom Sid’s journey from the UK to India shaped a remarkable path from doing his Chemical Engineering at IIT Kanpur to honing his financial acumen at Wharton Business School. Sid’s career spans four continents in the energy sector, culminating in the co-founding of a thriving energy company in the US.
What are the factors that you as planners looked into while planning a Drone show at a destination as exclusive as Umaid Bhawan?
Planning a drone show at a destination involves careful consideration of several factors:
– Procuring all the necessary licenses and permissions from local authorities – Ministry of Home Affairs, AAI, DGCA, police, etc. The most important one was to get permission from the Indian Air Force, as Jodhpur being the most crucial Air Force base comes under the Red Zone.
– Venue selection plays a big role in planning the number of drones you want to use for the show. The placement of drones requires big spaces on the ground and a minimum of 2 days to practice is needed in the premises to get the utmost perfection.
– One needs to monitor weather forecasts closely to ensure optimal flying conditions and avoid adverse weather that could impact drone performance.
– Work with experienced drone choreographers to design captivating aerial displays that align with the event theme and objectives. We ensured that the drone formations resonated with the journey of our couple and included a voice-over artist, creating an engaging experience for both the couple and all the guests.
For instance, we featured a formation symbolizing “Love Crossing the Borders” illustrating a world map with flights moving from Ukraine and India towards the USA. This was a representation of the union between our American couple with their Ukrainian and Indian roots. The display also included the flags of India, Ukraine, and the USA. Furthermore, we highlighted the iconic proposal of our couple at the Burj Al Arab Helipad, complete with the image of the diamond ring box.
A drone show at a wedding was unchartered territory before you paved the path for many notable celebrity weddings, including that of the Ambani family. What challenges did you face?
Our couple wanted a surprise element to make their wedding stand out, so we pitched a drone show. Knowing that this would be the first and biggest drone show in a wedding, we anticipated it would surprise and delight guests, creating a memorable moment that everyone would talk about! However, it all came together just one month before the wedding, so procuring all the necessary licenses and permissions, designing the drone formations, and making sure all the teams were aligned was very time-consuming and detail-orientated. We also had to plan a photography plan for capturing the drone show in perfect sync.
What did the couple seek to embody in their wedding? Talk us through your approach to implementing it.
Our bride was in love with the idea of a Big Fat Indian Wedding and all the traditions that come with it. She was sure she wanted to be a quintessential Indian bride with a red lehenga and a dramatic trailing veil. Despite the insistence of her stylist on modern hues to match her blonde hair, she was dedicated to celebrating tradition and went for the most dramatic red lehenga by Manish Malhotra.
She also made sure that no food and drink was served during the wedding ceremony, staying true to tradition and keeping the focus on the rituals. She wanted all her guests to be seated and enjoy the beautiful Indian wedding ceremony. We had wedding artists who explained the ceremony in English and Hindi to make sure everyone was equally involved.
We remember in our very first meeting at Umaid Bhawan Palace, Oksana was so excited and told us how much she loved the baraat concept in an Indian wedding. To honor her wish, we planned a grand baraat with a fleet of vintage cars with her friends dancing and enjoying to their heart’s content. There were around 40 colors of sky fireworks planned to start the procession. Everyone reveled in the grandeur of the royal procession of our bride and family, as the groom and his family waited to welcome them.
Are there any unique anecdotes you would like to share from this wedding from your perspective as a designer?
The Haldi ceremony honoured the couple’s vibrant cultures and was curated in a palette of yellow and blue as a nod to specific Ukrainian traditions. The bride wore an Anita Dongre hand-painted silk lehenga, rich with traditional Rajasthani motifs. Sunflowers, Ukraine’s national flower, along with Ukrainian dishes, were a part of the main wedding dinner.
To end the festivities with a personal touch, the couple gifted their guests a cookbook of their family and friends’ favourite recipes, a warm ode to the shared meals that flavoured their life’s journey, along with a custom wooden box of Indian spices.
Their wedding was a harmonious celebration, a grand affair where every detail from the decor and cuisine to the trousseau and venue was meticulously crafted to create lifelong memories. The couple story, woven against the backdrop of the regal Palace and Fort’s timeless elegance, was not just a chapter in their lives but a beautiful prelude to their many tales yet to unfold.
The Wedding Makers
Venue: Umaid Bhawan Palace
Wedding Planned & Conceptualised: Event Casa
Photography & Cinematography: Cupcake Productions
Drone Show Team: BotLab Dynamics
Invitations & Stationery: The Murphy Studio
Choreography: Angel Performing Arts
