Hello, Maharanis! Platinum Celebrations Inc. planned an ultra magical Indian wedding for today's adorable couple, and MaxPhoto NY perfectly captured every moment so we can enjoy it all! Mirror and You gave the Indian bride two gorgeous looks for the ceremony and reception; they also created the Maharani's mehndi (3:16) and even created a small design for the Indian groom (2:21)! Then it was time for the ceremony, for which House of Dipali decorated a magnificent mandap in gold, pale yellow, hot pink and crystals (4:39)! After that it was on to the reception at the ultra elegant catering hall The Sterling (7:15), which had incredible sparkling chandeliers and a painting on the ceiling! There was also a jeweled wedding cake from Cakes by Stefania (9:23) which was as resplendent as the amazing decor by Elegant Floral Design, so be sure to watch the video below to see every glittering detail!
Maharani Reshma on meeting her Raja and how she knew he was "the one":
"This is a true 'meant to be' story. I had reached a point in my life where I had given up on the search for the 'one.' I was sitting with my friend and I explained to her that I was contented with my life and whether love was in the cards for me or not, I was done looking for it. She agreed it's best not to even be looking but said before I gave up on the idea of love, she had one person in mind I should met. That is the first time the name Richie entered into my life. She said he was the male version of me and that she was thinking of the idea for awhile but didn't think the timing was right. But now it was and so on that faithful memorial weekend of 2012 we exchanged numbers and never looked back. Our first telephone conversation lasted 4 hours, it was a feeling of ease, belonging, friendship and excitement rolled into one. How I knew he was the one? it was actually on our very first date. My mom had passed in 2006 of breast cancer. I was extremely close to her and I am the 'baby' of the family. My other siblings by then were married and had families of their own. For her, knowing that she was going to be leaving me, her last spoken words was a wish for me to get married. She saw marriage for me as a way to make sure I would be okay; to be with someone to care and love me because she no longer would be here to do so. When my mom died, my family and I released her ashes into the water by a set of cliffs on Monroe Blvd in Long Beach. Although Richie and I were talking for few days and hours at a time, I hadn't disclosed anything of my mother's passing or any details of the aftermath. We had planned our first date for June 6th, dinner at a local restaurant. He pulled up to my house that day and as a ball of nervousness I walked towards this tall handsome fellow, smiling in such a warm way, I knew my heart was going to be in trouble. He proceeded to be a gentleman and opened the car door. As he opened the door, I saw the cutest teddy bear safely seat belted away. Once again, I thought, more 'danger' for my heart. We were early for our reservations so he asked if I wanted to go to the beach, he had bought a new camera and knew I lived close to it. I said sure and we were off. Nervous yet at ease we chit chatted non stop. Once there, he parked up and we made our way to the boardwalk. We spoke more about all things and everything. In the middle of the conversation, as the sun was setting, he pointed to a set of cliffs by the water and commented how beautiful it looked. He pulled out his camera and took a picture. It was only then, I took a minute to look around and see exactly where we stood. It was on Monroe Blvd and the cliffs he was pointing at were those that my moms ashes were placed. I held back my tears, for in that single moment, I knew that the guy I just laid eyes on a few minutes ago, was my mother's gift to me. From that day, I knew I had found my destiny and my husband."
On the romantic proposal:
"From our first date , we really never looked back. Our first date lasted into the next morning. Everything about our relationship was effortless. So we both knew that we wanted to be married. Coming from a very traditional and strict family, after a month of dating, he was introduced to my family. I had never even spoken about a boy, let alone brought one around my family. Although warned not to ask too many questions, my dad proceeded to tell Richie he didn't understand the notion of dating and when was he going to marry his daughter. I was mortified, but Richie took it with culture and humor. After that meeting, he privately told me he would marry me anytime. Keep in my mind, that was a month of dating. I knew he was the one on the first date, but I wasn't going to marry anyone so soon. So I told him the earliest I would even think about it is at least a year of dating. Fast forward to our first year anniversary, Richie told me that we were going to re-live our first date and since I complained at our lack of photo taking, he was going to ask his brother to met us along the date for a few photos. It was not red flag for me because he is incredibly romantic on a normal day, let alone our anniversary. We had also been looking at rings because I kept changing what I liked and whenever the day came, he didn't want to get it wrong. Whilst ring browsing, I had picked out a design and I knew it took months to be made. So I really wasn't expecting any sort or proposal anytime soon. So on our first year anniversary, he picked me up again and took me to our first date restaurant. We relived the past year and felt so incredibly happy and blessed. By then he knew of the significance of those cliffs and the meaning behind them. He actually still had that photo, which always reminded me of how cosmic was our meeting. After the restaurant, I was told we were going to go to the beach where we would exchange anniversary presents. We arrived there and to my surprise his brother Randy was waiting for us. He said that the photos were a part of my gift, I thought nothing of it, just how sweet it was. We proceeded to the beach. We starting taking some pictures by the ocean and cliffs. Did I mention he had seen the dresses I planned on wearing that weekend and matched his outfit to it (told you he was a romantic)? Everything made it be such a special day. At the end of the photo taking, he sat us down by those cliffs on Monroe and we exchanged our gifts. That went on for a while, because I always kid with Richie he should own stocks for Hallmark, as I usually get 4-6 cards on all occasions. After all the gifts and cards were read and exchanged, he said he had my final present. He handed me a box. A very heavy box. I opened it and it was a crystal plaque with a poem inscribed. He asked me to read the poem out loud. As I did, of course I started to tear up. The words spoke of unconditional love. As I got to the last line, through clouded eyes full of water, it read "I only have one question to ask you." As I stumbled through the sentence, I looked up. He was kneeling in front of me with the ring I had designed. I couldn't even answer him for a few minutes. I knew that for all these special moments that'd come into my life, my mother physically wouldn't be there for them. But to have had her last wishes answered by the nearest place to her soul, I was overwhelmed. He read my heart, of all the ways he could have asked me, this was the one way I could have the two biggest loves of my life together. When I finally answered it was a big YES! with the moments captured that made me never complain again about not having any photos."
