Resham and Mohit, InterContinental Bandung Dago Pakar, Indonesia

While Resham looked every bit a desi bride, Mohit made for a handsome groom during their traditional rituals. Followed by a glitzy reception, the couple’s Badung wedding was the perfect balance of tradition and glamor. Bride Resham shares how her dreams of a fairytale wedding came to life.

About Us
“I’m a professional dancer and choreographer. Mohit runs a steel factory and a prosthetics company. I’m hot, he’s cool. I’m hyper, he’s calm. I’m loud, he’s extremely soft spoken. I’m yin to his yang!”

How We Met
“We first met at his cousin’s wedding dance rehearsals in 2013. We kept bumping into each other and would meet randomly every couple of months. Finally, when we met in the summer of 2015, we were both single and things just clicked. It was all about being in the right place at the right time. A few weeks into the relationship we knew we were destined to be together.”

Proposal
“In Hong Kong with my family for New Year’s in December 2016, we came back to the hotel with all our shopping bags. My family suggested I keep mine in my room but when I walked in the lights were all turned off and on the floor in flowers and candles was written ‘Will You Be My Wife’. Then Mohit jumped out of the cupboard. It was a hilarious surprise.”

Wedding Venue
“Badung is the most popular destination but we wanted to try a new destination that was closer and more accessible from home. Bandung is a 3-hour drive from Jakarta. It is beautiful, green and serene. We love nature and chilly weather and our hotel, InterContinental Bandung Dago Pakar, was just the perfect space for our 1000 guests.”

Wedding Functions

The Ghari and Welcome Dinner
“Our decor was inspired by our roots in Sindh. My ghari stage had a dome with white and red petals and golden bells hanging from the ceiling. Mohit’s ghari background had colorful mirror work umbrellas framed by large paper flowers.”

The Party After
“After the ghari performances and dinner, we welcomed our guests to Planet LoveMore, our after-party. We had smoke machines to make everyone believe they were dancing in the clouds! Above our heads, we had planets suspended amongst the drapes. “

The Luncheon
“We decided to serve a luncheon that was a melody of the ethnic and the exotic. Our foreign guests were treated to an authentic local experience with popular local delicacies from all over Indonesia. Our chairs, pillows, fans were all Batik (Indonesian traditional material) -henna artists put white henna instead of the traditional red or black and we had a ‘Java Band’.”

Sangeet
“We called our sangeet ‘Bombay Beats’ because we wanted to focus on music and dance. We set up a Photo Booth very close to the entrance. It looked like a music recording studio with real standing mikes, a drum kit, a keyboard, etc. We had custom center pieces made of golden musical instruments (harps, French horns, trumpets) paired with white feathers or flowers creating a contemporary look as supposed to something more Indian. Our island bars were covered in cassettes and had huge guitars sitting on them. We made a grand entrance coming up with a hydraulics platform from beneath the center of the stage. We each got our own CO2 guns which we then blasted into the crowds. It was a lot of fun! I wore a beautiful creation by Falguni and Shane Peacock and Mohit wore Shantanu and Nikhil.”

Pheras
“Thanks to the gorgeous weather, we had our pheras in the outdoors on a green patio overlooking the hill. Our color palette was coral, pink and green. In the center of the mandap hung a vintage chandelier surrounded by green leaves, baby’s breath and pink flowers. My bridesmaids and ‘bridemates’ entered first followed by my brothers who held a chaadar of fresh flowers over me. As a special touch, it matched the shades of my Sabyasachi lehenga. Mohit entered with his baarat in a vintage convertible Mercedes and a team of dhol players we flew down from Delhi. We marked the union of our two souls with colorful fireworks, like shooting Holi colors!”

Reception
“Our final event was the reception titled a ‘Cuban Sensation’. Everything had a Latin vibe; golden pineapples, bird-cages, long palm leaves, lots of candles and light bulbs. To further accentuate the theme, we video mapped the entire ballroom with moving images depicting Cuba. We also green screened ourselves into some of the shots! For example, we had a street scene with cars, and our guests could spot Mohit and I walking around or just talking to each other. Sticking to our South American theme, our first dance as husband and wife was a Bachata routine. ’Aqui estoy yo’ / “Here I am, opening my heart to you” by Luis Fonsi which was sung live by our band ‘Lalahuta’.”

Advice for couples
“Do not ever underestimate the advice “go with the flow”. There are so many external factors and issues that will come up during this integral process and it is normal for brides to stress out and lose a lot of weight last minute. I have choreographed for so many weddings and this is always the issue: low hanging skirts, loose blouses. So don’t forget to eat! Also, always be yourself, you have no one to impress except your hubby-to-be (who is already besotted by you), anyone else’s opinion does not matter.”

The Wedding Makers
Venue: InterContinental Bandung Dago Pakar, Indonesia
Wedding Planner: Innaz Communique (Jakarta)
Decor: Butterfly Event Styling and La Reine Event Designers (Badung)
Bride’s Outfits: Misch B (Ghari), Anjali Mahtani Couture (After Party), Falguni & Shane Peacock (Sangeet), Sabyasachi Mukherjee (Pheras), Tex Savorio (Reception)
Groom’s Outfits: Tarun Tahiliani (Ghari), Laxmi Tailors (After Party), Louboutin High Tops, Shantanu & Nikhil (Sangeet and Pheras), Laxmi Tailors (Reception)
Bridal Jewellery: Diamantina (Reception), Jet Gems (Ghari), Varuna D Jani (After Party), Satyani Fine Jewels (Sangeet & Pheras)
Makeup Artist: Natasha Moor (Hong Kong)
Henna Artist: Barbie Ima (Jakarta)
Caterer: Queen’s Tandoor Restaurant (Jakarta)
Live Music: Lalahuta, Java Band
DJ: DJ Danny, DJ Jeremy

Photographer: Colomono (Malaysia)

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