Welcome to another great love story, Maharanis! Today’s couple got engaged during a trip to the city of lights, Paris but opted to hold their Sikh nuptials at the sunny California! Overlooking the ocean the grand Laguna Cliffs Marriott Resort & Spa offered the bride and groom the perfect location to celebrate their wedding holidays in the company of their dearest acquaintances. Starting with a series of delightful pre-wedding ceremonies and finishing with an ocean-theme sangeet night, Kiran and Anmol traced their path to their big day. I adore the color palette this pair chose for their special day, from the paper parasols, announcing the groom’s arrival, to the stunning blush pink in the bride’s lehenga and groom’s turban. All colors blended flawlessly with the natural color surroundings. It was a glorious day for an outdoor wedding and the guest seating area over the lawn allowed them not only to witness the union comfortably but to observe the ocean in the horizon! The beautiful aerial view shots, the inspiring music and the stunning cinematic records of one of the biggest days of the newlyweds' life, were produced by the talented crew of ColorBlast Weddings and invite us to experience the romance and the best moments of this love story.
How did you meet your Groom and when did you know he was "the one"?
Its a warm evening in late October. I'm on my way to a friend's birthday party with my sister heading to the Lower East Side. As my sister and I are standing in line waiting to get into the venue, I notice a guy wearing a white shirt standing in front of us. He quickly glances back catching my eye. I think to myself... he's quite handsome. Per standard NYC male attire, I notice a sea of Indian guys at the party wearing a white shirt (hurray!). As I mingle with friends at the party, I'm tapped on the shoulder by a friend who wants to introduce me to someone. I turn around and there is the same guy from the line. We exchange names followed by a few minutes of small chat. His name is Anmol. As the evening progresses, I talk to him briefly again. He's soft-spoken, polite, with a flair of exquisite poise. Little did I know, this guy will be the one I marry one day. He's one of the most inquisitive, respectable & caring people I have ever met. He conducts himself in a dignified gentleman-like demeanor with trusting in his inner wisdom, adoration, and cherishing amusement. His innocence and strong morals are the essence of his persona. And of course, nobody is a bigger fan of the New York Rangers than Anmol! I believe in destiny and the people that come into one's life are there for a reason...even if it's among a sea of white shirts.
Share the scoop on your Proposal Story
Paris is always a good idea!
While on vacation with my family in Paris, Anmol calls me and tells me he's standing downstairs of the building where we were staying. Of course, I thought he was joking. To my surprise, there he was! The next few days were spent gallivanting the city, while the whole time he had me wondering what he had in store. During a visit to the Palace of Versailles, I was convinced he was going to pop the ring out and propose in the gardens. I mean how much more romantic can you get! However, he kept me on my toes until the last day. While crossing the Pont de Bir-Hakeim and watching the riverboats, he gets on one knee with a box in one hand. Wellll, let's just say I said YES! As if the heavens above knew, at that exact moment, tears of rain started to pour. In the midst of excitement and downpour of the rain, we managed to ask a wayfarer to take a quick picture. And then we ran as fast as we could, laughing and still pretty exhilarated by the whole scene. It was pretty darn amazing.
Tell us how you went about planning your wedding, and your overall experience with the Venues, Hair & Makeup, Outfits, Decor Theme, and all of the other important details.
The most challenging part of the planning was settling on a destination. We knew we wanted a destination and even had considered overseas...however we finally decided to host it in California. Planning a destination wedding has its challenges however once we started, things fell into place pretty effortlessly. Did I mention we picked our venue over Facetime! Yes! We sent our west coast family to scour out venues and picked it remotely! Risky but couldn't have asked for anything better! Honestly, without sounding cliche, I was on the Maharani Weddings website regularly looking for vendor recommendations. One of the most helpful tips was when vendors recommend other vendors, it was great to get the positive feedback and trust that we were only working with the industry's most professional teams. My wedding planner was amazing, I really couldn't imagine the wedding without her guidance and expertise!
