Rustic & Vibrant Wedding in Jaisalmer with a Regal Style!

Seriously, our inbox has to be the most stunningly beautiful one around - and this gorgeous, earthy wedding took it so many notches higher. With its block printed decor, outfits in heritage weaves that have been meticulously put together by mother and daughter, exquisite temple jewellery and glistening sunsets in the desert sand, it doesn't get more beautiful than this -  all expertly shot by photographer extraordinaire Mahesh Shantaram.

Meet Karishma & Ashwin 

"12 years ago, we met at the Goa International Airport when we were traveling with a group of friends who knew each other. We stayed in touch through collage, and a backpacking trip to Vietnam in 2010 was an eye-opener and we realised what was going on. Soon, Ashwin popped the question on a two-week trip to Sri Lanka. One morning, we woke early to go on a hike and I was chilling, having my coffee. Suddenly, Ash said ‘I love you. Will you marry me?’ And it was all good" recalls Karishma.

The Mehendi / Sangeet 

The Wedding

From The Bride: 

Karishma mentions that she was  was always looking for an off beat place for her wedding and Jaisalmer, in the heart of the Thar Desert was her first choice. Though she admits it to being a logistical nightmare, a little help from well connected friends and family made it easier.

Karishma's mom runs the clothing label Janavi and she quotes "My mother really helped me put up a great wedding and we had local potters, weavers, florists, puppeteers, and shoemakers to work for the wedding. The mehendi had a sweet stall with all the sweets from India and the theme was Indian bazaars" explains Karishma.

"My mom understands me perfectly. I love colour and I didn't want it to be heavy. So we went to Ekaya for handwoven fabric from Varanasi, India for the lehenga and my mom designed the border. Rohit Bal designed the blouse and lehenga. Roli provided the handwoven Banarasi dupatta. I made 42 outfits for my friends from my mom's label Janavi and 300 artisans worked with us on them.

After the ceremony, guests enjoyed the music of DJ Bosco at the reception. The celebration continued until dawn and we even had midnight munchies like pizza from Instapizza (a restaurant chain Ashwin started). The decor was beautiful, we decorated the hotel with marigold flowers and orange safas" adds Karishma.

Venue: Suryagarh, Jaisalmer; Mool Sagar, Jaisalmer |Music: DJ Bosco; Samandar Khan Manganiyar |Bride's Outfits: Bridal Lehenga fabric from Ekaya Defence Colony, Blouse by Rohit Bal, Dupatta by Roliana by  Roli and designed by Janavi , Mehendi Lehenga by Manish Arora|Groom's Outfits: raghavendra rathore★ 5 Turban Pin: Gem Palace Jaipur★ 5 |Makeup: SP from MAC Cosmetics |Decor: Devika Narain and Company★ 4.6 |Photographer: Mahesh Shantaram | The Boss of Candid