The Platinum Guide Blog

We are absolutely in love with the incredibly planned out events of today's Hindu-Sikh fusion wedding at the Royal Ambassador in Ontario, Canada! We wouldn't expect anything less of the experts from BeYOUtiful Beginnings! Today's lovebirds just got hitched in a waterfront, Hindu ceremony, and now, they're headed over to a lush green setting, where their Sikh ceremony awaits! Devi by KumarImages captured these truly unforgettable highlights as Slonee and Saab literally tied the knot under a beautifully rustic mandap collaboration between decor specialists from Diya Decor and flora experts from Precious Flowers N' Things. From start to finish, the blushing Indian bride of the hour looked fabulously phenomenal in her Frontier Heritage lengha, you just have to head into the gallery for an exclusive look at her reception gown too! 

What a lovely day for double the outdoor shaadi fun, right?

BeYOUtiful Beginnings and Frontier Heritage are members of the Platinum Guide. Love what you see? Explore their portfolios.

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Newlyweds, Fatema and Sumon, are ready to tie the knot, and Glitz & Glamour Events has planned the perfect nikah ceremony for the happy couple at The Sterling. The venue supplied some spectacular floral and decor work to help take this shaadi to the next level, and we are obsessed with the almost etheral lighting details! MUA, Makeup by Waida, has flawlessly finished our Maharani's magnificent mug, and Raheela Beauty Parlor has style her hair to perfection. Donning a red and gold open-shirt lengha, Fatema was the picture of perfection. Noor Imaging captured all the most stunning moments from her big day, from sentimental getting ready shots to the main event's most sought after highlights. We can't wait to get a peek into their wedding film by SWAT Films, but until that day comes around, we'll be reveling in all these incredible images and much more in the complete gallery!

Ta ta for now, my dears! See you back here tomorrow!

SWAT Films, Glitz & Glamour Events and Noor Imaging are members of the Platinum Guide. Love what you see? Explore their portfolios.

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Welcome back, dolls! We're at the Folktale Winery & Vineyards, where Neha and Kadir are tying the knot in an outdoor Indian wedding ceremony and celebrating the day away with an unforgettably enchanting reception — and the phenomenally talented team from VA Photography has captured each and every exquisite detail in breathtaking form! Maharani Neha donned a sherbet-colored wedding sari for her ceremony, and called on the expert hair and makeup artists from Lilly's Beauty World to make sure she was picture perfect from start to finish. Under Designers Touch's rustic, red mandap, and against a backdrop of green grapevines, the blushing Indian bride of the hour said I do to the Raja of her dreams, who was handsome as can be in his traditional wedding ensemble. Once they were officially Mr. and Mrs., Neha and Kadir switched gears and changed into their party outfits for an evening to remember. Donning a red and gold reception lengha and rocking a warm grey suit and tie, the newlyweds posed for some stunning post-ceremony portraits and hit the dance floor with the help music maestro, DJ Salim of Envy Soundz. We are in love with every single detail of the happy couples Desi dream wedding, and will be reveling in every last bit of it in the complete gallery! See you there!

Meet me back here later today for more incredible shaadi inspiration!

J. Diliyok Productions, LLC is a member of the Platinum Guide. Love what you see? Explore their portfolios.

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What's better than white winters? Why, winter's with a pop of shaadi colors! Divya and Mohit add some bright colors to their winter with a Sikh wedding celebration in Glen Cove, New York, and Ting Yi Photography documented the vibrant event beautifully in this bonus Filmy feature! The adorable duo tied the knot at their local Gurdwara, where the blushing Sikh bride wore a red lengha with touch of indigo details. Zara Henna worked her magical mehndi skills on Maharani Divya, and GlowZee flawlessly styled her wedding day hair and makeup to perfection. Once the newlyweds exchanged I dos, they partied in style at the Garden City Hotel, where Stylish Events decked out the post-ceremony venue with fabulously phenomenal floral and decor details and Divya rocked a green and sherbert orange reception lengha from Queen's Couture in Amritsar. From start to finish, this wedding film will have you grinning from ear-to-ear!

Maharani Divya, on her wedding style:

"I didn't have a color palette in mind. I did know I wanted rich/deep colors. With the wedding being in February, I thought lots of candles and flowers would add to the "warm" vibe I was going for. We settled for lots of blue, green, reds to accentuate the decor in the hotel."

On shopping for her wedding lenghas:

"My mom and I met up with my aunt in Amritsar for a 10 day shopping trip. We tried to be mentally prepared for long shopping days, and even the chance of NOT finding what I wanted. Surprisingly, by day 2 we walked into Queens Couture in Amritsar and found both my outfits within the first 30min.

