Taruna and Anool – Hua Hin, Thailand
When a Hong Kong based investment banker ties the knot with a Dubai based advertiser at a destination wedding in Hua Hin Thailand you get a true global-desi wedding! The bride tells us how it all came together.
Anool is an investment banker who now works as head of HR at a Swiss private investment solutions company in Hong Kong. I’m a creative thinker, lover of kathak and co-founded an advertising agency in Dubai.
We met at friend’s wedding in Cebu, the Philippines but our story actually began when we both missed our respective flights back home. We thought nothing of it initially, but despite the distance and different time-zones, our shared interests and attraction to each other brought us in contact over and over again. Our very first phone call lasted close to three hours and like so many long-distance couples, we’ve paid a fortune in exorbitant phone bills and flight tickets!
Then Anool surprised me. He brought both sets of parents together in Mumbai and asked my father for my hand before going down on one knee. Even though everything seemed to be moving so fast, being with Anool felt right. I accepted his proposal.
Our Wedding Venue
We wanted a wedding at a beach resort where family and friends could come together, without distractions, really cherish all the ceremonies and have the time of their lives. We wanted a destination easily accessible to guests coming in from the UAE, Hong Kong and India and narrowed it down to Thailand. We looked at venues across Kao Lak, Phuket, Bangkok and more but none of them fit our requirements like The Sheraton, Hua Hin. It is a spectacularly beautiful resort with direct access to the beach, oceanfront lawn venues and a lagoon/pool that runs through the entire property. The ballrooms were ample enough to accommodate our friends and family, chefs from across the globe handled all our complicated food requests in tandem with a bevy of warm and friendly staff. There were plenty of vendors to choose from in Bangkok and it was easy for us to coordinate with them and convenient for them to be available at Hua Hin.
Our Wedding – Functions and Themes
Our big, fat Sindhi wedding was celebrated with great pomp and fanfare. So much went into planning it. Both sides of the family took multiple trips to Thailand to finalise the décor, food and other logistics. Anool and I are both very detail oriented.
Even though we hired a great wedding planner, we were personally involved to stay on top of everything and maintain camaraderie with our vendors.
We took a lot of time to come up with a wedding theme. We wanted something with meaning and substance. We finally decided on ‘Seasons of Love’: (White) Winter Engagement, Summer Mehndi, Monsoon Sangeet, Spring Pheras and an Autumn Reception. The décor, menu and even our outfits were created to evoke the seasons and their colours.
We always wanted to get married in a Thai-style temple structure. Oriental Events made this possible and it was one of the most special parts of the wedding décor. Also, we are delighted that our photography team, Arjun Kartha Photography, was able to capture the beauty of our wedding the way they did. They made us very comfortable and were fun and friendly to work with.
The couple announced their entrance with these adorable toddlers.
Anool got Taruna’s name sewn on the inside of his jacket pocket and put his look together with floral loafers.
Taruna wore a fairytale pearl white gown and Anool complimented her with a white suit for the ‘Winter’ themed engagement
Taruna walked down along with her bridesmaids in a pretty peacock blue silk dress for the ‘Summer’ themed mehndi.
Taruna wore a stunning navratan choker and kundan mathapatti and nathanai for the pheras.
The fuchsia lehenga with aqua blue accents turned Taruna into a princess bride.
Anool complimented his bride with an aqua colored understated sherwani with dull gold embroidery.
Wedding Shopping
Wedding shopping is always the most stressful aspect of the wedding. We kept having to travel to Mumbai for so many of our things including our outfits and those of our families. Though we worked with a few designers, Anool and I generated a lot of our own ideas and details that were beautifully executed by them. The planning and shopping phase lasted the course of a year but it went by like a breeze. It gave us time to work together on the wedding like a project and as a happy byproduct, gain a deeper understanding of each other and our respective families. It brought everyone closer and this beautiful phase will always have a very special place in our hearts.
Wedding Makers
Designers for Taruna: Nova Krishnan, Rubina, Shantanu & Nikhil
Designers for Anool: Just Men, Badasaab, Seema Mehta, Brandy & Co.
Planners & Decor: Rimjhim Events & Oriental Events
Music& Entertainment: DJ Manoj Punjabi, Trav Saxsingh Panesar (Sax), Anish Percussionist, Rodney (Singer Performer), Anushka Manchanda (Singer Performer), Paul Veer & Gursewak Singh (Dhol)
Decor: Oriental Events
Photography: Arjun Kartha Photography
Cinematography: Doodle Studio
Photos Courtesy: Arjun and Praerna Kartha
Follow them on Facebook – http://www.facebook.com/ArjunKarthaPhotography or Website – http://arjunkarthaphotography.com
