Love Marriages of Privileged Princesses
Jun 30, 2010 Celebrity Wedding Pictures
When IT czar Narayana Murthy’s daughter Akshata wed Rishi Sunak, it was a low-key affair. Akshata Murthy, belongs to the breed of privileged princesses who are now known as hands-on heiresses; daughters of business magnates who don’t lead a fairy-tale life. They earn professional degrees, work in organisations abroad and return to start their own business venture or become their dad’s ‘right hand men’. Unlike earlier, when business baron dads chose for their daughters a boy from the same community or business circle, today’s business babes fall in love with and marry guys from non-business families too.
Narayana and Sudha Murthy with Akshata and Rishi Sunak
Chauhan Sisters
Schauna, Nadia and Alisha Chauhan, the three sisters from the Parle Agro family are all married to creative guys. Schauna’s husband is actor Bikram Saluja, Nadia is married to Ad man Raj Kurup and Alisha’s husband is architect Riyhad Kundalmal.
Love marriages
Hinduja heiress Ambika Hinduja tied the knot with Mumbai restauranteur Raman Macker. Aarti Sheth, top diamond merchant Rajeev Sheth’s daughter, is married to Farshid Cooper, who works with JP Morgan. Priti Paul scion of the Apeejay Surrendra Group, is married to Moroccan tycoon Jaouad Kadiri.
North-South Alliances
The North-South alliances include: Neelima Sargam Bajaj (daughter of Bajaj Auto’s Madhur Bajaj) and MTV head-honcho Aditya Swamy, Roshni Nadar (tech billionnaire Shiv Nadar’s daughter) and Delhi businessman Shikhar Malhotra, Tanvi Jindal and Hemal Shete, whose father Raju Shete owns food services company Radhakrishna Hospitality Services.
Alisha and Riyhad Kundalmal. Chauhan sisters- Schauna, Alisha and Nadia
Priti Paul and Jaouad Kadiri
Quiet Wedding, Grand Reception
Schauna’s quiet wedding in Bikram’s home town Indore was followed by a grand reception in Mumbai. Her sister Alisha’s wedding celebrations were at Taj Lands End. The Turf Club, the most magnificent wedding location in Mumbai, has played host to the most number of high profile wedding receptions. Sargam Bajaj, Ambika Hinduja, Aarti Sheth and Ashika Pohoomul’s grand wedding receptions with over thousand guests were held there. Some like Priti Paul hosted a smaller wedding affair—with just about 300 guests, at the magnificent Jag Mandir on Lake Pichola.
Jewellery and Designer Picks
For her wedding, Akshata Murthy wore a simple and stylish lehenga with no dripping diamonds or chunky gold, but most other heiresses go for exquisitely embroidered wear and ornate handcrafted jewellery. Abu-Sandeep, Sabyasachi or Pallavi Jaikishen lehengas teamed with elaborate jewels from Jaipur Gems, Varuna D Jani or Raj Mahtani.
Priti and Jaouad picture courtesy www.karenwise.com
Tags: Aarti Sheth, Aditya Swamy, Akshata Murthy, Alisha Chauhan, Ambika Hinduja, Farshid Cooper, Hemal Shete, Nadia Chauhan, Priti Paul, Raj Kurup, Raman Macker, Rishi Sunak, Riyhad Kundamal, Roshni Nadar, Sargam Bajaj, Schauna Chauhan, Shikhar Malhotra, Tanvi Jindal
Models, Marriage and Money
Jun 30, 2010 Celebrity Wedding Pictures, Marriage & Wedding Trends
Last week, Mumbai woke up to the sad and shocking news of model Viveka Babajee’s suicide. Her good friend, a model tells us: “Viveka was a wonderful and caring soul, but she was naive to think Gautam Vora would marry her. Why didn’t she realise that Gautam or the Vora family would not accept her”. She adds: “The best-looking and wealthiest Indian males are too eager to date a model; but they prefer to marry a girl their status-conscious families approve of, and for most such families a daughter-in-law from this glamour profession is a no-no”.
Viveka experienced a feeling similar to what many other models experience, if they’re single, past 30 and earning no regular income. A need for a life-companion and financial security and in the absence of it there’s heart-break. Reports indicate Viveka was desperate to marry Gautam, a wealthy stock broker from Nepean Sea Road, and when he refused, she was shattered.