The lengha for the Gurdwara was not the typical red that most brides wear, and it had a hint of dark purple that contrasted perfectly. And if that color combination wasn't enough, the train won me over! It was a great twist of American/Indian culture.

Mohit loves me in green, so my reception lengha had to have green in it. I loved the style of my reception lengha. I wanted deep/rich colors for the evening. I didn't think it was something commonly seen. I knew both my friends and family wouldn't expect me to wear either outfit so I knew both were the perfect choice."

On her hair and makeup:

"I worked with Zee from GlowZee to help me with the looks for the wedding day. I know I wanted to accentuate my eyes for both events, and I wanted a contrast between the two looks. I had never done an "up" do so I knew I wanted to have that for the evening. Zee did a fantastic job of giving me what I wanted but also making sure it suited my outfit and my face!"

On the role that family and friends played:

"My family was instrumental in planning the wedding. My mom and my aunts helped make sure I did all the rituals/customs that I could do. My father made sure all the guests were greeted with drinks and food, especially during the reception. My cousins helped me getting dressed- made sure not only that the jewerly was on tight but so was the lengha!"

On her mehndi artist:

"Zara did everyones henna for the wedding. I knew she would be perfect when I went to her house for a trial. She was patient with me and all the questions I had. More so, at the sangeet she was a huge hit, even convinced some of the guys to try on the mehndi."

On her venue: 

"Garden City Hotel is a beautiful venue in itself but what sold us was how we knew our guests would be greeted and treated as the night went on."

Additional thoughts from the bride:

"I wanted to do a unique cake topper, so I went on etsy.com and found a baker in Michigan who replicates the bride & groom. We sent pictures of ourselves a month or so prior to the event and she created the topper out of clay. It was something I hadn't seen at weddings I had gone to before, and it became a little keepsake item for me and my husband."

Have an amazing weekend, my dears! We'll see you on Monday for more Maharani magic!

Stylish Events and The Garden City Hotel are members of the Platinum Guide. Love what you see? Explore their portfolios.

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Our Maharani Siddhi basks in her bridal glow while she is getting ready to marry the Raja of her dreams as the glamour experts at Beauty By NG Nida Gazi applies the perfect sherbet hue to her eyes complimenting her coral lip color! She made sure her bridal party were equally ravishing receiving a subtle make-up look by Dolled up by Lulu. Our couple is charming in their first look portraits beautifully captured by Matei Horvath Photography! They make quite a dashing pair as Siddhi is stylishly dressed in a dusty rose, burgundy and sherbet bridal lengha and Ashish dons an ivory with gold embroidered sherwani. The outdoor ceremony space was minimally decorated so the exquisitely decorated ivory mandap draped in all red with gold details by Ethnic Essence Couture Events can showcase the couple! After Siddhi and Ashish wed the two dash off for a quick wardrobe change for their wedding reception! Siddhi's custom red reception gown created by Sabyasachi Bespoke Bridal was center stage of the reception as SheerRomance perfected the design to show-off the gown and the love between the couple with sparkling lights, hints of red and mood lighting. As the couple is ready to enjoy the festivities of the evening they cut into their elegantly decorated five tiered gold wedding cake! In true fashion of the co-founder of Borrow It Bindaas, Siddhi makes a wardrobe change into a stunning cream colored gown with a embroidered bodice and she is all smiles as she truly married the Raja of her dreams!  Check out the full gallery to see more images of the wedding ceremony and reception!

Our Maharani on planning the wedding:

"I truly enjoyed my meetings with Ethnic Essence and her team; my mother and I would spend hours with Smita Mohindra and her team, getting our creative juices flowing on how we can make each detail of each event something creative. I also really enjoyed seeing how involved my father got into all the details too; we all loved planning the entire week of events together over the past year and it was great how enthusiastic everyone was throughout each part of the process- from custom designing the invitations, to curating different return favors for our guests-Gotta Batwas from Jaipur, Ganpati Pearl Torans, to Gajra Bracelets; we really wanted to give our guests an unforgettable experience. What I really enjoyed most was working along side my mother; she is truly a fabulous woman who really thinks outside the box. Ethnic Essence, 3D Sounds, and Sheer Romance and all the vendors really pulled off incorporating our desired elements while also bringing in their creative energy together very effortlessly and beautifully. It was so great to work with vendors who were just as into the creative process as we were and were also very excited to push the envelope and try new things."

