Last but definitely not least, we've come to our final Filmy Friday of the day and it's from the Sheraton Mahwah Hotel in New Jersey, courtesy of Rare Air Films. This highlight reel has it all - happiness, tears, dancing, and more dancing! The bride, whose makeup is done by 217 Beauty by Liz Gizelle, looks gorgeous! Design House Decor provides the fab floral & decor and Moghul Caterers comes through with fine dining! Make sure to keep watching until a cool beat comes on and the party goes wild!
From the bride, on how they met:
"Neel and I met when we were 19, he was going to Pharmacy School with one of my best friends. We started off as friends who chatted on AIM, which led to phone conversations, and eventually a first date which consisted of bubble tea and Chuckee Cheese’s. I pretty much knew early on that he was the one for me. He was different from all the guys I had known in the past. He really understood me and we shared the same values. He was extremely driven (still is) and loyal which are two of the things I love about him. For Neel, it was important for his friends to like me and vice versa, which was an easy task because his friends are awesome. I felt that I not only gained a boyfriend but an army of big brothers."
On the proposal:
"During the summer of 2012, we took a vacation to Paris. Everyone expected us to return from this trip engaged! Needless to say, everyone was disappointed upon our return. Fast forward 3 months, on an unusually warm November day, we decided to go for a walk at Echo Lake Park. We sat at a bench and reminisced as we went through our scrapbook of memories. This is something we did often. However this time, there was an extra page…with a hand-written letter from Neel. As I glanced up from reading the sweet note, there he was, down on one knee. Just another day at the park turned into the most exciting day of our lives!"
On the wedding style:
"I would definitely describe our wedding style as modern vintage. I love pearls and gold accents and knew that I wanted romantic vintage look to our wedding. I knew for the both the wedding ceremony and reception I wanted the mandap and stage to have a soft look. I wanted fabric drapings and soft lighting. For the reception, I was stuck on a coral, navy, and gold color scheme. When it came time to meet with decorators, we pretty much knew we would hire Design House Decor. Their work speaks for itself. Their style is the epitome of elegance. Our initial meeting with Azizan and Nauman from DH went so smoothly, I booked them right after. Azizan, the lead designer was extremely knowledgeable and knew exactly how to achieve the look I was going for. She was able to bring to life what I envisioned for my wedding."
On the process of planning:
"What I enjoyed most about wedding planning is the excitement I felt during the time we were engaged. Neel and I were so excited to finally be getting married. Doing our engagement photo shoot, food tasting, cake tasting; it was all so much fun! I wouldn’t change a single thing about our wedding planning process. I would do it all over again if I could!"
On the hair & makeup:
"Liz (217 Beauty) and Crystal (Hair Ambition) had done my hair and makeup for my cousin’s wedding a couple of years back so I knew that I wanted to hire them for my wedding as well. Since before I got engaged, Pinterest was my favorite site. I knew I wanted a soft updo for my morning ceremony hairdo. I brought the pictures to Crystal and she was able to recreate it by adding her own special touch. For the reception I knew I wanted vintage Hollywood glam waves. That look is hard to achieve but Daleesa nailed it. Liz is a true makeup artist. She really knows how to work on Indian skin and how to make us look flawless. I wanted my eyes to be the focal point and she did just that. For the reception she used navy blue eye liner which made my brown eyes pop! Liz arrived promptly at 3:30 A.M. with a huge smile on her face ready to start. Crystal came shortly after prepared with her Beyonce playlist to put us all in an even better mood. They all worked tirelessly to make sure I looked felt and beautiful! I loved my glam squad and can’t wait to work with them again in the future!"