Though their career as models is short-lived, the beautiful and glamorous girls lead an exciting and eventful life. Fashion shows and shoots take them to the most exotic destinations, designers and couture houses lend their trendiest clothes and accessories and they party with the rich and famous. Former model turned Grooming Expert Rasna Behl says. “At a young age, the girls, who are typically from an educated yet middle-class background, experience the lifestyle of the super-rich— so naturally, they aspire to marry someone who can give them the same lifestyle.”
And so, models gravitate towards moneyed men, not from traditional Indian business families, but Westerners who would love to marry a girl with Indian values, and a global goddess look. While it’s not common to hear of Indian women marrying Westerners, it is interesting to note that almost half of the then top models are married to Westerners. Ten years ago, Madhu Sapre, a traditional Maharashtrian surprised everyone when she announced her decision to marry Gian Maria, an Italian in the ice-cream business. Other models married to Westerners include Farheen Khan, Tehiya Narvel, Vidisha Pavate, Diya Abraham, Tara Deshpande, Meghna Reddy, Suchitra Pillai, Gurpreet (Blu) Gill, Tora Khasgir and Reshma Bombaywala. There have been marriages and splits too. Sheetal Mallar, Kashmera Shah, Ujjwala Raut and Alesia Raut, married and lived abroad, then separated to return to India.
Ex-models Gayatri Joshi, Namrata Baruwa, Tanaz Pochkhanwala and Dipannita Sharma are wives of Business tycoons, while Waluscha D’Souza, Pallavi Sharma, Mridula Chandrasekhar and Jesse Randhawa married Creative Entrepreneurs. Says Behl: “Meeting and marrying well-off men is one of the first ambitions of glamorous young working women, and models are no exception. While they may be addicted to the good life and yearn for more of it, they should remember that not every model can marry a business magnate or a rich Westerner. Nor does this mean life will be a bed of roses if she marries either. Career planning and choices for every model should include making a transition to a second career or choosing a life-partner who gives security, and not necessarily a life of luxury.”
Reshma Bombaywala and Dimitri Lezinska. Diya Abraham and Nick Bonney
Gayatri and Vikas Oberoi. Tanaz and Chirag Doshi
Mridula Chandrashekhar and Osh Bhabani. Jesse Randhawa and Sandip Soparrkar
Tags: Gautam Vora, Madhu Sapre, Reshma Bombaywala, Sheetal Malhar, Suchitra Pillai, Tara Deshpande, Tehiya Narvel, Ujjwala Raut, Vidisha pavate, Viveka Babajee
Small Wedding for Delhi’s Big Politicians
Jun 29, 2010 Celeb Weddings to Watch out for, Celebrity Wedding Pictures
There’s news that Gandhi scion Varun, the MP from Pilibhit and his long-time girlfriend Yamini Roy will tie the knot on 11th December. Maneka Gandhi and Aruna Vasudev, the mothers of the Varun and Yamini were recently spotted at a store in Varanasi, buying benarasi silks and lehengas for the to-be-bride.
Earlier, many politicians including Lalu Prasad and Jayalalitha organised big, ostentatious wedding functions for their children or even nieces and nephews. But in the recent years most politicians and young MPs have opted for simple weddings. The most-talked about politico wedding was Priyanka Gandhi’s marriage to Robert Vadra at 10 Janpath. A relaxed evening affair, the Gandhi home was decorated with fresh flowers and Priyanka looked coy in a red south Indian sari that belonging to her grandmother Indira Gandhi. When South Mumbai MP Milind Deora, son of heavy-weight politician Murli Deora married business baron’s daughter Pooja Shetty, Mumbai’s business and political circles were surprised, because the power couples wedding was a simple affair at the Deora home in Peddar Road. Sara Abdullah and Sachin Pilot’s wedding at their Delhi government bunglow was an elegant affair with 80 guests, much like the wedding Sachin’s parents Rajesh and Rama Pilot had hosted for their daughter Sarika some years ago.
