We met two years ago at a wedding - literally ran into each other on the porch, under a very bright light, in the brides' house - a true "hum apke hain kaun" moment! Love at first collision and things have never been the same again! J! And they get better each day!

As soon as we got engaged i.e. Jatinder asked me to marry him (in May 08) we decided on a short engagement. In addition, finding dates that everybody was available was proving to be difficult as we had family from all over (UK, Kenya, Zurich, Canada and India) - so we picked one weekend in January for the civil marriage (out of a hat), we used that same date in the following month to start the Indian wedding customs and festivities. That was the beginning - it has been an exciting rollercoaster from then on.

For the Registry marriage in England, we searched through an internet list of Manors - then visited the ones who had the capacity for the number of guests we had in mind and allowed outside caterers - as the cuisine had to be Indian! We wanted a location outside London with all the greenery, but at the same time close and easy enough to get to - The Manor came out tops - magnificent as well as accommodating outside caterers, plus it had a wonderful water feature outside.

A group of us attended Jatinders' friends wedding in Jaipur last August, we had such a great time together, it was our first trip and it was really romantic - so we decided to come back as the place had so many beautiful memories, to tie the knot and start our new life together, and bring the family too to share it all! - And what more reason could there be - after all Jaipur is the "pink" city!!!

I was reading a magazine and came across the name so decided to call and see what it was all about! Had also heard the name a year or so ago at a very close friends wedding - who had the same wedding planners.

As I have a very hectic work schedule I didn't have too much time to do much of it myself. I had loads of ideas in my head, with the help of our wedding planners I was able to put pen to paper and actually live through my dreams and fantasies I had! Or rather never knew I had. And the best thing was that no request/ want/ need was never too much for Ranj/ Anita to organise/ find/ arrange. e.g. two days before we are due to get to Jaipur - Jatinder wanted an elephant to ride on to get to the reception - I was worried that is was a bit of an outrageous demand but it materialised on the day…and well, the pictures speak for themselves…..

This should be the first thing any couple books after making the decision to get married! The savings that you make by hiring the wedding planner are a definite plus point, however the peace of mind and comfort that you get from knowing that there is always someone there for advice/ bounce ideas off/ someone who knows the do's and don'ts as they have done it all before - saves you making the same mistakes so you really can have the perfect day - it's priceless!

However for the bride, if she wants to enjoy the day like she truly deserves - like a princess! - this is as important as the dress itself if not more….I think that says a lot in itself.

This one has to be - Ranj from Tania-Tapel (who was our Tania-Tapel wedding planner and handled our UK civil ceremony) turning up in Jaipur - I had no idea, but was really gutted when I could not have Ranj in India - but Anita arranged it all - and I shrieked in the hotel foyer when I saw her - so un-lady like but I was really overjoyed! - thanks girls!

Another unforgettable priceless experience was when we were at an old palace (City Palace - now museum), having our pictures taken in our wedding outfits- all the visitors there thought we were celebrities - they forgot all about the museum and started taking our pictures - one even asked Jatinder for his autograph! We certainly felt like royalty!

For the registry marriage in England, I wanted something quite simple yet elegant and sparkly so I decided on a pale pink indo/western two-piece. Fish tale skirt with lots of Swarovski crystals, plain boned corset top. Tiara from Kyles - delivered a day before the registry and Karen Millen shoes - to die for!!

For the Indian wedding in Jaipur, as we were in Rajasthan I thought I would go with all the bright colours, so I went for a traditional red lengha, embroidered with brass gold thread with a green and orange border, with a net duppata - complete with Swarovski crystals all over - as I still wanted the bling!

The highlight was the jewellery - full bridal set - always wanted a big "jummer" - it was all custom made as I wanted to match the little bit of green in my lengha - even got them to make the matching anklets and tikka! Felt all very majestic and regal once on with the outfit and Jatinder next to me in his outfit - you should see the pictures. - To finish it off perfectly I arrived at the Gurdwara in a burgundy Vintage Morris car.

What did the groom wear?

For the Indian wedding in Jaipur, the groom worn a Traditional Indian grooms' outfit - "sherwani"- cream overall coat with light red embroidery to match bridal lengha, matching shoes and red turban.

For the Indian wedding in Jaipur, my one and only lovely sister - was maid of honour - and she wore a lengha to match the green and orange tones in my outfit with matching kundan jewellery set - looked stunning!

For the registry marriage in England the theme was pink - all the décor was simple yet elegant - beautiful tall vases with pink orchids - tea lights to add romance to each table - with a hint of gold included using champagne chair bow ties and a ferrero rocher chocolate as a party favour delicately placed on each neatly folded white linen napkin. I wanted to highlight the beauty of the venue through simple elegant chic décor.

For the events that took place in Jaipur - We had 4 busy days of activities starting from 10th February to 13th February and they included a Mehndi reception, Maiya, Chunni, Choorah and Jago ceremonies and functions, with a Sangeet

On the wedding day itself we conducted the Sehra Bandhani, Anand Karaj, Wedding lunch and then the Evening Wedding Reception was conducted at the hotels pool side where a larger than life chess board & chess piece set was the setting for this event. Our theme here was uncomplicated and chic and elegant.

After the ceremony at the Gurdwara we arrived at our reception venue, Jai Mahal Palace in true Indian style...on a traditionally decorated Indian elephant! Over the four different days we had a variety of speciality cuisines including Italian, Rajasthani, Chinese, Punjabi

Bride name	Gurwinder Jandu
Groom name	Jatinder Gahir
Date of wedding	Registry on 10th January 2010
	Indian wedding from 10th -13th February 2010
Venue	Registry at Manor of Groves Hotel, Hertfordshire
	Indian wedding - Jai Mahal Palace, Jaipur, Rajasthan, India
Wedding Planner	Tania-Tapel. www.tania-tapel.com
Photographer	East West Photography - www.eastwestphotography.com