Reshu and Krish, Angsana Laguna Phuket, Thailand
Krish and Reshu's unique themes at their spectacular wedding functions were an ode to the cities around the world that won their hearts.
Reshu and Krish’s lavish wedding celebrations at the Angsana Laguna Phuket resort gave their loved ones a chance to experience the flamenco beats of Spain, romance of Paris, regal heritage of Jaipur, wintery wonderland in UK and the buzz of New York. All these cities played a crucial role in their romantic journey from their first meeting to the mandap. Here, bride Reshu shares the impact and inspiration behind the beautiful themes.
How We Met
“Krish and I met for the first time on Valentine’s Day in 2015 in Mumbai. It was a typical Saturday night and we both were out having fun with our friends. When he saw me for the first time, he approached me and wanted to buy me a drink. We spoke a little but I didn’t give him much attention and he left the bar because he thought we wouldn’t talk after that night. We did add each other on social media after that but went our separate ways. He left for the US to finish his medical rotation and I went back to Spain. Three months later, I looked at his Snapchat story and figured he had an amazing taste in Bollywood music. This led me to his Instagram profile where I randomly liked one of his old pictures. Just after that we started talking via text and realized that we had a lot of common interests.”
“The following June he had a month off from medical school and he decided to take a holiday. I invited him to Barcelona and he booked his flight overnight since this was the only way we would get to know each other better. Even at this point, neither of us had any expectations. I was supposed to pick him from the airport but I fell asleep which obviously made him think that he had taken the wrong decision coming to Barcelona by himself. However, later, on one of our lunches, he said, “I was completely wrong! Your sweet smile and enthusiastic personality have blown me away”. We hung out daily and I showed him around Barcelona. On his last day there I asked him what I was to him and he answered saying that I was a very special girl. The rest, as they say, is history!”
Wedding Planning
“As amazing as the wedding was, the whole planning process was rather intensive. Krish and I were very clear on how we envisioned each event and the experience that we wanted to give to our loved ones. However, what took time was figuring out the right way of presenting our ideas and turning them into real-life events in a way that would get our guests as excited about it as it got us. We wanted a wedding that had not more than 250 people for that perfect balance between boisterous and intimate. WeddingNama from Mumbai did the most amazing job at capturing our memories, and I Do Etc. were our wedding planners and helped us put everything together.”
“When you are about to have a wedding in a country that you have never been to before, you always worry if things will turn out to be the way you expected. However, I Do Etc.’s efficient team took care of everything. Sorting our permissions as per the rules and regulations of Thailand, conceptualizing and taking care of the decor as per our theme ‘A Traveling Diary’, suggesting ideas so that we could achieve what we wanted within our budget and even taking care of small things that we didn’t even imagine we needed help with. We had two meetings with them but everything else was coordinated through a WhatsApp group chat and a monthly Skype call. During the wedding, the decoration was beyond our expectations and there was so much detail into every single thing. Planning our wedding with them was so much fun!”
“For hair, I brought my friend Veronica Martinez from Barcelona. She is one of the best-known hairstylists in the city and Kamlesh Goplani from Mumbai who is a family member took care of my makeup since his work is out of this world.”
Wedding Venue
“When it came to deciding the venue we were clear that our destination wedding had to be at a place that did not have a lot of restrictions on outdoor events. We made a trip to Thailand, and we fell in love with Angsana Laguna Phuket’s stunning property. It is a modern tropical getaway in Bang Tao, and considering we have a lot of friends and relatives in Asia, Thailand proved to be the ideal destination. For friends and family that lived in Europe and the US, we knew that Thailand would be a completely different experience that they were bound to enjoy. “
Wedding Functions
“Every event at our wedding had its own unique theme representing a country or a city that has been close to our hearts. We were thrilled to have taken our loved ones all the way to Thailand and wanted to make it even more special by sharing our traveling adventures with them.”
Welcome Party
“We welcomed our family members with a ‘Spanish Flamenco Fantasy’ themed party. I was born and raised in Barcelona, a cosmopolitan city that attracts a lot of tourists every year and has a vibrant culture. This city is where our love story began, so it was only fitting to commence the festivities with elements and inspirations drawn from there. It added a deeper layer of meaning to the occasion and gave us the opportunity to relive those moments we had.”
Sundowner Pool Party
“The next day is when most of our guests arrived and we threw a sundowner pool party, which had a ‘New York – City of Lights’ theme representing the skyline, lights and the vibe of a city that never sleeps. Krish was living in New York for six months while finishing his medical rotation and I decided to do a diamond grading course there at the same time. There is so much to do when living in there – you go out, you work hard, you meet tons of different people every day and balancing all that is what made our relationship grow strong. It is a place that we are addicted to!”
Mehndi
“The mehndi function had a ‘Love Locked in Paris’. Locking a padlock on a Paris bridge was on the top of our bucket list for a very long time but unfortunately, the practice got banned. So we decided to have a bridge set up at our mehndi where our family and friends could have the opportunity to fasten padlocks to symbolize our love. There was an Eiffel Tower structure set up on the lawns which was decorated with a floral garland to symbolize sophistication and romance.”
Sangeet
“Inspired by the opulence of Rajasthani palaces, we want to recreate a ‘Mughal Mystique’ experience for everyone. Every girl grows up wishing for a dreamy and elegant wedding and so she pays attention to the smallest of details, be it in clothes, bridal jewellery, and the wedding decor. Krish and I are fascinated by Rajasthani culture and we wanted to showcase its beauty and grandeur on our big day. Krish’s sister owns a dance company in New York City that’s called BNB Dance and she was in charge of all the performances by his side of the family while my older sister was in charge of my side of the family. They all surprised us with their performances to the latest Bollywood hits. Krish’s friends who were on the same dance team as him back when they were in medical school performed their dances from college times in white gowns. This was definitely the highlight of the night.”
Wedding
“The day of your wedding is supposed to be the happiest day of your life but it’s very normal to have mixed emotions. On one hand, I was getting married to the love of my life and on the other, I was going to leave my life in Barcelona and my family to start a new one. We both were going to move away to begin our lives from scratch and just the thought of that was scary and exciting all the same. I was looking forward to the new beginnings coming our way. We had our wedding on the beach with a view like no other. From the entire ceremony, if I had to pick the most beautiful moment, it would be when my brother walked me down the aisle to see my Prince Charming.”
Reception
“I lived in London for four years, and Hyde Park’s Magical Winter Wonderland was my favorite place to visit every year. It’s the perfect world where there is only happiness and that’s the feeling we want to bring to our wedding. It went perfectly with our all-white decor at our American reception.”
Advice To Couples
“You don’t have to invite everyone. It’s very important that you and your partner have the best time of your lives and you are able to interact with each of your friends and family members to make it memorable for both you and them.”
The Wedding Makers
Wedding Venue: Angsana Laguna Phuket, Thailand
Wedding Planners: I Do Etc.
Bride’s Outfits: WeddingSanjay & Sujata (Welcome Party and Wedding), Falguni Shane Peacock (Sangeet), Shantanu & Nikhil (Reception)
Makeup Artist: Kamlesh Goplani
Hairstylist: Veronica Martinez (Barcelona)
Choreography: BNB Dance (New York)
Singer: Ronit Vohra
DJ: Sumit Sethi
Photography and Videography: WeddingNama
