The night before her grad school interview in Connecticut, Prema Khan was staying with a friend in New York City, who insisted they attend a birthday party at Monarch Rooftop in Midtown. Despite the frigid December chill, Prema went.
Meanwhile, Asaad Chaudry’s colleague urged him to attend the same party. “Call it coincidence, destiny, or fate,” Prema muses. “That one moment changed our lives forever.” As soon as Prema walked in, she and Asaad locked eyes and talked the whole night. They left at 4:00 a.m. to eat with friends and then Asaad walked Prema and her friend to the subway station. He messaged her the next day, and the two talked for the next nine months. They officially started dating once Prema moved to the city for grad school.
Three years later, Asaad proposed not once but twice. “My wife’s dream was to get proposed to in Paris, under the Eiffel Tower,” he shares. With a classic Tiffany & Co. ring, he popped the question underneath the Bir Hakeim bridge. The second proposal soon followed, and it “was more of what I had in mind,” Asaad notes. On the secluded 3,000-year-old medieval hilltop village on the French Riviera called Eze, he asked Prema to marry him again.
Growing up in Miami, Prema always wanted to have her wedding at Vizcaya Museum & Gardens. “I knew that if we were able to book this beautiful venue for our wedding, it would be a once-in-a-lifetime experience for us and our guests,” she says. The Italian villa-inspired aesthetic of the estate made for an all-too dreamy setting. Prema designed every event’s invitation herself and had a printing company in Bangladesh create her vision.
The couple selected the Miami Airport Marriott for the Sangeet. “Asaad’s friends and family were flying in from the U.K., so I figured it would be easier if we hosted the first event close to the airport,” Prema tells. Alibaba Events coordinated the Moroccan-themed Sangeet. “The first time we went to see Ali, I just told him to take reins as long as he sticks to the gold/ivory color palette,” she remembers. “The end result was an unbelievable splash of Moroccan design and South Asian influence that resulted in a night of dancing, singing, and some memorable performances!” Zaika Indian Cuisine catered the flavorful meal, and Abner Reyes of Air Studios captured the event on film.
The Haldi ceremony at Prema’s parents’ lake house offered a view of the crystal clear surrounding water. “Haldi ceremonies are usually a more intimate daytime affair; therefore, we figured it would be nice to have it outdoors without your usual restrictions that come with booking a formal venue,” she elaborates. Prema sourced most of the day’s décor items from her trip to Bangladesh the previous year and used them as centerpieces. With help from a day-of coordinator, the ceremony was an afternoon of color and warmth, with families across cultures partaking in this intimate Bengali ceremony. Tamra Crystal of Crystal Photography photographed the day.
Asaad’s Giorgio Armani tuxedo was the only wedding outfit that was bought and tailored in the United States. The rest of the party’s outfits were custom-made in India. While Asaad and Prema originally intended on visiting India, the Omicron variant derailed those plans. Instead, they ordered everything over Zoom and WhatsApp. Prema recalls, “I was very upset that I didn’t get to have the wedding dress shopping experience that I had dreamed of, but ultimately, the outfits were exactly what I had imagined them to look like. I was just thankful to the designers who worked with me throughout.”
For the Sangeet, guests wore either white or gold colors. The bride donned a golden couture lehenga by Abhinav Mishra. The renowned designer is known for his signature mirrorwork. Her sangeet outfit took approximately 12 weeks to create and weighed about 20 pounds with all of its hundreds of small embroidered glass pieces. She paired the shining outfit with traditional Kundan jewelry and jasmine flowers in her hair. Asaad opted for a custom Jodhpuri bandgala suit from Herringbone & Sui.
Prema was purposefully very particular about her outfit for the Haldi ceremony. “I was born in Bangladesh, and I wanted to incorporate as many details as I could of 19th-century Bengal to the Haldi event. I wanted to look like a character right out of Rabindranath Tagore’s poems.” She wore a finely woven silk banarasi sari, a gift from her mother, with traditional Bengali sita haar and traditional bangles on her wrists and gold payals on her ankles. Asaad wore a light and breathable chikankari kurta from Herringbone & Sui.
For the wedding ceremony, the bride wore a bespoke custom-made Anushree Reddy lehenga. Reddy is known for her “Cutdana work” of stone and beadwork that reflects the light. “This particular outfit was showcased during India’s Fashion Week a couple of years ago, and I immediately fell in love with it,” Prema boasts. “I think my favorite part of my outfit was my 12-foot-long cathedral veil.” She finished the look with contrasting green jewelry from her mother. Prema’s makeup by Glam by Mevi was matte and dramatic, centered around her bold Rouge Dior 772 lipstick. Her second outfit was a traditional bright red zardozi embroidered lehenga from Dolly J’s collection.
When Asaad attended university in London, he would walk by the Harrods Armani section and hoped to one day wear such a James Bond-esque suit. His wedding was that opportunity. Prema selected his classic sherwani from Herringbone & Sui for the traditional Muslim Nikah ceremony.
On March 28, 2022, Asaad and Prema signed their marriage contract and repeated the word “Qubool,” which means “I accept” in Arabic. PS Photography and Films photographed the nuptials.
The reception followed inside the main house where MI Vintage and Rumbas Events Rentals decorated the space. Guests dined on dijon-crusted baby lamb chops with balsamic apricot mint glaze, crab cakes, spring rolls, ceviche, and samosas catered by Alexander Event Catering. The delectable dinner soon commenced, and then the newlyweds sliced into their three-layer Earth & Sugar cake.
Prema’s brother and best friends toasted the couple, and Asaad regaled everyone with a speech. Never one to shed a tear, she had to dab her eyes while he spoke. The dance floor was craftily poised outdoors, underneath the celestial night sky. Maisha Sajjad, Prema’s best friend, sang Elvis’s “Can’t Help Falling in Love” for the bride and groom’s grand entrance.
“My dream wedding wouldn’t be possible without the hard work and commitment of my parents, Yasmin and Azam Khan,” Prema says as she reflects on her wedding. “Particularly, my mom who traveled across the globe with me twice for wedding shopping, helped with planning for over two years, and lastly, greeted every guest and made everyone feel so special during my wedding weekend. I cannot express in words how much effort she put into this multi-day wedding that took multi-years to plan, due to COVID-19.”
Prema also adds that her brother Yasin Khan was the life of the party and brought so much energy and fun to the entire wedding process. “He could read my mind throughout and knew exactly how to ensure that all of the events ran smoothly as I had pictured,” Prema boasts. “For that, I cannot thank him enough. I’m just so grateful for the loving environment they created and, of course, for the new addition to my family.”