Priyanka Gandhi and Robert Vadra
Pooja Shetty and Milind Deora
Sara Abdullah and Sachin Pilot
Fortunately for the staunch vegetarian and Animal Rights activist Maneka Gandhi, Yamini is a Bengali who is a vegetarian. A graphic designer by profession Yamini graduated in philosophy from St Stephen’s Delhi and later studied at Sorbonne University in Paris. The duo met through common friends in New York and their friendship blossomed when Varun returned to Delhi after studying at the London School of Economics. Friends state that the young couple share a common interest in fine arts, literature and good films.
A wedding is taking place in the Gandhi family after many years- when Priyanka got married thirteen years ago, Maneka, whose relations with the Gandhi family are strained, didn’t attend. Varun, a young teenager, then shared a close bond with his first cousins and he attended the wedding. Now the question on many minds is: “Will Priyanka and Rahul attend Varun’s wedding”?
Tags: Aruna Vasudev, Indian Politicians, Indira Gandhi, marriage, Milind Deora, Pooja Shetty, Priyanka Gandhi, Rober Vadra, Sachin Pilot, Sara Abdullah, Varun Gandhi, wedding, Wedding Saree, Yamini Roy
Lehenga Lust – Sonam Kapoor in Aisha
Jun 24, 2010 Fashion & Bridal Wear
Bollywood’s most stylish girl, Sonam Kapoor is all set to open up the genre of chick flicks in India with her latest movie Aisha. Its certainly on our must-watch list and not just because its an adaptation of Jane Austen’s Emma but we cant wait to marvel at our favourite fashionista’s clothes. Here’s peek at the Anamika Khanna designed white, silver and lilac lehenga Sonam wears in a scene. So elegant! Did we forget to tell you that she plays a wedding planner, how we love that!! And that necklace is to die for. But we sure hope that the lehenga is full length. Unlike the one that Sonam wore to IIFA 2009 again designed by Anamika Khanna.
Tags: Aisha, Anamika Khanna, Sonam Kapoor
Daddy’s Big Day
Jun 20, 2010 Marriage & Wedding Trends, Wedding People & Planners
The most successful Wedding Planners in India, are those who understand the mind of the Big Daddy. And who have ample experience in organising Big Business conferences and events. Parthip Thyagarajan of WeddingSutra.com wrote this article for Times of India Crest
Mumbai’s la-di-dah circles still talk about the dream wedding Parmeshwar Godrej organised for her eldest child Tanya Godrej Dubash, over a decade ago. Parmeshwar, for the circle was the superwoman- super stylish and talented, highly enterprising and ambitious, and a supermom who organised an affair that oozed style and elegance. Today, supermoms don’t receive credit for hosting the Great Indian Wedding. Quite often it’s an event management agency and the super successful Dads who bask in the glory. Not surprisingly, agencies who have experience in organising large business and trade conferences are leaders in the wedding management space. They may not understand the mind of the mom, but they sure know what the bride’s daddy wants. The teams work round-the-clock over several months, to organise for him a world conference scale event, so his VIP guests experience magic in a fairy tale setting.
How can any article on the Great Indian Wedding be complete, without a reference to UK based Lakshmi Mittal who showcased the Great Indian Wedding to everyone around the globe. For his daughter Vanisha’s marriage to Amit Bhatia over 1,000 guests from all over the world were invited with 20-page-thick silver-cased invitation cards. Events over five days were staged in some of France’s most famous settings.
Many celebrities including Raveena Tandon have got married at one of the Palace Hotels in Rajasthan, but the celebration hosted by US Hotelier Sant Chatwal for his son Vikram’s marriage to Delhi businesswoman Priya Sachdev was most talked about. Chatwal and Delhi-based Wedding Planner Vandana Mohan gave hundreds of guests, a never-before wedding experience spread across three cities.
South Mumbai businessman Vinod Nayar was suddenly in the limelight, when news of his son Arun Nayar’s marriage to Liz Hurley was finalised. After the much-hyped wedding in Jodhpur, Nayar was scheduled to host a post-wedding party for the who’s who in Mumbai, but word went around about the huge misunderstanding between Nayar senior and junior in Jodhpur because of which the much-awaited party in Mumbai was cancelled.
