“It instantly felt so different, so magical. Something that I had never really experienced before. I asked my friends if it was just me or if this happens with everyone. That feeling was the most beautiful one I had ever experienced.” – This is how VJ Gaelyn Mendonca beautifully described the feeling of getting married to the love of her life.
The famous model, actress and MTV Roadies host (who is also a wedding planner, BTW) got married to her longtime boyfriend, Sheehan in a beautiful ceremony at Taj Lands End in Mumbai. We got talking to her, and she gave us some really interesting details about her love story and her wedding too. So, without spending any more time here, let’s just divulge into everything the Nautanki Saala fame actress had to say.
How it all started…
We met a really long time ago when we were in college! It’s been 12 years since we met. We had common friends so we hit it off instantly.
Did the man go down on his knees?
Well, yes! There was an elaborate formal proposal. I was shooting for Roadies and was away for a month. Sheehan knew that I had this crazy 6th sense and that I would figure out everything. So, he planned everything on my mom’s birthday. When I returned from the Roadies shoot after a month, just in time for my mother’s birthday, all of us went to a restaurant to celebrate.
I kept wondering why the restaurant was all empty when in reality Sheehan had booked the whole restaurant to pop the question! I was mind blown, and I obviously I said Yes!
Tell us all about your wedding venue
Convenience was a major factor we kept in mind while choosing the venue. We researched about various locations like Goa, but since most of our friends were from the industry, we chose Taj Lands End, Bandra considering it would be well connected and convenient for everybody.
POPxo Pro Tip: While destination weddings are definitely a lot of fun and memorable, you should consider your guest’s convenience too. There’s no point of hosting a gorgeous wedding at an exotic location if half of your guest list cannot make it to the celebrations.
Since you’re a wedding planner yourself, you must have done some crazy prep for your big day?! Tell us about it…
Even though I was constantly shooting while the whole wedding planning was going on, we (Sheehan and I) still planned everything ourselves. Our friends and family were very helpful too.
Our wedding celebrations were quite fun as we had a grand party that was entirely organised by our friends! They organized outdoor activities considering how Sheehan and I absolutely love adventure sports!
What was your wedding shopping like? Any interesting stories from the shopping sprees?
All my wedding outfits were picked up at the last moment and my friends really helped me wedding shop. It so happened that I was visiting Dubai for IFFA. My best friend lives in Dubai and she took it upon herself to find me a nice wedding gown. She would drag me to boutiques and we’d look out for gowns. I finally picked up the last design from the last boutique we visited in Dubai.
The same thing happened with my sangeet lehenga. I picked up the outfit from Seasons in Santacruz. We asked the salesman to show us the most quirky pieces that no one would conventionally pick. He showed us 4 to 5 options which were all amazing, and we decided to go with one of them.
The most beautiful moment from your wedding…
There were many beautiful moments, most importantly the one when Sheehan put a ring on my finger. It instantly felt so different, so magical. Something that I had never really experienced before. I asked my friend if it was just me or if this happens with everyone. That feeling was the most beautiful one I have ever experienced.
A wedding is incomplete without a great photographer! What was your experience with ‘The Photo Diary’ like?
The Photo Diary captured our moments so uniquely. We came across TPD on Instagram and had a few other photographers in mind as well but their portrayal was so unique that we decided to go with them. By the end of it, The Photo Diary and Monisha became like family to us!
I still remember how Monisha asked me to show her the gown and disappeared with it for two hours! She came back with beautiful shots of the gown, but while she was gone I was left there thinking if she had run away with my wedding dress!!! *laughs* But yes, it was absolutely amazing working with Monisha and her team!
Aren’t the pictures beautiful? Our heartfelt congratulations to the beautiful couple. We wish them loads of love and luck for their new life as man and wife!!!
