Destination weddings have their own spark & when these grand celebrations take place at the beachside and that too in Phuket, you can imagine how heavenly it would be. From a vibrant Haldi function to varmala ceremony at the beachside with a breathtaking view, Ayushi & Pramod just lived their fairytale moments aesthetically.
Meet Ayushi & Pramod
How we met:
Pramod and I worked in the same office and were just mere friends & work colleagues. We then happen to meet socially at a friend’s house again a few months later.
Since my childhood, when it came to marriage I wanted to have a simple wedding with my closest family and friends. As time passed and with everything put together, Pramod and I wanted to have our wedding in Sri Lanka. Mainly because I have had the best memories during my formidable years and it is a place that was very close to my heart. However, due to the unfortunate situation in the country (bomb blast), a lot of things had to be changed and then we went to Phuket. We explored on google for a bunch of properties.
The Village Coconut Island was one of the properties we narrowed down. We decided after going back and forth to visit the 5-star resort. After we reached the property, we fell in love with the place, the villas. We were very keen on the rooms that our guests get, should also be spacious. Basically, we wanted to ensure everyone has a good time.
When we stayed there, we did a food tasting, met the team and they were really excited about coming on board to host an Indian wedding. This was also one of their large scale events that they were doing. They are located on an Island in Phuket which is approximately a 30min taxi drive from the airport to the pier. You are then taken by a speed boat to this secluded island.
The inspiration behind this destination wedding is because I wanted to have it away from the place I live and at a place that overlooks the beach.
Wedding Functions
I had a mehendi function in Bangalore which was at my residence in Langford Town, Bangalore. I had four functions in Phuket. On 12th of October, we had a pool party. And that same day we had a cocktail party that had a different take and vibe to it. It was more of rapid-fire, emotional speeches by close family and friends and a few dance performances by the bride and groom’s family and friends. On the 13th of October, we had Haldi function which was beautifully done by the villa lawns and beach. That same evening was the wedding on the beach followed by drinks and dinner.
Mehendi
Pool Party
Cocktail & Dinner
Haldi
Wedding
A lot of your wedding clothes is something you don’t often land up wearing again. So, I did not want to invest a copious amount of money into doing something overtly extravagant.
The wedding Lehenga was my absolute favourite. I wanted to go with a nice shade of gold that looks subtle, not too flashy & heavy at the same time. A lot of things had to be factored in when I was planning the wedding lehenga and considering the temperature (that being the most important) anything with regards to silk or fabrics that are similar would have been extremely uncomfortable. So it was important to get a nice breathable fabric.
So, Needle and Eye by Sakina Ahmed who designed my entire Lehenga was an absolute gem to work with. She gave us suggestions on what we can do. She got the vibe & understood what I was saying and when she showed me the work with different phases I was very happy. When she sent me the final image of the complete gown, I had tears in my eyes as I appreciated the work that she did. The fabric that we used was picked up from her boutique. It was a fabric that already had hand-stitched work on it. So we did a mix of hand and thread work on the entire Lehenga which didn’t make it too heavy but added the glam-factor.
I received several compliments from family, friends, and guests at the hotel on how they were awe-struck by the design and work that was placed into designing the outfit.
Most Emotional Moments From Wedding Day
The most emotional part of my entire wedding day was when I was getting ready for my wedding, in terms of wearing my jewelry, my make-up, my clothes, etc. Secondly, when I was walking down the pier to the Varmala platform with my closest brothers holding the flower chadar over my head. And having my four best girlfriends walk beside me who have been sisters in my life, that was the most emotional part of my wedding.
Wedding Vendors
Venue: The Village Coconut Island Beach Resort in Phuket was just beautiful. We had initially booked our wedding in Sri Lanka and due to the unexpected blasts, we changed our location. This beautiful resort is 30 mins from Phuket airport & is located on a completely different island. All the villas in this property are gorgeous and the property itself was serene, beautiful and on the beach just as we wanted. The property also believes in sustainability to the max and does everything small that one can to contribute.
Makeup Artist: As a PR professional I was very particular about having a makeup artist who gets the look I want. I did trials with several makeup artists in Bangalore but nothing ever made me very happy. It was then that my best friend’s mother who is a trained and professional makeup artist visited Bangalore. She did a trial on me and oh boy I loved my look. It was just perfect and flawless and exactly what I wanted. Simple, Elegant and bespoke. Mrs. Lata Srinivasan who did my makeup is a certified makeup artist in Kerala and she is really making a difference in the makeup she does. It was pure magic.
Hair Stylist: I really wanted to create something out of the box hair updo. Especially for the haldi and wedding ceremony I had something in mind and wanted exactly that. Blown-in BANGALORE was my hairstylist and they did an amazing job with all the different and unique styles that were done with the use of different elements and florals that resonated with the theme of the wedding. Not only did Blown do just my hair but also did hair updos for other guests at the wedding. Amazing team and did a super job.
Photographer & Videographer: I’ve seen Ankit’s (Studio ANK) work at a friend’s wedding previously and also had Theo measure of personally meeting him then. I also checked his reviews and there was no doubt that Ankit and his team would be the official photographers for our wedding. The entire team was a pleasure to work with.
Wedding Planner: My husband is into the entire event planning and management industry. We had contact with people directly in Thailand. So we worked with AG event planners for the setup in Thailand and they were just perfect & got the elements we wanted. My husband and I put down a complete presentation that had the looks of each function, the setup & kind of décor elements we wanted. These guys did an amazing job of also getting the right sound and lighting vendors.
Groom’s Outfit – Pramod comes from a very simple family and keeping the high levels of humidity in mind he wanted to go light and classy with his wedding outfit. He believes in giving startup designers an option to showcase their work because if someone doesn’t try them you’ll never know how good or bad they can be. He was really happy to have chosen the people he did for his wedding outfit. His cocktail outfit was sourced and stitched at Prestige-The Man store in Bangalore & Haldi outfit was from Fabindia. For the wedding, we worked with this new luxury label called CHOTE that recently opened its door in Bangalore. His wedding shoes with the Sherwani were also personally designed by Chote & cocktail shoes were from Roush.
Mehendi Artist: The artist was Asma Mehendi, she is well renowned in the Bangalore fraternity. A lot of people have worked with her.
Jewelry: I chose jewelry set from Amrapali as I have always been very appreciative of some of the jewelry that Amrapali creates as a brand. I spotted a beautiful neckpiece and Mang Teeka at Amrapali store in Khan Market, Delhi & I was sure that I wanted it. I was very clear in my head that I wanted something heavy yet elegant that I would wear again later.
A Piece Of Advice For Other Brides-To-Be
“Wedding planning is not easy and every bride who has been through it knows it well. But to all the bride-to-be’s out there. I believe you should focus on the smaller & more important things, in terms of outfit, make-up, jewelry & shoes.
If you want to plan a wedding without a wedding planner, the costs can be channeled to elements such as decors and themes. Just sit together & refer to Pinterest. There are several wedding portals that will give you the inspiration you need to plan your dream wedding. Create your mood board with the person that is going to help you execute it. This is something that any wedding planner will basically do. But you should have a clear view in your mind which will make your planning process easy.
Just have fun! Enjoy the process. Stress sometimes can make you forget the experience of being a bride but when you walk down the aisle, you will realize that it was all worth it.”- says the bride.
So this was one of the beautiful Phuket weddings that we came across. If you too have such amazing wedding stories then share it with us on [email protected] & get featured.
