Pinned on his chest was a cheetah brooch, a nod to his 3,000-acre animal rescue sanctuary Vantara in Gujarat. Isha, meanwhile, wore a custom Schiaparelli saree: a first for the French haute couture house.
As the party grew late—and Justin Bieber took the stage for a private concert—Radhika changed into a metal mesh saree by Manish Malhotra. “It featured a corset that added a modern twist,” Radhika explains. “Although it was quite heavy, it was worth every moment.”
Over the next few days, the couple had several poojas (or, ceremonial prayers) as well as a mehendi ceremony where the bride and her guests get their hands and feet painted with henna. Then on July 11, they held their haldi—the tradition when a soon-to-be-married couple is covered in turmeric paste to ward off evil spirits that might curse their marriage—at Vantara. Radhika wore sherara pants from Anamika Khanna and a dupatta (or, a stole) made of flowers. “The atmosphere was filled with joy—and a bit of chaos,” says Radhika. “Our haldi is what I hold most dear to me.”
By July 12, they were back in Mumbai for the baraat, or, the groom’s wedding procession. Arriving at the Jio World Convention, there were musical performers and hundreds of dancers as Anant arrived on horseback. “It was out of this world. I’ve never seen anything like this,” designer Prabal Gurung, who was one of over 2,000 guests in attendance along with Tony Blair, Nick Jonas, and Priyanka Chopra, says of the baraat. “The whole room was filled with flowers and Bollywood celebrities. There was all this dancing and singing.” (Those flowers were orchestrated by event planner Preston Bailey, who made over 60 floral animal sculptures, made of Indian flowers, including monkeys, elephants, and tigers. He estimated each one took over 100,000 flowers to make. “It took many sleepless nights,” Bailey tells Vogue, who arrived in Mumbai three weeks ago in order to pull it off. Throughout the evening, people lined up to take photos in front of the installations.)
After a short break, it was time for the wedding. The Hindu ceremony began with the traditional jaimala, where Anant and Radhika exchanged garlands symbolizing acceptance of one another. That was followed by the kanyadaan, or, the official moment where Radhika’s parents gave Anant their blessing to marry his daughter. Then came the phera: or, the actual wedding ceremony where the bride and groom take circumambulations around a ritual fire. Radhika describes the act as “somber yet mesmerizing.”