On her wedding style:
"Before my wedding, I had been a part of many weddings, either as a bridesmaid or just a volunteer to help. I always loved the details, look and wonderment of weddings. So whenever it came time for mine, I was pretty sure I had it in the bag. Boy was I wrong!! I must of gone back and forth in just choosing the colors for the wedding a 100 times. Every day a new magazine or Google search. I ultimately decided I wanted something vibrant, colorful, classic, elegant, regal and glamorous. It was a summer wedding, the feel was going to be bright, full of happiness and lots of bling. I am a 'more is better' girl! I wanted a traditional Hindu ceremony and look. I love my culture, there is a beauty in the marriage ceremony. Every word and action has meaning. I wanted to highlight that beauty with the freshness of nature. We had a floral waterfall over the mandap with a touch of glamour in a crystal chandelier that hung in the center. The most personal touches were that of pictures of my mom and my then newly deceased grandmother. They were in our hearts that day and their faces smiled at us when we took our martial steps around the holy fire. For the reception, I really wanted elegance. We went throughout the weekend with a yellow and fuchsia color palette. We kept that with a lot of candles and a neutral background to highlight the bold colors. We wanted everything to be personal. So from written thank you's on each table to butterflies (a reminder of my mom) sprinkled unexpectedly in the decor, it was truly magical. Everything from the hand delivered invites to the last song, we put both of our hearts and love into this day. We truly planned our wedding with our guests being the top priority. We had been to so many weddings, we knew what would make them happy and that was really why we opted for such a grand day. A celebration of our love with those we love."
On her favorite part of wedding planning:
"The most enjoyable part was having help!! Everything was made simple, effortless and tons of fun by working with Shivie and his team from Platinum Celebrations. The vendors that he led us to made us have so much confidence in the decisions we were making. It was a fairy tale come true wedding for us."
On choosing her bridal lengha:
"Yellow is my favorite color and it is the traditional color for a bridal lengha. My grandmother, my mom and my sister wore yellow. It was one thing my mom was insistent upon when she planned my sister's wedding. So I knew the color. For the look I wanted really unusual and that 'WOW' effect. One day I was with the wedding planning, scrolling on my Instagram. I saw a picture posted by a local designer, Sandy Paray of Bolly Chic-Couture. I immediately reached out to her and by the next day I went to see this masterpiece in person. It was like love at first sight all over again. It was laid out in all its glory. I tried it on... and it fit perfectly! It was the first wedding related thing I tried on. I didn't want to take it off and on the spot I bought it. That proved to be the inspiration for the whole wedding."
On the most magical moment of the wedding:
"Looking back, the whole event was special. I was marrying my best friend. I was just in the state of pure joy. If I had to pick a moment it would be the first time I saw Richie under the mandap. He looked like a regal prince. I was so nervous, put as my dad placed my hands into his and he gave it a quick squeeze, I was relieved. I may have dreamed about this moment before I met him and whilst we were planning it, but reality in that moment surpassed any dream."
On choosing their special first dance song:
"Music planned a big part of our relationship and lives. It sometimes can speak for you when you yourself have no words. In picking our first dance, we would go through all our favorite songs from the special moments of our relationship. Everything sounded nice, had meaning, but wasn't the one. Then one day in our new house that we were setting up for after our wedding, he took me for dance in our bare open living room. It was a song entitled 'Still Will Be Heaven' by Beres Hammond. We both listened and danced. By the end we were both in tears and turned to each other and said that was going to be our wedding song."
Closing thoughts from the bride:
"Richie and I had the wedding of our dreams. From working with people who are now our friends, to a day full of moments and memories, we are truly thankful and blessed. We were humbled by the love and best wishes that showered us. To love and be loved is the greatest feeling ever and on our wedding day, we had both. Our deepest thanks to Maharani Weddings for considering us having our story be told. It really isn't the flowers or the right lighting that makes a wedding special, it's the coming together of two hearts, families,friends, destiny and above all love."
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