My Bridal Finery – Maria Mehtani

MARIA MEHTANI
Business Developer,
German American Chamber of Commerce, New York
Designers: Shantanu and Nikhil Mehra

When our wedding date was finalised for this year, Shaun (my husband) and I started our shopping around October last year. We browsed through some collection images online and I saw a beautiful cream and beige S&N lehenga – I immediately fell in love with it. My chosen ensemble became the inspiration for Shaun’s outfit, the groomsmen outfits that were synchronised with his sherwani and my mom-in-law’s anarkali suit. I got my ensemble custom-designed in cream and coral with two choli and two dupatta options. The cholis were designed according to my body type as I intended to pair one of them with my trousseau selection.

Since we were based in New Jersey, we could not come to India for fittings or trials but Nikhil and Shantanu – along with their team – went out of their way to make sure that we were completely involved in the production process. The designer-duo kept on emailing us sketches, colour swatches and embroidery samples to finalise the outfits for our big day. The continued interaction reassured us that we were on track. Finally, my outfit was a dream that had come true!

Here is an excerpt from an email I had sent to Shantanu and Nikhil on receiving my wedding outfit. It says it all:
‘Thank you so much for all the hard work! From the fit, fabric to the colours – it’s just perfect!’