On special details:
"I am so fortunate to be a part of a super talented family! My family played a huge role in planning this wedding! My Matron of Honor, Sheila (oksheila.com) is an amazing graphic designer who is keen on attention to detail. She designed all the stationary for our wedding (invitations, escort cards, table numbers, programs, and itinerary). She sent me all her sketches every step of the way to make sure I loved it before she proceeded. She worked so hard to ensure all the stationary was done ahead of time so that she could help with last minute things the couple weeks leading up to the wedding. My cousin Shefalee (savorsweetsilk.com) made the sweets that Neel and I fed each other during our wedding. She creates these confections that I can best describe as little drops of heaven. She took the ordinary Indian mithai and used the finest ingredients and turned into a delicacy with unique flavors. My hair and makeup team weren’t Indian so I knew that I would need someone to put my lengha dupatta on for me, but that job was reserved for my aunt from Georgia, Neema Foi. She is so patient and kind and does an amazing job putting on dupattas on brides. She has an eye for detail which is why she also made my bridal bouquet, the bridesmaids bouquets, jaymalas, and all the boutonnieres. We went to a wholesale florist the start of my wedding week and picked out all the flowers we would need. I sent her pictures of bouquets and boutonnieres that I liked and she was able to recreate them exactly. I wouldn't have been sane without my little sister and Maid of Honor Krishna. She spent her entire summer running errands with me, she was my biggest cheerleader when I was stressed out, and we were pretty much inseparable the last 2 months before my wedding. My brother made numerous trips to Michaels when we ran out of supplies. He traveled an hour to pick up my mehndi décor and set it up right away so that I wouldn’t have to worry. I have a big extended family, so my cousins all chipped in their time to put together welcome bags, treats for the ceremony, and made airport runs to make sure all guests were picked up. Neel’s best man Ankit made sure all the little details were taken care of. He never complained and was always happy to run errands for us. We were so fortunate to have such a wonderful bridal party, they did so much to ensure our day was perfect. Each one of them were there for us from listening to ideas, to sorting out the playlist for the DJ, to just take care of tasks the day of so we didn’t have to worry. This wedding could not have been possible without their love and support."
On additional details:
"I wanted my bridesmaids to wear something fun instead of the typical saree. I consider myself a fashionista and I saw a Jyostna Tiwari saree on Lakme fashion week that was gorgeous! It was a cobalt saree with a shoulder patch and belt that wrapped around the waist. I had the saree recreated by a local designer in India. My cousins in India individually glued bronze gems on each of the bridesmaids’ belts to add some glitz. I was nervous about what my bridesmaids would think, but they ended up loving the look and they all looked fabulous in them! We know that Indian weddings start pretty early in the morning and many times guests are rushed and don’t get to eat breakfast. We decided to have snack bags placed on each chair for guests to enjoy during our wedding. My mom and aunts made all the snacks that went into the bags (spicy banana chips, khari pooris, and cardamom cookies). All my loved ones know that I have a huge sweet tooth, we thought it would be fitting to have a candy bar. It was a big hit with kids and adults! I stuck to my color theme and had coral and gold candies. I even had M&M’s made with a picture of us from our engagement shoot. I’m really proud of our escort card table. My cousin Sheila came up with the idea of having tiny envelopes in coordinating colors which would hold the guests name and table number. Inside she put decorative lined paper for guests to write love messages. They would then place the envelope in a decorate jar for us to open on our 1 year wedding anniversary. Even before Neel and I got engaged we knew we wanted to get married at the Sheraton Mahwah and we were absolutely certain we wanted Ajit Singh to photograph our day. We've loved his work the first time we saw it. His pictures are more like artwork and we are so happy that he's become more than our wedding photographer, but our friend. We knew that the music is key during a wedding because it sets the mood for the entire day. We had been to a few weddings where DJ Gaurav was the DJ and knew that he would make our night unforgettable! Rare Air Films was actually recommended to us by Ajit Singh and they literally knocked our socks off! The trailer they released was breathtaking, I feel like I was watching someone else get married. The music and the edit was so unique, I haven't seen anything like it before. Although, they may be the new kids on the block, but I strongly believe they give a new edge to the wedding video world which is what gives them their flair. We were so happy with all of our vendors, this day wouldn’t have been possible without all of them working effortlessly to ensure our day ran smoothly."
Hope you enjoyed this super energetic film! If you missed out on any of this week's highlights, here are some of my favorites:
I'd also like to welcome our newest Platinum Guide members:
House of Dipali
The Fillmore Silver Spring
Hilton Long Island Huntington
Hilton Portland & Executive Tower
Royal Charms Inc.
Ankur Poseria Photography
Desi Star DJ
Dolled up by Lulu
