The groom’s father, Amod Sharma is an entrepreneur and his mother, Vandana Sharma a social activist. KK Sharma, the bride’s father is a senior lawyer in the Supreme Court of India and the bride’s mother is Suchi Sharma. The mood was of joie de vivre as everyone was ready to soak into the high notes of the seven-day gala wedding and indulge in a bash.
The Gajra & Qawalli Touch
The wedding began on Jan 21, 2012 and was planned and conceptualised by Dream Indian Weddings (A Division of Crescent Events).
The wedding kicked off with a cocktail dinner hosted from the groom’s side at The Royal Plaza Hotel on the same date. The theme was ‘Mughal Royalty’ and the ballroom was decked up in rich hues of golden and royal blue with dazzling crystals adding to the sparkle.
The guests were given a vintage welcome with gajra garlands on the wrists and extravagant qawalli caps complementing the theme of the function. The decor looked authentic enough to bring alive the poster perfect Mughal look. The star attraction of the function were the professional mujra dancers doling out live performances on popular mujra numbers – both vintage and contemporary ones creating a spectacle of breathtaking beauty in motion! No Mughal fanfare is complete without a royal spread of sumptuous delicacies. In keeping up with the style quotient, the gastronomic delights were translated on the tables in the form of many-a-shahi picks. Culinary stars picked from the elaborate Mughal cuisine were chosen for the guests who dived into heritage delicacies like Lucknowi kebabs and phirini. Commenting upon the theme of the party, Sunny Chotwani, the owner of Dream Indian Weddings says, “To create the authentic Mughal look was to recreate the flamboyance, indulgence and richness of the past era. All we had to do was serve the mood of flamboyant fun piping hot in a contemporary flavour!”
The Sweet & Tangy Flavours
Following the high flying mood of the cocktail bash, an intimate and customised function was held at the Sunderkand Path where family members and close friends had assembled for the performance a few rituals. This was followed by a chaat party in which Bittoo Tikki Wala served all type of chaats and added the much devoured sweet and spicy notes which was quite a hit with their guests from abroad.
Yellow Charm & Green Flourish
Tilak ceremony (this is a type of engagement among Brahmins) was the next grand function where no detail was overlooked and was held on the 25th morning at Sham Nath Marg.
To evoke the royal charm, a shehnai band was placed at the entrance of the venue to welcome guests in authentic Indian style. Nothing is more stirring than the divinely melodious tunes of a shehnai when it comes to a wedding. The soothing sensation was enhanced by the calm yet bright colour scheme of lemon yellow and green. This exuded a warm, ceremonial and blissful hue. The colourful theme was enlivened by the vibrant flower decoration – champa, wild daffodil, nargis, rain lily yellow, paper daisy, crown daisy etc apart from the romantic tuberoses and tulips were thrown in to picturise the yellow-green theme. The aroma wafted by the beautiful flowers and the look of natural beauty all over emitted a serene charm. The function started with Ganesh vandana followed by the performing of family rituals in the backdrop of the performances by a fusion band playing a medley of Indian classical music and a dance presentation by Aasma Dance troupe. The reverberations of Indian classical music, dance and the very-Indian colour palette reflected refined tastes. The sumptuous menu catered by Tandoori Nights had a melt-in-the-mouth spread with chosen delicacies from a wide variety of cuisines.
Chic & Stylish Girl Time
The mehndi and sangeet was held on 25th Jan at Fortune Park Boulevard. Lebanese dancers, belly dancers and ballet dancers were flown in from around the world to entertain the guests to the hilt. Babu Choori Wala and well known mehndi designers were quite a hit with the women.
The Royal Knot
The most awaited and grand conclusion to this gala event was the wedding. The Presidential Gardens were chosen as the venue on 27th Jan befitting the overall tone. The baraat started from Fortune Park Boulevard marching ahead with a royal procession of Jea band, elephants, shehnai band and horse-drwn chariots making for royal snapshots. The bride’s outfit was designed by Maniza D, London and the groom’s by Diwan Sahib. The bride’s make up was done by Ambika Pillai personally and her jewellery was by Tanishq. Rajwada was the theme chosen for the ceremony with specially designed bride and groom entries. A lavish menu was there with Spanish, Oriental, Lebanese, Continental delicacies and a variety of Indian food specialities. A special doli was arranged with beautiful floral decorations for the final departure of the bride and the wedding ended on a sweet-romantic note for the wonderfully stylish and fun-loving couple.