Hello there, sweeties! It is time to have some fun at Sunjeet & Paolo's incredible wedding! Held at the Petit Lafitte, this wedding was one for the books! For this event, Sunjeet stole all the looks by wearing a fashionable outfit thanks to Masaba Couture & Pernia's Pop-Up Shop that looked impeccable on her, and thanks to the incredible makeup and hairstyle by Hello Beauty Mx. Paolo did not stay behind and looked handsome and imposing in his outfit. We love the look on both of them! The night was young, and the incredible DJ Riz Entertainment took care of the music and baraat, to turn this great wedding into a vibrant and elegant party that everyone enjoyed! And it was not just the music that everyone loved; it was the food as well! Taste of India Cancun prepared delicious plates that everyone loved, while Petit Lafitte Catering baked sweet and delicious treats and cakes that got everyone's mouths melting! If you want to relive this love story, make sure to visit the gallery that we have prepared for today. We have the best shots captured by Dean Sanderson Weddings, and we are pretty sure that you will love them! Do not think twice, and go check it out!
How did you meet your Groom and when did you know he was "the one"?
Paolo and Sunjeet initially met on New Years' Day 2017 in San Francisco, CA. She was catching a flight back to nursing school after visiting her friend. They had some time to kill before the flight and their friend, Jonny La, invited them to a friend's house where Paolo first met Sunjeet and was immediately smitten. A few weeks later, Sunjeet went back to SF to surprise that same friend for her bday and the following day, her friend took her to "some guys going away party to NYC". This guy was none other than Paolo. Paolo was so excited she was there and asked for her number. Sunjeet denied him but Paolo's Mom was the ultimate wing woman and got her digits for him. They kept in touch here and there but when Sunjeet moved to NYC in 2018 for her first job as a nurse, Paolo surprised her at the airport and moved her into her 3rd-floor walk-up... which happened to be 1 block away from Paolo. Paolo spent the first year she was in NYC sweeping her off her feet and the rest was history.
Share the scoop on your Proposal Story!
I had no idea Paolo was going to propose. I am an oncology nurse in NYC and during that time I was getting my MSN and MBA while working full-time at the hospital. I was so busy and preoccupied and so was he. His company had hit a large metric and he told me that the CEO of his company was coming to NYC and that we were going to meet him for dinner in a few weeks. I scrambled that week to get my eyebrows waxed, get my nails done, find an outfit, and get something other than my scrubs that I had been wearing so often. The day of, I was still shopping and getting my outfit together when he surprised me and had my friend pick up a pair of Louboutins for the dinner that night. I wore matching red lipstick and we were on our way to dinner. Before dinner, we stopped by the Christopher street pier on the west side of Manhattan where we normally would go on our weekend runs. He told me we were gonna meet his other coworker and his wife for a drink before we headed out to dinner but that they were running late. We walked to the end of the pier and he stopped at the end and asked what was in the sky. I turned around and saw a tiny plane far away. As it drew closer, I saw my name... and I saw, "Sunjeet <3 Will You Marry Me". I whipped around and he was on one knee with a gorgeous ring in a tiny blue box. It was all a blur and I said "YES!" Then I asked, are we still meeting your CEO? I still didn't know! Our friends popped out with champagne and congratulated us and then Paolo whisked me off to dinner. As I walked in and was on my phone calling my sister I heard "SURPRISE!" All my closest friends from NY were there and my family and Paolo's family had flown in. We celebrated the rest of the night until morning and it was truly a memory I will never take for granted.
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.
Living in NYC but being from California, Paolo and I decided that getting married in Mexico was the best idea because the weather is beautiful, it is fiscally responsible, and it is an easy distance to travel from NYC and CA. Both Paolo and I have been to Mexico many times and we absolutely love it. We traveled to Playa Del Carmen three times when picking our venue and planning our wedding. We chose our venue because Paolo grew up going to this boutique resort as a child every year. We were the first Indian wedding and the first complete buy-out wedding that the resort ever held. This allowed us to curate the event we wanted with little restriction but also meant Paolo and I had to plan our wedding down to the very last detail. The staff there is amazing and the venue has the most gorgeous ocean backdrop. The chef and mixologists worked so hard to give us the tastiest food and drinks and guests were raving about the food.
About a year in advance, I started following vendors that work in Cancun/PlayaDelCarmen/Tulum a year before the wedding. I reached out to get many lookbooks and quotes and would narrow my top three choices down and then I would show them to Paolo and ask him to help me pick. He was really great and was involved in most final decisions.
