#FirstPerson: Here's All I Did To Have A Mindful & Sustainable Wedding...

There is no doubt that weddings leave a massive carbon footprint. But when couples take the initiative to incorporate sustanability into their nuptials, it blows our mind to see how small steps can have such a big impact. Here is yet another wedding which inspires to go down the sustainable route- with the bride being the owner of a sustainable accessories brand, it was something close to her heart, and truly inspiring! So over to Angana as she tells us all that she did to make her wedding in Dubai more eco-friendly and mindful.

When I started planning the wedding, some of the themes that were kept in mind were; sustainability, equality, nature, values and traditions. All of these themes were something that I wanted to ensure that each and every guest who attended our wedding would experience something along these lines. I myself am a brand owner of UAE's first sustainable accessories brand, Veganologie. Being sustainable is something close to my heart, and I wanted to ensure that sustainability was at the core of our decor, F&B, gifts etc.

Here's all I did to make sure my wedding had sustainability as it's core: 

Choosing Heirlooms 

From wearing my mother's shaadi lehenga (35 years old) on my Mehendi and wearing her jewellery for my wedding, I was able to upcycle. For the wedding day, both of us (bride & groom) decided to go for something unique for their wedding outfit. Instead of going for the popular designs, we decided to go for heirloom pieces, which we knew could then be re-worn and passed down to the next generation. Both our outfits were Kashmiri work, hand made by artisans in Kashmir. Our designer, Shantanu Goenka, ensured that each and every detail of our outfit was in sync to our theme. 

Meaningful Decor  

The mandap was a vision that I always wanted to create; The Tree of Life. I wanted to get married surrounded by all the elements. Tying the knot surrounded by our closest family and friends, next to the ocean (water), with the refreshing breeze (wind), under the Tree of Life (air) at sunset (sky), and taking 7 pheras around Agni (fire) was the most magical moment of my life. This was the reason we also created our wedding hashtag as #AgNi. Getting married surrounded by the elements of Earth was as beautiful and grounding as marriage is. 

Reducing Wastage

We ensured that the hotels had sustainably at the core of their values too. For example, all water bottles that were provided to guests were made from recycled plastic bottles, all unopened left over food was distributed either to the staff canteen or given to charity, who would then distribute the dishes to people in need, and all hamper boxes that were left in the guests' room were collected at the end of the wedding and recycled. Most hamper boxes are left by the guests and thrown, creating more waste. We had also requested the guests to leave any snacks that they wouldn't want so that we could collect and donate the snacks. 

A Mindful, Customised Ceremony

Finally, equality and breaking taboos, was another theme that was on my list. By this I mean, we beautifully wanted to show how marriage is a tradition that we both want to behold, but marriage and weddings also evolving. Our wedding was solumnised by four priestesses from Calcutta, who conducted a vedic wedding. It was a short but impactful ceremony, where every single one of our guests sat and watched the entire ceremony and was able to feel included as a lot of the ceremony was in English too, along with sanskrit. In all this, we went away with Kanyadaan. Both families were in tandem and agreement of not having this part of the ceremony, something that was quite unique and breaking boundaries. 

In these small yet significant gestures, we discovered the transformative power of mindful living, as our wedding became not just a celebration of love but a testament to the enduring beauty of sustainability and compassion. It’s not the extravagance of the occasion that lingers in memory but the simple acts of kindness and stewardship illuminating the path towards a brighter, more equitable future for all.

Vendors: Bride - Angana Maheshwari (@anganamaheshwari) | Groom - Nikunj Nagalia (@nikunjnagalia) | Wedding Planning Team - Planning Flavors| Photographer - Magic Motion Media★ 4.6 | Venue: Waldorf Astoria Dubai Palm Jumeirah