For Whom the Bell Tolls by Devanshi Mody
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Trident Cochin
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Mumbai might be for the opulent Bollywood-style weddings and Delhi for the real “desi” stuff, but for something more exotic, here’s where to shop.
Fairytale Wedding: Rajasthan’s magical palace hotels have ever captivated the bridal imagination. Now, scale the heights of passion at Fateh Garh: the latest addition to Udaipur’s skyline. This fairytale castle is in the air – quite literally. And, fairytale castles are especially conducive to fairytale weddings, especially if the castle is a 150-year-old derelict palace transposed stone-for-stone onto the vertiginous summits of a hill and re-incarnated in a super sexy contemporised avatar.
Fateh Garh is conceived upon Vedic concepts. It offers 51 suites exemplifying 51 eco-friendly Vedic principles and occupies 51 bigas (a Vedic measuring system). It cannot be denied that this fairytale castle, for all its spiritual aspirations, lends itself to romance. The hotel’s endless terraces with cliff-edge pool and views of the Lake Palace humbled at your feet are for the headiest cocktails and dancing under the heavens.
Indeed, Fateh Garh opened to a glam NRI wedding party for which it was hired out. They revelled for a week, but the wedding never happened. No, not because the bride decided to abscond with the eligible young Prince Dushyant Singh who manages the royal-owned palace, but because the groom, who arrived on elephant accompanied by horses and what not, demanded a BMW minutes before the wedding ceremony.
The bride’s family blessed the hallowed precincts of the hotel that divinely intervened to avert a disastrous alliance and proceeded to demolish the entire chaat counter during the “no-longer-wedding” reception dinner leaving the hotel’s royal owners aghast. Of course, Dushyant Singh reveals he knew that the wedding party, however devastated, wouldn’t spare the chaats. The chaats are very good.
Things were more auspicious for big shot Bollywood director JP Dutta who relinquished the Taj Lake Palace to check into Fateh Garh, availed of the un-used wedding “mandapa” (flowered canopy). He just shot a film about princes and polo here whilst his wife fell in love with the hotel.
There’s no dearth of princes here. Whether charming or not, I leave to your discretion. But, if you don’t want your prince charming turning into a frog, retire before midnight to the honeymoon suites from whose domed roof’s winged angels watch over the newly-weds. In the swank marble bathroom, the twin bath cubicle offers showers of blessings.
Find yourself ravished in a decadence of lush linen and sumptuous duvets upon the comfiest mattresses. There’s no chance of falling off the maharaja-sized beds, but if you fall out with the loved one, then sleeping on the hand-woven carpets isn’t a terribly unpleasant punishment. At this celestial abode with its inspired concepts, who knows, the bride might even arrange to have herself delivered on the wedding night wrapped in a carpet, a la Cleopatra.
Marriage Made in Moghul Heaven: Cleopatra also seems the inspiration for the pre-nuptial Mehndi ceremony with milk baths for brides offered at the Oberoi Amar Villas. Of course, it is not certain that the ensuing ablutionary rituals including turmeric, sandalwood paste and herbal oils, whatever their purifying and perfuming virtues, would have been to Cleopatra’s taste. The spirit of Shah Jehan looms in the form of the Taj Mahal, framed by the elevated spa suite windows. What better way to pass the hours whilst the spa staff elaborately performs the “Solah Shringar” (special beauty treatment) on the wedding morning than contemplating upon a love song in marble?
Indeed, Shah Jehan shows who’s boss in Agra as his Taj Mahal dominates every stage of wedding ceremonies conducted at the Oberoi Amar Villas. The groom, flanked by the baraat (wedding procession of family, friends, musicians etc), is expected to arrive on an elephant – at least. The Oberoi’s service is so customised that it is not at all inconceivable to arrange an arrival on a dinosaur if required.
But, you’d be well advised to avoid such fanciful extravagances, which will unnecessarily prolong the never-ending Indian wedding ceremony, especially as the procession is conveyed for the marriage to an ancient Indian temple gracing the banks of the River Yamuna. Naturally, the Taj Mahal is the guest of honour at the ceremony, and the temple, bedecked in flowers and illumined by myriad lamps, is conveniently nestled by the white wonder. Transported by the sight of eternal love immortalised in white marble, many couples also use this venue for renewal of vows.
After the marriage ceremony, the wedding party is escorted back to the resort for a special romantic dinner in the Diwan-e-Khas. The serenade of soothing Indian strains and soft gurgle of fabulous fountains recreate the romance of the Moghal era in all its glory. In your suite, a bathtub, flowing with fragrant rose petals and enveloped in incense and candlelight, beckons irresistibly.
However exhausting your nocturnal activities, ensure you wake up for the champagne breakfast on your suite’s private terrace. They say two’s company, three’s a crowd. But, not if the Taj Mahal is joining you for breakfast!
Conjugally Kerala: Want a right royal wedding and a bewitching beach thrown in, too? Head straight to the Leela Kempenski in Kovalam for intimate, exclusive and elegantly exotic weddings. A swirl of serene seas in the embrace of lush, languishing lawns is this exquisite retreat. Think acres of secluded resort set against a blaze of swaying tropical palms on sun-kissed virgin beaches, lapped by the Arabian Sea – a dream setting if any for a wedding. The beach is bewitching, but the lawns are lovely. Where to get married? Choices, choices.
With an outdoor beach wedding, it’s sun, sand and fun, fun, fun – especially as the Leela Kovalam invites you to create your own exotic wedding theme. As for the Leela Lawns, they are an idyll of lavish expanse for both luxury marriage ceremonies and racy receptions. The lighting can be set up to create a fairy land ambiance. Enlightening, indeed!
Charming gardens and splendid function spaces stud the surrounding natural beauty, all enclosed within stunning sea views. But the sea’s sensuality in no way precludes the romp of the barat with a spectacularly-arranged fireworks display, as well as indispensable elephants and horses: the hallmarks of never-gone-out-of-fashion royal ceremonies with a tropical twist.
For those who like the “Big Indian Wedding” involving multiple ceremonies, The Oberoi, Motor Vessel Vrinda that floats down Kerala’s beguiling back waters can be hired out for mehnidi functions, and its intimate size lends itself for small gatherings like bridal showers. Book the boat for an exclusive party.
The Vrinda is also a popular choice amongst honeymooners. The eight-cabin cruiser takes one on a leisurely journey of rejuvenation and romance as it meanders through the waterways in languorous beguilement. So, you can sail into the sunset. For a marriage made in heaven, where better to tie the knot than in “God’s Own Country?”