Ankur and Shikha, Sohna, Haryana
A right swipe led to the joining of their right hands for Ankur and Shikha.
Akin to an ideal romantic plot straight out of the movies, Shikha and Ankur, both residents of New Jersey, met casually for ‘Just-one-date’ through a dating app and eventually ended up sending out ‘Save-the-date’ invites for their wedding.
The duo got hitched at the luxurious property of The Westin Sohna Resort and Spa, that was shortlisted by their parents. It was beautifully decorated by WeddingSutra Favourite – Plush Weddings, who transformed the already stunning venue into a magical paradise thanks to their very talented team.
How They Met
The doe-eyed beauty, Shikha, smiled as she recollected, “We met back in 2016 on a popular dating app called ‘Coffee Meets Bagel’ in Jersey City, NJ. After a few messages on the app, we exchanged phone numbers and then finally agreed to meet up. What followed was a two-year whirlwind romance filled with madness and excitement.”
The Proposal
The blushing bride recalled, “Ankur proposed on a romantic yacht cruise in New York in front of the Statue of Liberty and the stunning New York City skyline, while we were celebrating my 30th birthday. Later that evening, he whisked me to a surprise party that he had pre-planned all along, where we met and celebrated with our friends over drinks and dinner.
Wedding Venue
“Ankur’s family is spread across Chandigarh, Jammu and Calcutta while my family and friends are split between Delhi, Dubai and the US. Hence, we were looking for a venue that was accessible from the majority of the airports, and which could accommodate up to 250 guests. Our parents found The Westin Sohna Resort and Spa and absolutely loved the venue with its gorgeous landscaping, open spaces and great potential for large outdoor events,” shared Shikha.
Wedding Planning
Shikha gave us an insight, “Since both of us live outside of India, our parents coordinated and planned the entire wedding. They left no stone unturned when it came to giving us the wedding of our dreams. We picked Plush Weddings to do the decor for the mehendi, wedding and the reception.
Shikha goes on to share, “Plush Weddings was very professional to work with and had great ideas to implement. My parents worked with Ruchika tirelessly to make sure every detail was planned and thought through. They outdid themselves for all the décor and we were thoroughly impressed with the outcome.”
The sangeet organized by DG Events, featured the very talented DJ Sunny who knew the exact pulse of the guests, and he had them grooving to his tunes through the evening. I was scrolling through my Instagram and happened to stumble upon Anjie Gogna’s profile. I booked her for my makeup and hairstyling. For every event, she came up with a different look that was simply exquisite and unique. We found ‘Through the Barrel’ from a friend’s Instagram page and immediately fell in love with their work. They came on board to handle our photography while we picked ‘Rock Paper Scissors Films’ for our wedding videography. While we initially did not want to deal with two different vendors, we were happy to see how wonderfully both the teams shared a great common synergy in the coordination.
Wedding Functions
Mehendi
The Mehendi was held at the poolside which had dhol-walas and bhangra dancers entertaining the guests. They had called for Bittoo Tikki Wala who prepared some delicious chaat and baraf-ka-golas to tingle the taste buds. Shikha’s friends ended up dunking Ankur in the pool, which ended up with all their friends and family jumping in too. The team from Plush Weddings had creatively brought the venue to life with bright drapes and marigold flowers. The stunning bride-to-be matched the vibe of the high-spirited place in a gorgeous yellow anarkali suit by Kasida Kari which she carried off with a shimmering grey and gold net dupatta while the groom picked an elegant turquoise kurta with a printed jacket ensemble.
Sangeet
The Sangeet function was spread across the indoor and outdoor space at The Westin. The evening opened with a traditional Jago ceremony. The couple’s entry made everyone’s jaws drop as they looked resplendent while making their way to the party in their black and white ensembles, with the bride wearing a dazzling white lehenga by Vandana Sethi and the groom sporting a classy black bandhgala by Mohanlal and Sons. For the photo booth, they chose to go quirky with hanging photo frames and the couple’s caricature near the entrance.
Haldi
Shikha and Ankur had separate Haldi ceremonies. Shikha was adamant about not letting Ankur see her on the day of the wedding and had to sneak in and out of the event space. Ankur’s haldi got a little wild where his friends ripped his clothes off and hosed him down in the lawn.
Wedding
The couple were keen to host their wedding in an outdoor setting, so they picked the hotel lawn. Shikha and Ankur exchanged Jai Malas at the top of the grand staircase of the hotel and had their pheras in the lawn. The ceremony was short and beautiful with the pandit reciting prayers in Hindi so that they could understand the significance of each step of the wedding. Shikha looked every bit the perfect bride as she entered demurely while walking under a phoolon ki chadar. She wore a stunning onion pink lehenga with heavy silver gota work by Frontier Raas. Ankur, on the other hand, looked like royalty wearing a beige and pink sherwani, the colors subtly matching his bride’s, as he entered riding a ‘ghodhi’ in traditional style.
Reception
The reception followed the wedding, in The Westin Amphitheatre. The night began with a live band singing retro Hindi and English songs. The dance floor was lit up with fairy lights and looked absolutely magical. The newly-wedded Bride and Groom graced the occasion wearing an eye-catching beige lehenga, again by Frontier Raas and a custom-made black bandhgala respectively.
The Wedding Makers
Venues: The Westin Sohna Resort and Spa, Haryana
Wedding Planner & Décor: Plush Weddings
Groom’s Outfits: Ethnicity (Mehendi), Mohanlal and Sons (Sangeet), Dulha House (Wedding), Handmade Custom-fit Suit (Reception)
Bride’s Outfits: Kasida Kari (Mehendi), Vandana Sethi (Sangeet), Frontier Raas (Wedding, Reception)
Makeup: Anjie Gogna
DJ: DJ Sunny
Photography: Through the Barrel, Namita Azad Photography (Engagement in New Jersey)
Videography: Rock Paper Scissors Films
