What do you call a wedding when the Mehndi is held at a trampoline park and the dress code insists on onesies and sneakers? You call it fun! And fun it was when Meetu Chilana and Atish Mehta tied the knot (or jumped the broom?) on November 2-4, 2018 in New Jersey and New York City. Not your usual couple, Atish is a touring DJ (and onesie designer-more on that later) and Meetu is a singer and actress, their wedding was anything but typical.
Meetu and Atish first met on OKCupid. He was just coming out of a long distance relationship and so set his search parameters to a strict 25-mile radius within the San Francisco Bay Area. It just so happened that Meetu was visiting San Francisco as part of the cast of Monsoon Wedding musical performing at Berkeley Rep, and her profile happened to pop up in his search. Her profile was bare bones at best with only a few images, but Atish felt a spark and sent her this message.
Soon thereafter, once the two began dating, Meetu and her castmates referred to Atish as the “bindi guy” and they carried this theme later throughout their wedding. As they continued dating and once Meetu’s tour ended and she had to return back to her home in New York City, Atish didn’t hesitate to follow her there moving his life to be closer to her because the two of them knew from the beginning that this relationship was special.
When it came time to plan their wedding, Meetu and Atish decided they wanted a not-so-typical wedding that reflected both of their artistic professions and the nature of their relationship. The Mehndi/Sangeet was hence, held Friday night at SkyZone Trampoline Park in Allendale, NJ as homage to Meetu being the lead singer in two of Cirque du Soliel’s tours, Kooza and Zarkana. Dressed in whimsical onesies from Atish’s company Peculiar Colors that designs onesies for music festivals, the couple and their friends bounced the night away on the park’s multiple trampolines dressed in Atish’s latest collection. In keeping with her Sikh heritage, a Jago ceremony was held in the park’s main area complete with song, dance and henna while food trucks catered gourmet pizza, Thai food, coffee and gelato to the guests inside.
The next morning, the traditions continued with a Rajisthani Ghodi Pookhna (groom’s send off) ritual to honor Atish’s heritage followed by a traditional Sikh ceremony at the Guru Nanak Mission in Oakland, NJ during the day to respect Meetu’s culture. At night, guests headed to Manhattan to board the Hornblower Infinity Yacht where the reception was held in grand stance while the massive yacht sailed around the glittering lights of the city.
At the reception, Meetu dazzled in an ornate lehnga by Chandan Boutique, Toronto while Atish looked sharp in a Paul Smith suit. Aboard the yacht, a table full of bindis and delicious cuisine by Chef Surbhi Sahni of Saar, NYC, greeted guests. As music is central to both Meetu and Atish, they had invited many of their musician friends to perform at the event. Mandolin virtuoso Snehasish Mozumder serenaded guests with his quartet as they boarded. Once the yacht set sail, Grammy-nominated artist Deep Singh’s band “Sharabi” took to the stage featuring fellow Grammy-nominee Falu singing Rajasthani favorites and Meetu herself belting out Punjabi classics. All that combined with a special performance by Atish DJing on the decks kept the guests dancing throughout the sail.
Once the couple returned back to shore, the newlyweds headed off to India for a reception with Atish’s family in Jodhpur, Rajasthan, and a honeymoon at the Fairmont Maldives Sirru Fen Fushi.
Resources
Photography: Nadia D (ceremony and reception) Jan Freire (Sangeet)
Videographer: Weddings by Jas (Sheru Arora)
Event Planner and Floral Designer: À Votre Service Events
Catering: Ceremony: Minar NYC; Reception: Saar NYC
Sangeet: Carmello’s Brick Oven Pizza Truck, Thai Elephant Truck , Dolce & Gelato (Sangeet Dessert), Bittersweet NYC (Cake)
Style: Henna by Naty (Sangeet guests), Brooklyn Henna (Bridal); Hair and Makeup: Styles by Susmita