‘Bawa Villa’ a home in Khandala received national media coverage all because Shilpa Shetty got married there. The villa owner, Hotelier GS Bawa, was not distantly related to Shilpa Shetty, but Shilpa was like a ‘daughter’ to him. Bawa’s daughter Kiran Bawa was soon recognised as the ‘best wedding planner’ who in typical desi style didn’t manage a wedding as a profession, but as a gift for someone she and her family loves.
When Swatee Jayaswal’s wedding was fixed with Bangalore’s Lalit Tayal, Nagpur business magnate Manoj Jayaswal hired Ahmedabad-based Red Events which specialises in international destination weddings to organise for approximately 700 guests, a luxury wedding experience at the Grande Laguna and the Banyan Tree in Phuket. All the Jayaswal family members glittered in the most expensive, ornate and colourful lehengas and sherwanis—the picture perfect photographs showed that the Big Indian Family can afford to host a Big Fat Wedding anywhere in the world.
Tags: Arun Nayar, Bawa Villa, Big Fat Indian Wedding, GS Bawa, Kiran Bawa, Lakshmi Mittal, Manoj Jayaswal, Parmeshwar Godrej, Red Events, Sant Chatwal, Swatee Jayaswal, Tanya Godrej Dubash, Vandana Mohan
Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden marries
Jun 20, 2010 Celebrity Wedding Pictures
Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden married her former personal trainer Daniel Westling on Saturday in a lavish ceremony at the Stockholm Cathedral. More than 1,200 guests, including royals from around the world, attended the royal wedding.
The princess wore a cream-colored duchess silk satin off-shoulder gown by Swedish designer Par Engsheden. She completed the look with a lace veil worn by her mother on her wedding day and the ‘cameo’ tiara, which was originally a gift from Napoleon to his wife Josephine. The Crown Princess´s teardrop-shaped bridal bouquet had a number of Amazon lilies, azaleas, bleeding hearts, clematis, cosmos, and other very rare flowers.
Westling, a commoner and small-town boy met the crown princess in 2001 when he became her personal trainer at a luxury gym. They were engaged in February 2009.
Tags: Princess Victoria, royal wedding, Sweden
Manisha marries at Gokarna Forest Resort
Jun 20, 2010 Celebrity Wedding Pictures, Destination Weddings
Manisha Koirala’s marriage celebrations took place at the Gokarna Forest Resort in Kathmandu. The traditional Nepali marriage was held on Saturday at the Courtyard and the outstation guests stayed at the beautiful cottage-style rooms of the resort. The venue for the Sunday reception is Soaltee Crowne Plaza Hotel and over 3,000 guests including President Ram Baran Yadav, prime minister Madhav Kumar Nepal, Maoist chief Prachanda and former King Gyanendra are expected to attend. The wedding venue, Gokarna Forest resort is located at the serene Gokarna Forest, the former private Royal hunting grounds of the Kings of Nepal. The quiet peaceful haven has ancient towering trees, winding roads and a beautiful valley view.
At the pre-wedding function, Manisha, 41 looked pretty in a yellow saree with gold embroidery and a traditional green garland (made of sewn grass, it is worn by Nepali brides and grooms to bring good luck). Samrat, 33 wore a classic western suit. For the wedding, Manisha wore red while Samrat wore a traditional costume. A Nepali wedding function is a long one, it takes over three hours, and some of Manisha’s Bollywood friends like Jackie Shroff, Gulshan Grover, Deepti Naval, Vivek Mushran, Suman Ranganathan and designer Ana Singh were there. After the ‘kanyadan’ (send-off), Samrat took his bride to his parents home at Maharajgunj in a procession accompanied by a wedding band that played mostly Bollywood tunes.
According to Samrat’s father Surendra Dahal who runs the Kathmandu based company Leather Wings, the newly-wed couple may settle down in Mumbai, New York or Kathmandu. Samrat is the youngest of three siblings. His elder brother Suraj is in the education business, and his elder sister Shuvashree is pursuing her Phd in the US. Samrat also studied in the US and is now setting up bio-gas plants in Nepal, starting with tourist city Pokhara. Manisha’s Koirala family has been likened to the Kennedys and Gandhis. Her grandfather B P Koirala was the first elected prime minister of Nepal, and many of her grand-uncles, uncles and aunts have played a key role in politics. She was earlier engaged to the then Australian ambassador to Nepal Crispin Conroy. She later dated American author and speaker Christopher Dorris, and while rumours were rife that they’ll be marrying, they didn’t take the plunge.