For hair & makeup, I wanted a glam look for myself, my family, and my bridesmaids. We went with HelloBeautyMx and they were AMAZING! They had such a good vibe and were very talented. My mom and mothers-in-law rarely wear makeup and they were raving about their looks.
For the American wedding outfits, I wanted to stick colors that would sit against the beachy backdrop while complimenting the various skin tones of my bridal party. For the boys, I picked a blue suit for the boys and allowed the girls to pick a dress that was either champagne, rose gold, or blush. The guys wore brown shoes while the girls went barefoot (including myself).
For our Indian day, I had custom Kurtas and lehengas made by @mayasdesiboutique in Texa for the bridal party in gold and white. I got them bindis and I bought them all a Tikka set from a local NJ shop called zohraArts. I wanted Paolo and myself to have the traditional red and gold while our bridal party created contrast in white and gold. We also matched our majestic white horse, Aladdín.
For the decor, I kept it very tropical and beachy. The picked monstera leaves and greenery with white flowers for the American day and for the Indian day I added red flowers to the mix to make it pop and match my bridal lehenga.
How did you select your bridal lengha or wedding dress? Did you have a favorite color in mind?
Bridal Lehenga: I always wanted to do the traditional red and gold. I searched for months and months in person and online but it was difficult because of Covid. I finally found a lehenga I loved from an online store in India. When I tried to buy it, they no longer had it. So I took that image and 2 others that I really like and sent it to a custom lehenga designer in India and had it custom-made. It was two months delayed and I did not get it until I was already in Mexico but my mom knows her way around a sewing machine and fixed a few little things and it came out perfect! I loved it!
Wedding Dress: Originally I wanted a super sexy, simple, elegant, all-silk dress. I found one I liked at Grace Loves Lace. After having it custom-fitted, I realized I liked it for the after-party but wanted something strapless with a unique look. I got a gorgeous custom-made Steven Khalil strapless, slim fit, lace dress that had a removable skirt, and truly gorgeous off-the-shoulder detachable straps. I truly found the perfect dress after trying on so many dresses.
What was the most enjoyable part of the planning process, and why?
I think the best part was creating both an American and Indian wedding that was untraditional yet so authentic to Paolo and me. We curated our wedding to be a story of our favorite vacations, adventures, traditions, and cultural memories and shared them with all of our closest friends and family in a gorgeous location that Paolo grew up visiting as a child.
What did your guests particularly love about your Wedding?
Only our guests resided at the venue throughout the wedding week which kept it very intimate. At the end of the week, many of our guests told us that they had met so many new friends that they were excited to be friends with following the wedding. New bonds were built and our friend circle grew stronger.
Was there a really special moment in your wedding that constantly replays in your mind?
There are so many but one really special moment was when our amazing DJs (DJ Riz & DR Freddy) turned out dance party into a beach party and brought all our guests down to the beach and we just laughed and danced and nothing mattered but the people surrounding us at that moment. People ran in the water with their bare feet and fancy clothes. It was pure bliss!
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.
Our DJs recommended a dance choreographer (@deviarun97) for our Indian dances. Paolo and I did one, the groomsmen did one, and I did one with the bridesmaids. Everyone loved them and they were really great memories.
We had an incredible baraat where Paolo came in on a majestic white horse and groomsmen carried me in on a throne. The guest partied around us with smoke bombs of all colors. People from nearby beaches crowded around and watched in awe. I love sharing the Indian culture with people who have never experienced its greatness of it. We had traditional Indian food from @TasteIndiaCancun and I wish I had gone for seconds like many of our guests did! Our DJs gave us amazing introductions throughout and had the party popping off throughout the night.
Do you have any words of wisdom for Brides-To-Be?
Do not sweat the small things because nobody will notice them. Make sure you focus on the people you want to spend quality time with, those memories will last.
Anything else you want to tell us? We'd love to hear all about your other details! (jewelry, mehndi, venue, cake, bouquets, etc.)
My mom and sister bought me all my jewelry and gifted it to me at the wedding. It was such a special gift and meant a lot to me. My sister also picked all the jewelry for my mothers-in-law who are not familiar with Indian weddings. I thought that was such a sweet way to mesh two families of different cultures.
We had mehndi done for myself and my bridesmaids while we got our makeup and hair done. We also had mehndi done for all our guests at the wedding if they wanted and everyone had so much fun doing that.
We also had photo booths where everyone could capture memories at.
Having a whole resort of just friends and family was truly special. It made it a week-long vacation for our favorite people.
Thank you for taking the time to read this love story, stay tuned for more. Happy Tuesday, Maharanis!
