Ishita and Aman, Royal Tulip Luxury Hotel, Kufri-Shimla

Ishita and Aman entered each other’s lives little knowing that one day they would be stepping into matrimony together. Bride Ishita shares, “It’s said that the right person comes around when you least expect it and that was just the case with Aman and me. We would have never thought that a dating app would lead us to us becoming each other’s life partners!” Their chance encounter, however, led to a heavenly hill station wedding that was captured wonderfully by WeddingSutra Favorite – House On The Clouds.

How We Met
“A girl from California stumbled upon a guy from Kentucky only to find her soul mate in him and this is how our story unfolded. About two years back, we came across each other’s profiles on an app. Aman says that it was love at first sight for him and when he saw my picture he decided to drop in a sweet message. I was smitten by his charm and soon texts became long phone calls and a month later we decided to meet in Kentucky. Aman took me to Keeneland Derby and the moment I saw him for the first time, I knew he is the ONE. We had an instant connection as if we had known each other for a long time. It took us very little time to forge a strong bond and marriage was the next step in our relationship.”

The Proposal
“Aman knew I always wanted a grand proposal and he left no stone unturned in planning one. He proposed to me on a beautiful day on a lovely yacht that was anchored at a spot that offered a view of the Golden Gate Bridge, and he sang the most romantic songs. He worked on this for months and it was straight out of a Bollywood movie! He found an Italian accordion player who played Bollywood songs and Aman practiced with him over Skype for days. Josh who was our captain, planned every intricate detail from sneaking in the musician to setting up the roses and getting the champagne. My brother Neil, who is a budding movie director, was Aman’s partner in crime and they got me on the yacht under the pretext of shooting a small music video. I still remember the moment when he went down on one knee and asked me to marry him with the ring in his hand. I froze with joy, and everything felt surreal. I couldn’t have asked for anything more!”

Wedding Planning
“There is a lot of thought and research that goes in planning the perfect wedding and everything can be quite disconcerting especially when you are orchestrating the entire affair from overseas. As soon as the wedding date got finalized, I began my search for various vendors. I picked House On The Clouds as our wedding photographers. Words don’t do justice to all the beauty that their work represents. Those who could not attend our wedding told us that they felt like they witnessed it all in person just by looking at the photographs. My makeup artist was Face Stories by Leena Bhushan, and she made me look and feel my prettiest self at each function. Every look was so distinct and her friendliness, as well as professionalism, are second to none.”

Wedding Functions

Haldi
“Our haldi was the first ceremony, and we wanted to give a feel of the place to our guests who had traveled all the way to Shimla for the festivities right away. Therefore we chose a venue with the breathtaking view of the mountains. Yellow made for the primary color of the setup and my outfit too was in the same cheery hue.”

Mehndi
“This event also took place in an outdoor setting, and the venue was decked in vibrant colors like yellow, green, orange and so on. Marigolds and rajanigandha were a part of the decor, and we also incorporated some cute elements such as pom-pom strings and tassels. I wore a purple lehenga from Akanksha Gajria which she personalized for me keeping my taste in mind. Owing to its floral work, she named it the ‘Falling Flower Lehenga.’ I trusted her blindly with the design, and I couldn’t have been happier! My jewellery for this event was from Azotiique. Varun too was very accommodating with all my requests and gave me personalized designs for my functions!”

Cocktail Party
“Aman and I wanted one of our events to be very filmy. So our cocktail was Hollywood /Bollywood style with a red carpet entrance, movie posters, a clap shaped bar and a cake that looked like a film reel with popcorn on it. My outfit for this function was from Akanksha Gajria. As soon as we reached India, I wasted no time in going to her studio to try out the lehenga I had seen online weeks ago, and the moment I wore it, I knew without a doubt that this was my cocktail outfit. It was love at first sight! My jewellery once again was from Azotiique.”

Wedding
“This was a very traditional ceremony and arguably the most exciting one too! I walked down the aisle with my brother and father on each side with my favorite song ‘A Thousand Years’ being played on a violin and saxophone in the background. My wedding day was easily one of the happiest and the most surreal days of my life! I traveled a lot looking for the outfit which would be perfect for this day, and the search ended with a red lehenga in New Delhi at the Liz Paul store.”

Reception
“The ambiance that was created for the reception was timeless and elegant. We made use of a lot of white across the decor including the flowers and the drapes, and the beauty of the setup was enhanced with some creative lighting. I wore a Shantanu & Nikhil lehenga which had me mesmerized from the minute I first saw it. It was the reception outfit of my dreams and made me the happiest bride ever!”

The Wedding Makers
Venue: Royal Tulip Luxury Hotel, Kufri-Shimla
Wedding Planner: Shanqh Wedding Planners
Bride’s Outfits: Akanksha Gajria (Mehndi & Cocktail Party), Liz Paul (Wedding), Shantanu & Nikhil (Reception)
Jewellery: Azotiique
Makeup Artist: Face Stories by Leena Bhushan

Photography: House On The Clouds

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