Lebanon Luxury for Reema Amer
Jun 16, 2010 Destination Weddings, Fashion & Bridal Wear
Reema Ameer, Editor of Harpers Bazaar Arabia got married to Pritam Mukhi in May this year. The stylish bride invited some of the most stylish people to a style treat at one of the most stylish cities in the Middle East- Beirut. The venue was Edde sands resort, and at each of the functions spread over three days, Reema and all the guests looked fabulous!
The Rani in Rani Pink- At the Mehendi Reema looked like a Queen in a Rani Pink creation. Don’t miss the rose covered chaise-lounge – so very princess-like.
Yellow Burst—For the Sangeet, Reema chose a yellow creation with lots of sparkle. It was designed by Pakistani designer Rizwan Baeg and she sure rocks the color.
Abu-Sandeep for the Wedding- For the main wedding function, Reema chose a subtle yet beautiful bridal ensemble by Abu-Sandeep.
Haute Couture- Ayesha’s ‘wow’ finale outfit was designed by the renowned Dubai designer Ayesha Depala.
Designer Ayesha Depla
Sherina Dalamal and Padma Coram
Faiza Rangoonwala and Stephanie Holding
Sameera Ameer, and Alpana, Farah and Ayesha
Images Courtesy: Red Velvet Nation and Miss Magpie
Tags: Ayesha Depla, Beirut, Destination wedding, Edde Sands Resort, Harpers Bazaar Arabia, Pritam Mukhi, Reema Amer
Peacock inspired decor and Gold themed wedding
Jun 15, 2010 Celebrity Wedding Pictures, Wedding Photographers
Devika Jain, daughter of the owner of theatre chain Inox Leisure Ltd married Mumbai based business tycoon Ambuj Chaturvedi. Here are the pictures of the Peacock theme decor at the Mehendi held in JW Marriott, Mumbai; and the Gold theme decor at the wedding at the Taj Lands End.
A look at the wedding pictures reveals that elaborate structures and huge set-ups continue to be sought-after. We loved the bride’s red and gold bridal ensemble; and though we’re not a great fan of grooms who go for the ‘over the top’ look, this groom, we thought looks good in glittery gold! The beautiful photographs are courtesy Delhi-based Bankim Jain. For all the wedding functions, Bankim Jain and his team managed the high-defination videography and photography.
To see more work by Bankim Jain log on to www.bankimjain.com
The Mehendi Function at JW Marriott
The Wedding function at Taj Lands End
Tags: Ambuj Chaturvedi, Bankim Jain, Devika Jain, Inox Leisure, JW Mariott, peacock theme decor, Taj's Lands End
Jindal Wedding at Ferragamo’s Villa in Florence
Jun 13, 2010 Celebrity Wedding Pictures, Destination Weddings
Tanvi Jindal and Krishna Shete’s marriage was held at Villa Le Rose, a luxurious 15th century house in Florence, owned by the son of Fashion Moghul Salvatore Ferragamo. Two decades ago, Leonardo and Beatrice Ferragamo bought the villa, and carried out a restoration project, where they fitted it with all the modern comforts while maintaining and enhancing its historical features. Spaces in the villa are now available for short or long term rentals.
The team that managed the Jindal-Shete wedding at Villa Le Rose is elated that they got to work on the most magnificent marriage. Thanks to the big buzz back in India, Villa Le Rose and other wedding venues and planners in the city are hoping to host more high profile Indian weddings– like the one hosted by Sangita and Sajjan Jindal, and Hemal and Raju Shete.
The Jindal family members stayed at the Four Seasons Hotel and the wedding functions included a welcome dinner, a brunch, a dance party, mehendi, and a post wedding Ball at the Palazzo Hotel.
Tags: Ferragamo Villa, florence, Hemal Shete, Jindal Shete Wedding, Krishna Shete, Raju Shete, Sajjan Jindal, Salvatore Ferragamo, Sangita Jindal, Tanvi Jindal, Villa Le Rose
