Q. How did you two meet?
A. We met at the Liberty Hotel – specifically Alibi lounge. Rekha was out with her brother celebrating the last few weeks before he got married. I had returned home from a consulting trip and was just looking to meet some friends for a drink. I saw Rekha from across the bar, and couldn’t take my eyes off of her, so much so that she later admitted that I “wouldn’t stop staring” at her. I finally got the courage to walk up and introduce himself. Rekha was surrounded by her “brothers” (really her Indian cousins). They made it hard for me at first, but after spending time talking with me her cousin, Neraj, finally introduced me to Rekha. We chatted for a few minutes and I got her business card and incessantly began calling and texting her over the following 3 months before Rekha finally agreed to go on a date. Last minute, of course, she tried to cancel but I was relentless and convinced her to come meet me. The rest as they say, is history.
Q. Tell us the proposal story~
A. Rekha refuses to be surprised. You can’t plan anything in the form of a surprise party or surprise gift or surprise anything without her finding out first and ruining the surprise. So I knew I couldn’t plan anything big because she would find out. Just like she found out the day of the 30th surprise birthday party I tried throwing her. The frustration lingered.
So – I had to be smart and sneaky. Rekha and I grew accustomed to doing hot yoga together at Baptiste studio in Somerville. Well on this day I decided to act sick and wasn’t able to go with her. Usually Rekha would insist that I come and that I would feel better from going. She was off her game that day and “let me” stay home since she’s usually so good at motivating me.
Once she left for yoga, I jumped out of bed and got a million candles out I had bought to light up the entire apartment. I lit candles everywhere! I had the ring, the mood, and now the lighting was set. And then Rekha walked in. She was all sweaty from hot yoga so she still didn’t know what was going on. I asked her to sit down so I could talk with her. I guess I must have been pretty nervous because she asked me a couple times if everything was okay. She really had no clue of what was about to happen. I proceeded to tell her how amazing she was, how she changed my life for the better, how much my family and friends all loved her, and how lucky I felt from the connections I’d made to her siblings and family and friends since meeting her. Then I got down on one knee and asked her to marry me. She asked me three times, “are you sure?!” and each time I said “OF COURSE!” on the final time she asked, I told her I was sweating and anxious for an answer! She started laughing and said, YES! We were overjoyed and after celebrating together, we began calling our family members to share the amazing news.
Q. What details are you most excited about for your wedding? EX. cake, vendors, location, etc.
A. The location is absolutely beautiful. Being on the water in Newport, on a gorgeous summer day, is the ideal wedding scenario we planned. We are so excited to bring our friends and families together to celebrate one big Indian-American fusion wedding. Rekha bought outfits for all my family members so they are going to be dressed in proper Indian attire with bright, beautiful colors. My 91 year old Nana will also be there and that’s probably the greatest part of it all.
We’re also excited about the bharat as Ryan will come in on a huge horse singing and dancing to music as family and friends walk along the water front.
Rekha is excited to be walking down the aisle with her mom and siblings beside her – as her immediate family members have been a critical part of her entire life and she’s so grateful they can all be there to support her.
Q. Where are you getting married?
A. The gorgeous Newport, RI, Eisenhower House and Belle Mer
Q. Where is the reception?
A. Belle Mer on Goat Island in Newport, RI
Q. What look were you going for in your engagement session?
A. Classy, elegant, modern and exhibiting of both American and Indian styles. We also wanted Boston iconic landmarks to help compliment our pictures so we chose the Boston Public Library both inside and out as well as the location we originally met – the Liberty Hotel.
Q. Do you have any tips or advice for couples getting ready for their session?
A. Be bold. Don’t go with just your regular style. Find a fun outfit that represents you or your family or your culture. We were lucky to split our shoot into two. For the first one Rekha chose a bright elegant ballroom dress with a really bright bold red floral pattern complimented with a bold necklace and earrings. I wore a black suit with bowtie and socks that matched her red dress. And then to top it off, I wore a fidora style old school black hat that brought it all together. For our second shoot Rekha wore an ornate and glitzy orange Indian outfit, and I wore a beige Indian outfit with an orange scarf to bring it together.
Pick a venue that is dynamic and be ready to go with the flow. To our surprise it began snowing during our shoot. Instead of staying indoors (considering Rekha was in a sleepless dress) it pulled us outside! Those pictures in the snow ended up being some of our favorites! We were even caught by a 7 news anchor who ended up tweeting a picture of us during our shoot!
Rekha also tells all of her engaged friends to try and schedule their photoshoots for the same day as their hair and make up trials. That way you can see what it will look like in pictures.
Q. How was your overall session experience?
A. Amazing! Christian and Melissa are unbelievable to work with! They give you their full attention and do whatever is needed to get a great shot, to position you correctly, or to create the right mood. They have such a creative eye, and we were so excited to do two shoots with them, each with a totally different feel. It is very clear that they take a lot of pride in their work, and boy does it show! We have since recommended Christian Pleva Images to as many of our friends and family as possible and hope to do many more shoots with them in the future!
