From London to Mumbai—For Tanya and Mikhail love transcended borders

Business Director Tanya Advani and real estate entrepreneur Mikhail Bhatt may not agree on the first time they met, but both concur on one thing: it was love at first sight. Brides Today brings you the story of their three special days celebrating their love in Mumbai.

HOW THEY MET

“Mikhail and I first met through a common friend at a pub in London in February 2017. He was on vacation with his boys; I was between my MBA classes. We stayed in touch living different, unconnected lives until I moved to Mumbai in November 2019. We went from fast friends to best friends in a short time, the pandemic acting as an accelerator. But our constant, divergent travel and work lives didn’t give us a window to express our true feelings for each other. Until a Goan sunset in the pool in February 2021, when Mikhail asked me to be his girlfriend. Since then, our lives have been a whirlwind of adventure and romance. Mikhail, however, claims a different start to our story—he maintains he had seen me for the first time in 2011, and for him, it was love at first sight.”

THE NEXT STEP

“Both Mikhail and I didn’t believe in a blind leap of faith. With our family’s support, we started living together in March 2022. We were in our 30s, had grown up in different countries and were exposed to different ways of life. We could only be sure about the future if we tested ourselves in the present. We also wanted to spend more time with each other. It wasn’t long after we moved in together that I realised we make a good team. The proposal was a surprise, Mikhail lured me and my family to a Christmas Eve brunch at his uncle’s home. But there was no Christmas tree—instead, I got an aisle, flowers everywhere, and a ring. We felt blessed that we could have our families, especially my 99-year-old grandmother, witness this moment. It was also the first time I saw her have a sip of champagne!”

LEADING UP TO THE BIG DAY

“We spent some time brainstorming the ideal wedding. He wanted it in Mumbai, and I wanted it in my home country, the UK. He wanted one day of events; I wanted three days with three outfits. We settled on three days in Mumbai so my grandmother could attend—it was a healthy compromise. We conceptualised, planned and executed our own wedding. Our dearest friends were married a year earlier in Mumbai, so we received a lot of practical advice from them. We selected everything ourselves—the venues, photographers, hair and makeup, entertainment, planners, decorators, etc, and included our families in colour coordinating outfits and selecting the food. Mikhail protected the selection of beverages like it was his child, and I coordinated and performed with our entertainment. We were in planning meetings until the very last day.”

MEMORIES THAT WILL LAST A LIFETIME

“For me, it was walking down the aisle with my father, on the lawns of the iconic Prince of Wales museum in Mumbai. I wore my dream wedding gown that I co-designed with Tarun Tahiliani Couture, and with a mic in my hand, I sang a song of love and promise as I looked at my groom waiting to marry me at the end of the aisle.”

MY ADVICE

“Through marriage, you’ll be bonding yourselves in your team of two. Make sure your team is strong through open and honest communication before your big day. Planning a wedding is not easy—it comes with many challenges, some more nuanced than others. Not everything will turn out the way you planned, but don’t sweat the small stuff! The day will still be beautiful because it’s a celebration of your love, and your guests will be none the wiser. Make your wedding about the two of you. Mikhail and I told the story of how we met through musical performances on our sangeet night. Weeks later, our guests are still talking about our dancing and my singing. We curated our favourite cocktails at our mehendi sundowner and made a recipe book so our guests could recreate them at home. We wrote a personal letter in our wedding programme, which warmed the hearts of our loved ones.”

THE DETAILS
Wedding Planner: FTC Events
Photographer: The Photo Lab
Wedding Décor: Three Entertainment, The Drama Queen and The Creative Company
Bride’s Outfits: Madzin, Rahul Mishra, Sharnita Nandwana, Sabyasachi, and Tarun Tahiliani
Groom’s Outfits: Anamika Khanna, Rajesh Pratap Singh, Rahul Mishra, and Bellani S Bespoke Tailors
Makeup: Namrata Soni and Pompy Hans
Hair: Anchal Morwani (Hot Hair Balloon)
Mehendi Artist: Sona Mistry
Locations: Trident Nariman Point, IFBE and Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya

Also Read: Why a low-key wedding is better than a big-fat one

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