These Childhood Friends Got Married & It's The Most Heart-Warming Thing You'll See Today!

Every once in a while, we come across weddings which really make us believe in love. One such wedding is that of Ayesha Nageshwaran and Katja Hahnloser-Nageshwaran, a wedding which brought together Indian and Western traditions, and happened across Zurich, Delhi & Jaisalmer. While Ayesha is a New Delhi-based entrepreneur, her Swiss partner, Katja Hahnloser-Nageshwaran, owns a multi-brand fashion boutique in Zürich. Their wedding was photographed beautifully by Karan Sidhu Photography★ 5 , who did full justice to it!

Meet Ayesha & Katja

Their Love Story

And what a cute love story they have! They were friends for almost 30 years before realising that they were in love with each other. Katja recalls, "During a trip to India in 1985, my parents got waitlisted to a flight to Jaipur, with Ayesha’s mother. Our parents instantly hit it off, and as time progressed, their friendship only grew stronger. By the virtue of their camaraderie, Ayesha and I got close. During our early days, our folks would host annual vacations, either in India or in Europe." Barring Katja, Ayesha was regularly in touch with her family, especially her brother and mother. 

The two ladies lost touch for about six years in between, but when in 2015, Ayesha joined her family business, she started travelling to Europe often. That is when they met and there was instant chemistry! Soon, their friendship developed into love. They tried to meet each other as often as possible, and never spent more than two months apart.

The Proposal

It was on November 4, 2018, on their one-year anniversary when Ayesha proposed in Jaisalmer, with the city having a special relevance for them since then. Ayesha says, "I wanted to make sure the occasion was extra special for Katja, so, to surprise her after I popped the question, I flew her best friend, her brother as well as my cousin down to Rajasthan in advance to join in the celebration.” 

The Wedding Planning

The venue was an easy pick for the couple, as they already had their heart set on it. After all, it was the place where the couple had their first official date! The couple planned the celebration to reflect their journey, celebrating their milestone moments as well as both their cultures and traditions.

What was cool was that since they had a lot of guests from abroad, who did not own Indian outfits, the duo organised a pop-up in Zürich at Katja's store three months before the celebrations, so that their guests could pick what they liked. While the outfits for women were from Ekaya, those for the men were by Salve.

The couple had an intimate civil ceremony in Zürich, after which they hosted a reception in Delhi, and then came the 3-day celebration in Jaisalmer, which was attended by their family and friends.

The Zürich ceremony

For the intimate ceremony in Zürich, which involved signing papers and officiating the marriage, Katja opted for a white midi dress from designer Talbot Runhof, while Ayesha rocked a dapper bandhgala and trousers.

The Delhi Reception

The civil ceremony was followed by a Reception hosted by Ayesha's parents at the Amaara Farms in Delhi. Katja wore a gorgeous earthy Sabyasachi lehenga, while Ayesha donned a black bandhgala designed by Raghavendra Rathore. 

The Sangeet 

Then came their post-wedding extravaganza in Jaisalmer! The couple hosted a welcome lunch, followed by a Sangeet at the Suryagarh Jaisalmer, which had a lot of Bollywood dancing as well! For this Katja picked Sabyasachi as well, wearing a customised lehenga in emerald green and black. Ayesha matched her bride in a black tuxedo by Rohit Gandhi + Rahul Khanna.

The Mehendi

After the Sangeet came their boho-chic Mehendi. While Katja wore a navy blue brocade lehenga by Ekaya, Ayesha opted for a jade green Rohit Gandhi + Rahul Khanna bandhgala. 

The Haldi

For this, Katja wore a salmon pink saree gifted to her by their photographer Karan Sidhu, while Ayesha wore a simple yellow kurta with a waistcoat. 

The Wedding

The wedding outfits were gorgeous too! Katja wore a custom ivory and gold Shantanu & Nikhil lehenga for her big day, and Ayesha complemented her bride in an achkan by Raghavendra Rathore, which featured the same embroidery the collar as Katja’s lehenga.

Katja's bridal entry was gorgeous too. She came under a pretty phoolon ka chadar, accompanied by her father and brother, with a Swiss singer serenading the crowd.

The couple made seven promises to each other, based on the saat pheras ritual, and there was also a recitation of Khalil Gibran’s poems. The wedding ceremony was gorgeous, with not a dry eye in the room!

Vendor Reviews

Ayesha says, "So we were lucky to have the trifecta of a dream team, who went above and beyond for our wedding - Jasmeet Kampany, Karan Sidhu & Rashi, Nidhi. 

I've know Karan from Karan Sidhu Photography★ 5 for a while, and he is just phenomenal. He was emotionally invested in our wedding, and told our story through his photography. He takes photos which are not just Insta-worthy, but captures emotions and moments. He uses his experience and is able to translate it into his work. He takes time to understand the couple, and makes them comfortable. While Katja is a natural in front of the camera, it goes against every fibre in my body - but Karan did a great job of managing my emotions and making me feel comfortable. He was not just a photographer at our wedding, he was a therapist, a big brother, a massive support - he played many roles. He understood everyone and took time to know the family and captured everyone's best qualities. He's an artist beyond everything on many levels!  

Jasmeet from Jasmeet Kapany Hair and Makeup★ 4.9 is my best friend and is phenomenal. There are no words to describe her. She did Katja's makeup and since she wasn't really familiar with Indian attire, helped her out with her styling, her trials, her looks and even calmed her nerves! She understands what works with Indian outfits while working with European skin, which is important, and her focus is always on the bride's needs, giving them whatever they want while guiding them what works. I think Katja looked gorgeous on every single day!

Rashi and Nidhi from Rashi Nidhi Event Design Boutique★ 5 were introduced to me through a friend. They were lifesavers at our wedding, which was crazy and hectic! They were emotionally involved and are good honest people, who go out of their way to give you exactly what you want, as you imagine it! They have an amazing aesthetic, and what I appreciated most is how they deal with all their separate vendors, they treat them with the utmost respect and in turn their team is willing to do whatever it takes to execute the perfect event for them. We had a few crisis moments before and during the wedding, and Rashi and Nidhi handled it without ever making me feel like there was a problem. They were always happy to lend a shoulder to cry on- and to handle crazy wedding emotions! They are definitely the ones you want by your side on your big day!

Vendors: Venue: Suryagarh Jaisalmer (Wedding) & Amaara Farms (Reception) ; Photography: Karan Sidhu Photography★ 5 ; Katja's Outfits: Sabyasachi Mukherjee★ 4.9 (Sangeet & Reception), Ekaya Banaras★ 4.6 (Mehendi) & Shantanu & Nikhil (Wedding) ; Ayesha's Outfits: raghavendra rathore★ 5 (Reception & Wedding) ; Rohit Gandhi + Rahul Khanna★ 4.9 (Mehendi & Sangeet) ; Guests' Outfits: Ekaya Banaras★ 4.6 & Salve ; MUA: Jasmeet Kapany Hair and Makeup★ 4.9 ; Decor: Rashi Nidhi Event Design Boutique★ 5