Rishi and Dan, New York

Rishi Magia and Daniel Plaut’s multicultural wedding in the iconic New York institution of Carnegie Hall was a picture perfect confluence of different traditions, family moments and fabulous decor, cocooned in their distinctive tastes and a little bit of that New York flair! Catch their special moments here.

How they met
Growing up in different areas of the country, Rishi, the creative product lead for Instagram Shopping, and Dan, Manager of Client Services at Roku crossed paths through some mutual friends while living in NYC. Dan had always felt drawn to Rishi and finally took the leap of confessing his feelings and asking him out at a mutual friend’s birthday party, promising he would make plans with him the next day. Tired from the revelries of the previous night, Rishi was taken by surprise when Dan actually kept his promise and called to take him out to dinner. It took just one 3-hour long dinner at Uva on the Upper East Side to spark a connection of a lifetime.

The Proposal
After more than 7 years of togetherness, Rishi popped the question with an elaborately planned proposal that included planning two fake hangouts just to throw Dan off the scent of the actual plan! Rishi shares, “With the help of our best friends, we planned a ruse where all four of us planned to go watch Mean Girls the musical, and then go for dinner. Being a huge fan of Mean Girls, Dan was thrilled out of his mind. Our friends went out of their way to help me plan every distraction and detail. We decorated a spot on the Brooklyn Heights Promenade, a block from the apartment, while Liz was to bring Dan over. It was a drizzly day, which worked out perfectly because there wasn’t a soul on the Promenade, so when Dan rounded the corner and saw me standing there, the moment was just for us.”

Dan shares, “I was completely surprised and shocked. Rishi’s proposal was perfect and heartfelt, in a spot that meant so much to us, where we frequently go for walks, enjoying the view of the Manhattan skyline and talking about how much we love our neighborhood.. After I said yes, Rishi said he was taking me to 1 Hotel Brooklyn Bridge for drinks. When we entered, 30 of our closest family and friends were waiting in the lounge for a second surprise. It was incredible. We toasted the occasion with champagne”.

Wedding Planning
The couple wanted to host a unique, multicultural celebration with 200 guests, and went back and forth quite a bit before zeroing in the iconic New York institution of Carnegie Hall. The stunning heritage location was suggested by their wedding planner Nirali of Nirali Shah Events, who also helped plan every last detail of their one-of-a-kind celebration. Rishi shares, “We were absolutely thrilled to find out we could actually host our wedding in such an iconic location. Not only was the space breathtaking, it beautifully mixed traditional, old world charm with modern flourishes, which is exactly the aesthetic we wanted in order to celebrate the coming together of our cultures. Moreover I have been an oboist for 25 years, and still play in Brooklyn, while Dan loves classical music, and this just seemed like it was meant to be”.

Wedding Functions

Wedding
A warm mix of Indian and western traditions, the ceremony was hosted on a picture perfect fall day in 2019. Rishi and Dan were resplendent in bespoke black sherwanis embroidered with intricate gold work and pops of aqua and pink, which they teamed with embroidered footwear, all lovingly designed and made by Rishi’s family in India. They also wanted their wedding party to really experience the joy of wearing Indian clothes, and they gifted them all coordinating outfits as well.

They walked down the aisle together to a cover of Tina Turner’s “Simply the Best” as sung by Noah Reid in the award-winning series Schitt’s Creek. The ceremony began with a Hindu prayer by Rishi’s grandmother, and was officiated by two of their closest friends. The nuptials were followed by a cocktail hour on the Weill Terrace of Carnegie Hall, which featured an open bar, a string quartet by Diverse Concert Artists, and Indian fusion hors d’oeuvres by caterers Bombay Talk.

For the Reception dinner, the couple changed into custom tuxedos, and their guests wore black ties, which really tied into their aesthetic and venue. The buffet-style dinner was followed by tear-jerking speeches and emotional family moments in the adjoining ballroom, after which everyone danced the night away in the Weill Music Room.

After an unforgettable night of revelries, their wedding planner planner, Nirali, whisked them back to the grooms’ suite to sign their marriage certificate with their officiants and their best man and woman by their sides. “It was the first time our wedding party was in the same room alone, and we were able to reflect on the amazing day we just experienced,” Dan notes. “There was a lot of love, gratitude, hugging, and tears.”

Special moments
Rishi shares, “Someone once told me to make sure and look out onto the sea of your guests and take in that moment, which I did, and it struck me just how lucky we are to have such loving and supportive family and friends. We fully recognize our privilege because so many of our LGBTQIA brothers and sisters don’t have that. I have a wonderful relationship with my parents and brother, and they’ve been by my side through the ups and downs of coming out. And all of that gratitude and emotion culminated that night listening to my dad’s speech, who was recovering from a stroke he suffered just three weeks ago.”

Dan continues, “Like Rishi, my parents and I have always had a loving and healthy relationship, but the significance of being able to celebrate our unique wedding day with them was monumental. It felt like everything was happening in fast-forward, so I made a concerted effort to hang my attention on every word in order to savor the moment and slow everything down. It’s a moment that we will never, ever forget. Life comes at you fast, and my father-in-law’s stroke really reminded us to appreciate our loved ones every day.”

The Wedding Makers
Venue: Carnegie Hall, New York
Wedding Planner: Nirali Shah Events
Floral Decor: Petals & Roots
Stationery: Fabled Papery
Catering: Bombay Talk, Constellation Culinary Group
Cake: By the Way Bakery
Entertainment: Luxe Entertainment, DJ BK Trehan, Diverse Concert Artists
Photography: Joel & Justyna

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