Ritika Bharadia and Aniket Bang, The Gulmohar, Jaipur

Grand in every aspect and filled to the brim with unique themes, Ritika Bharadia and Aniket Bang’s destination wedding in Jaipur inspired awe. Planning their wedding and ensuring each event flaunted vibrant themes was WeddingSutra Favorite – Zesst Events and Weddings.

Wedding Planning
Aakash Doshi from Zesst Events and Wedding shares, “Ritika and Aniket’s pre-wedding festivities actually began in Mumbai, moved to Jaipur for larger-than-life events and back to Mumbai with a stunning reception. We had done a complete buyout of two of the most prestigious properties of Jaipur i.e Hotel Fairmont Jaipur and Doubletree by Hilton Jaipur Amer. While the entire groom’s side resided at Fairmont the bride’s side had taken over Hilton.”

Planning a wedding is a colossal feat, especially at this scale. And as expected, it did come with its fair share of challenges. Aakash shares, “The wedding had a guest list of almost a thousand, so everything just had to be perfect. The biggest challenge we faced was curating events that were unlike ever seen before and at venues that were completely new to the wedding circuit. However, we were excited to explore new things and it was so much fun rising up to the challenge. Ritika wanted a unique bridal entry, so we orchestrated a magical 3D-mapped entry on her wedding day that left everyone speechless. The mapping was done all over the Gulmohar Palace to express her mother-in-law’s sentiments to welcome her into the family as a daughter and not a daughter-in-law. We didn’t just stop at this, we went on to give the family a grand reception in Mumbai which became the first-ever wedding function to be hosted at the Jio Convention Centre post-Ambani’s wedding!
The key for us was to ensure each wedding location, theme and aesthetics were different from the others. Each wedding function was curated to highlight the personalities and preferences of each couple and their families. We ensured all Covid-19 protocols were followed by testing all the staff members, guests and vendors, we ensured safety across every avenue.”

Reflecting on the rewarding experience, Aakash shares, “We strive to personalize every wedding that we are a part of and while things do take a challenging turn, we relish them! Driven by this we ideated our hardest and gave our fullest to every event at this wedding.”

Weddings Functions
Family Dinner
A family dinner kicked off the festivities with a local flavor. Aakash shares, “The guests were welcomed with a Vinayak puja setup which resembled a mandir. Folk artists played instrumental music while the guests and families mingled freely.”

Bhaat and Myra
Aakash shares, “The bhaat function and the traditional myra ceremony for the bride and groom’s side were hosted at the respective hotels they were staying in. Both events had a similar pichwai theme with Lord Shreenathji in different avatars surrounded by lotus blooms.”

Sangeet
After the traditional events, it was time to amp up the glam levels as Aakash shares, “The sangeet consisted of multiple photo ops, a mesh wire ceiling decor along with colorful lights. The wire mesh, especially, gave a mysterious vibe to the walkway. We even added an LED screen with a dozen fairy lights on the ceiling in the lawn for the guests to enjoy the view from outdoors as well while they relished the lavish dinner spread. The night began with a cake cutting and was followed by family performances. A selfie mirror was a tech activity at the entrance, where the guests could get a few full-length pictures clicked and get the hard copies of their pictures before entering the venue.”

Phoolon ki Holi
Aakash shares, “A grand carnival was orchestrated where we had multiple Rajasthani elements like dancers, Kachhi Ghodi, etc to welcome the guests. Multiple live counters where lac bangles and live perfumes were made kept the guests entertained. Interactive counters with art and craft activities, block printing and tamarind treats were a hit amongst the guests. The kids, meanwhile, had a kaleidoscope and bioscope counter. Giveaways included colorful bangles and dupattas while food counters included live masala corn, popcorn, gola, goti soda and candy floss.”

Wedding
Aakash shares, “The nuptials began with a long baraat procession which was worthy of royalty. The line-up consisted of a fleet of vintage cars, two elephants, four horses, a 22pc band along with a DJ truck for the crowd to groove. At the entrance, Aniket was welcomed by twelve background dancers and a grand flower shower to inaugurate the nuptials. The decor consisted of a plethora of flowers from roses, and hydrangeas to lilies. The setup of cabanas, lounges and other seating areas was entirely decorated in red florals to create a romantic atmosphere.”

Describing the unique 3D mapping experience that they had curated for Ritika’s entry, Aakash shares, “We’ve catered to a lot of requests in the past from our previous weddings, but here was one such request that was pretty close to our hearts and while working on it, we felt a sense of pride. The groom’s mother wanted to surprise her daughter-in-law in the most mesmerizing way! Her task was simple: her daughter-in-law should enter in the most spectacular way with all eyes only on her! The projection began with the welcoming by the presence of Lord Ganesh followed by a voiceover of the groom’s mother welcoming the new bride into the family. This was followed by the Jaimala on the iconic balcony of the palace.”

Reception
“The Reception stage was adorned with rajnigandha and roses along with chandeliers. We also created a jharokha where a Russian saxophonist played instrumental music. The color palette chosen was classic red and white to complement the warm white ambience along with mirrors to give it a perfect combination of royalty and luxury”, shares Aakash.

The Wedding Makers
Venues: Hotel Fairmont Jaipur (Groom’s Bhaat and Myra, Family Dinner, Sangeet, Phoolon ki Holi); Doubletree by Hilton Jaipur Amer (Bride’s Bhaat and Myra); The Gulmohar (Wedding); Jio World Centre (Reception)
Wedding Planner: Zesst Events and Weddings
Décor: Odyssey Events
Entertainment: Tamasha-The Band (Sangeet), Sandeep Thakur (Reception)
DJ: DJ RIB
Emcee: Kunal Buch (Phoolon ki Holi, Baraat, Sangeet)
Choreography: Kartik Mohan Productions
Photography: Hitched & Clicked

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