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Rahul Malde and Sushank Chibber, United Kingdom

A Garba night, a Bollywood-themed sangeet and a mehndi boat party - this couple’s week-long fusion wedding was a vibrant celebration.

Filled with dance, music and celebrating Gujarati as well as Punjabi wedding rituals, Rahul Malde and Sushank Chibber’s wedding was a colourful celebration. Surrounded by their loved ones who expressed their unfiltered joy freely, the union was an ode to the couple’s resilient love.

Rahul Malde and Sushank Chibber, United Kingdom

How They Met
Rahul shares, “I met Sushank on a dating app in 2017. He’d moved to London from New York to pursue his second Master’s while I was planning a trip to New York the following year. So, our conversations revolved around the 2 cities. But after two weeks of talking to each other, Sushank’s unexpectedly had to rush back home to NYC. Still, we continued talking, I made sure he had a listening ear. Upon his return, we decided to go out on a date!”

Rahul shares, “A month within dating on Valentine’s Day, he booked a helicopter ride across London and took me to a nice restaurant were a musician played my favourite song for us. I knew this was special and took him home–I’d never done that before! Thankfully, my family instantly warmed up to him!”

Rahul Malde and Sushank Chibber, United Kingdom

The Proposal
Recollecting the magical day when Sushank popped the question to him, Rahul shares, “This time, he showed me around the city he grew up in just the way I’d shown him around London. And then, a few days later, on a private yacht, he surprised me with a ring. Trust me, at that moment, all I could do was scream ‘YES!’
But soon, reality dawned on us, Sushank’s student Visa was to expire in March 2020 and he had to move out of London and back to New York City. It wasn’t easy. In the midst of it and the pandemic, we planned our wedding, with six events.”

Rahul Malde and Sushank Chibber, United Kingdom
Rahul Malde and Sushank Chibber, United Kingdom

Rahul Malde and Sushank Chibber, United Kingdom

Wedding Planning
Rahul shares, “In August 2021, we celebrated our civil wedding ceremony with only twenty-five people in attendance due to the pandemic. However, a year and a half later, we finally celebrated our union with six events spanned across the week.

Rahul Malde and Sushank Chibber, United Kingdom
Rahul Malde and Sushank Chibber, United Kingdom

Weddings Functions
Sangeet
Rahul shares, “To kick off the wedding celebration energetically, we chose to keep the first event a Bollywood-themed Punjabi sangeet where everyone let their hair down. Sushank and I took to the dancefloor and pretty, soon everyone had joined us!”

Rahul Malde and Sushank Chibber, United Kingdom
Rahul Malde and Sushank Chibber, United Kingdom
Rahul Malde and Sushank Chibber, United Kingdom
Rahul Malde and Sushank Chibber, United Kingdom

Civil Ceremony
Rahul shares, “As none of Sushank’s family could attend the actual civil ceremony that we’d had due to the pandemic, we decided to include a personalised version of it in our event line-up. The theme was ‘Once upon a time we had mermaids, harpist. peacocks and a bubbleologist which all made the event so mystical.”

Rahul Malde and Sushank Chibber, United Kingdom
Rahul Malde and Sushank Chibber, United Kingdom
Rahul Malde and Sushank Chibber, United Kingdom
Rahul Malde and Sushank Chibber, United Kingdom
Rahul Malde and Sushank Chibber, United Kingdom
Rahul Malde and Sushank Chibber, United Kingdom
Rahul Malde and Sushank Chibber, United Kingdom

Mehndi
Rahul shares, “Most of Sushank’s family had flown in for the wedding from New York City, Canada, India and we took the mehndi event as an opportunity to show them the best of London. The mehndi was hosted on a boat which cruised the River Thames and crossed all important landmarks in London.”

Rahul Malde and Sushank Chibber, United Kingdom
Rahul Malde and Sushank Chibber, United Kingdom
Rahul Malde and Sushank Chibber, United Kingdom
Rahul Malde and Sushank Chibber, United Kingdom
Rahul Malde and Sushank Chibber, United Kingdom

Haldi
“The haldi was a purely traditional affair full of music and dancing. Our friends were at their playful best as they slathered us with turmeric!”, recollects Rahul.

Rahul Malde and Sushank Chibber, United Kingdom
Rahul Malde and Sushank Chibber, United Kingdom
Rahul Malde and Sushank Chibber, United Kingdom

Garba Night
Sushank shares, “Rahul is a Gujarati and to honour his roots, we hosted a Garba and Mehfil night. The night was filled with dancing as the elders enjoyed old Bollywood music and danced to classic garba songs.”

Rahul Malde and Sushank Chibber, United Kingdom
Rahul Malde and Sushank Chibber, United Kingdom
Rahul Malde and Sushank Chibber, United Kingdom
Rahul Malde and Sushank Chibber, United Kingdom

Reception
The couple shares, “Finally, we ended the week with our big reception for people to dance the night away. It was very important that each event was full of love and joy. Both families came from near and far in order to celebrate our love and union. It was truly a magical night where we embarked on our new beginning!”

Rahul Malde and Sushank Chibber, United Kingdom
Rahul Malde and Sushank Chibber, United Kingdom
Rahul Malde and Sushank Chibber, United Kingdom
Rahul Malde and Sushank Chibber, United Kingdom

Advice For Couples
Rahul shares, “My advice would be that whether it is coming out or planning a wedding one should do as they please. For us coming out was very personal and we got lucky to get the love and support of family and friends. It is that love and support that made us want to celebrate together with them and have a wedding filled with laughter and fun. We did the wedding festivities accordingly to what we felt comfortable with. So my advice would be that do as you please and do it for yourself and your partner because if you both are happy and celebrating your love. Other people will see the joy and happiness in you both and partake in your celebrations.”

Rahul Malde and Sushank Chibber, United Kingdom

The Wedding Makers
Venues: The Drum Wembley (Sangeet), Shendish Manor Hotel & Golf Course, Hertfordshire, United Kingdom (Civil Ceremony), Oshwal Association of the UK (Haldi), Amber Suite (Garba Night, Reception)
Wedding Planner: Nirali Shah Events (Civil Ceremony), Poonam Shah and Pooja Gudka (Sangeet, Mehndi, Reception )
Décor: Avari Events (Sangeet, Civil Ceremony, Haldi, Garba Night)
Caterers: Shimla Foods (Sangeet, Garba Night, Reception), Swagat Caterers (Civil Ceremony, Haldi)
Outfits: Sabyasachi Mukherjee (Sushank – Sangeet, Sushank – Reception), Payal Singhal (Sushank – Sanji), Preeti S Kapoor (Sushank -Haldi), Meraki Brothers (Rahul and Sushank – Civil Ceremony), Anita Dongre (Sushank – Mehndi), Omegas (Rahul-Reception)
Jewellery: Jade Jewels (Rahul – Sangeet)
Mehndi: Akshee Shah Mendhi
Entertainment: Kaykay Chauhan (Garba Night), Priti Varsani (Garba Night), Anjna Chauhan (Garba Night), Grace Page (Civil Ceremony), BollyCo Company (Sangeet), Rhythm ‘N’ Bass, Aelfwn Shipton (Civil Ceremony), Melissa Adriana (Civil Ceremony)
DJ: PHD Weddings (Sangeet, Mehndi), DJ Pravs (Reception)
Bartenders: Syrup Bar London (Sangeet, Reception), The Harms Arms (Civil Ceremony)
Photography and Videography: Alpesh Rabadia Photography

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