On her bridal lengha:

"Having been the Co-founder of Borrow It Bindaas; I've been thinking about my wedding week lehengas for a long time; especially the elements I wanted incorporated into each look. For my Bridal Look- I always knew I wanted to be a Sabyasachi Bride; since my family roots are from Kolkata; there was a personal connection to Sabyasachi for me. We went to their flagship store in Kolkata and worked one on one with two stylists there and curated my perfect bridal outfit; I just loved the elements of the blush/rose pinks, the maroon velvet with the gold zardosi work and the skirt filled with hand sewn moti pearls throughout. These elements and of course with the touch of Mr. Sabyasachi himself truly made it a royal bridal lehenga that I complemented with a Polki Set (gifted by my parents) with emerald stones to add a pop of color to complement the blush tones.

For all of the other outfits in my Bridal trousseau, I custom designed each one with the help of my talented Mother and Manshi Gandhi (one of the Co-Founders of Borrow It Bindaas). I was inspired by some of my favorite designers and the various elements they use in their work from Gotta touches, to certain colors, fabrics, and beading. Some of my favorite designers are Anita Dongre, Manish Malhotra, Sabyasachi & Ellie Saab/Monique Lullier (for my red gown). For most of the Jewelry for my pre-wedding outfits; I wore several Heirloom pieces from my late grandmother and my mother which made it that much more special to wear and incorporate that into my bridal trousseau." 

On a special moment:

"The entire week was truly a dream but there are two moments that really stood out to me as magical: my walk down the aisle and our reception entrance. We had a live flute player who walked down the aisle playing along to an acoustic cover of Mast Magan (from the film 2 states); the aisle was a shimmery gold; and the ivory mandap looked beautiful and the weather was perfect. As I walked down the aisle with my father by my side, my brothers and uncles held a gorgeous bridal canopy above me with hanging fresh red rose buds and gold kaliras; I teared up a bit as I neared the end of my walk down the aisle because it was all so surreal and beautiful. It was truly my dream wedding. My second most magical moment was when Ashish and I first entered the reception ballroom with our entrance and our first dance; Ethnic Essence truly transformed the ballroom to a classy, starry night, vintage hollywood themed room with star drop walls, an ice bar, a gold mirrored dance floor and elegant red rose florals; it was the definition of magical to us."

On their wedding song:

"When we were deciding on what to do for our first dance, I absolutely knew I wanted a live pianist playing it. Growing up learning how to play the piano I have always had an affinity to classical music. Our pianist Anjali Rangaswamy played a beautiful live rendition of Pehla Nasha and Ashish and I learned how to Waltz to the music from our amazing choreographer, Amna Mazin. With the piano, starry lights, and glass dance floor this waltz was truly memorable. Of course in true bollywood fashion we transitioned the waltz into one of our favorite songs- Jigar Ka Tukda (ladies vs. ricky bahl) and danced along to that! It was a great combination of songs displaying our personalities and of course our love for Bollywood!"

On her makeup look:

"I always knew I wanted to work with Nida Gazi from Beauty by NG. She understands the Indian skintone and loves to try new things while also continuing to keep your personal style. During the madness that goes on during a wedding week, she truly is a calming force and was with me from start to finish of getting ready to make sure I felt like a princess at each event. I was very particular about my looks for each event; for the Mata Ki Chowki since we have a background in Kolkata, I wanted to go with a Bengali look, for the Mehendi I wanted something shimmery and whimsical to go with my floral jewelry, for the Sangeet- I was in over 6 dances in the program so I knew I wanted something easy but glamourous to be able to dance in, for the wedding I really wanted to look like myself and not too done up so we went for a natural look while also of course matching my bridal lehenga. For the reception we just both LOVED my custom red gown so we wanted to do an all out glamourous and classic look for this. I met with Nida around 2-3 times personally and we went over each outfit, several photos and talked in detail about each look. She truly is the best at what she does and very professional as well; by the end of the week she felt like family!"

On the special details:

"Apart from my parents, my family was the backbone of this wedding. When we would have our family dance practices we would combine these with family meetings at the Khara residence with my sisters and cousins to work together and split up the tasks. We worked for months on end- filling welcome bags, assembling invitations, attending various vendor meetings, and much more! Everyone was so excited and eager to help it made it really fun! With a week of 7 events, over 75+ people from India and a full Baraat of over 250 people from out of the state; we wanted everything to be perfect for our guests and give them an unforgettable experience. To have such a strong support group of family and friends truly gave each of our events a very personal touch and got everyone involved!! There was so much love in the air and blessings from our family and friends; we are truly grateful!"

On working with her vendors:

"The below is a FULL list of the Dream team of vendors who worked cohesively and tirelessly to bring the wedding week together very seamlessly! Without them, this week would not have been possible."

I'll catch you back here for the next wonderful wedding!

Ethnic Essence Couture Events, Dolled up by Lulu, Matei Horvath Photography, S3 Catering, Beauty By NG Nida Gazi, Blue Lotus Insights and 3D Sounds are members of the Platinum Guide. Love what you see? Explore their portfolios.

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