Also, a trip to New Delhi was well worth it to grab all the ceremonial things as well as the bigger things like outfits.
How did you select your bridal lengha or wedding dress? Did you have a favorite color in mind?
Since I was in New Delhi for 5 days, it was crunch time to get both of our outfits. For the ceremony bridal lengha, I saw a bunch of designs and settled on a custom lengha that took about 3 months to make. I wanted a lighter shade lengha since we were having an outdoor ceremony. The colors we selected was a blush pink, with a pop of rani red, and ivory. My lengha was a unique pink. When I found the deep burgundy lengha for my reception in Delhi, I was the happiest girl in the world. Based on the lengha, we incorporated shades of maroon & burgundy to all our florals at the reception.
What was the most enjoyable part of the planning process, and why?
The best part of the planning was that Anmol was part of it throughout. He let me execute my vision however added in his perspective especially as he has a keen eye for detail! Working with our vendors was also a smooth process, they were professionals throughout and gave us creative ideas to consider from the layout to the selections of food.
What did your guests particularly love about your Wedding?
We received an overwhelming response about the destination. Dana Point is gorgeous to begin with, so our guests were able to plan mini vacations around our wedding. Overall our guests loved the wedding, especially since we had the sangeet and ceremony outdoors to maximize the amazing weather.
Was there a really special moment in your wedding that constantly replays in your mind?
During the Sangeet, a full moon appeared right after the sunset. Since the wedding venue was on a cliff, guests got to enjoy a view of the mountains & ocean. As an added bonus, the moon was at its finest that night and made for a special moment that was captured by our guests.
For events other than your ceremony, please tell us as much as you would like about the decor, style, dances, and all the special details.
Being that royal blue is one of my favorite colors to wear, I had to incorporate that into the wedding. We decided to have an 'oceanic' theme sangeet. Our outfits were royal blue along with our family. The decor consisted of different shades of blue with candles & sand and Moroccan lamps that were hanging from posts. We kept the decor minimal as we didn't want to take away from the view. Garden lights were added to create a softer ambiance.
Being I am Punjabi, there's no party without Jaggo! Let's say it was lit! My family did an amazing dance at the wedding.
For the reception, we wanted to keep the decor and theme formal and romantic. Anmol's tux was a deep blue while I wore a burgundy lengha.
Do you have any words of wisdom for Brides-To-Be?
Wedding planning has its share of stresses but trust that when the day arrives, it will all work out. Don't stress about the small stuff, no one will notice. On your wedding day, try to relax and smile. Your photographer will tell you to do that all day so take the tip! The day will fly so enjoy every minute of it. Trust the people you are working with and get a professional planner!!!
Anything else you want to tell us? We'd love to hear all about your other details! (jewelry, mehndi, venue, cake, bouquets, etc.)
I tried to add a personal touch to each event. I ordered muslin bags with our logo from Etsy. For the sangeet, since it was outside, we had sunglasses, bangles, bindi's, whistles! I also had flip flops for the ladies and those were a hit! Canvas photos and welcome sign were incorporated into events. Our amazing planner was able to do a same-day print of a picture from our wedding ceremony to add to the reception (I mean talk about magic!). Before the wedding, I made t-shirts for my immediate family to wear (Game of Thrones fanatic meant GOT shirts!). My jewelry was from our jeweler in Jalandhar, Punjab. I found my mehndi lady on google and she was spectacular! Luckily our cake vendor was 2 minutes from our venue which made it super easy to coordinate the delivery. For bouquets, my planner was able to get these made the day before from a local florist and were gorgeous.
Love the video, Maharanis? Let me know!
Cinematography: ColorBlast Weddings |
Photography: ColorBlast Weddings |
Sangeet Venue: Laguna Cliffs Marriott Resort & Spa |
Ceremony and Reception Venue: Laguna Cliffs Marriott Resort & Spa
