TIMELESS WEDDINGS AT THE TAJ AN ABSOLUTE GUIDE TO YOUR1 DREAM WEDDING 2 3 is said that marriages are made in heaven. but we stumbleIt upon them on earth. over companionable silences when the need to make conversation is over. far from the din of saturday nights, making the most of what etta james called a “sunday kind of love”. walking hand-in-hand with our ideal travel companion. catching ourselves using the old cliché - “soul mate”. sharing a sunrise, a breakfast, an unmade bed, a record. and when in love, even the most hardened cynic dreams of a beautiful wedding. a wedding replete with everything and everyone you love, a venue that makes it magical, and all the tiniest details that make it yours alone. it is to this legendary celebration of love that the first issue of timeless weddings raises a toast. santé! 4 5 there is a heaven on earth, ‘'If this is it, this is it, this is it’ TAJ FALAKNUMA PALACE, HYDERABAD 6 7 contents destinations PROPOSALS Be it dreamy, glamorous or exotic, our exclusive bouquet of ideas makes your 10 special moment unique and unforgettable. WEDDINGS & GRAND BANQUETS A wedding that your heart desires: The grandest locations, the most lavish banquets, and the 16 choicest wine lists. Make a wedding or banquet at the Taj an event to remember. HONEYMOONS Live it up. Celebrate. Unwind and indulge. Begin your new life together 56 in any style you like with us. RENEWAL OF VOWS Rediscover the joys of taking your vows together as we turn this 66 special day into a rare and intimate occasion. dining CUISINES From opulent dishes to small plate wonders, the Taj offers culinary delights for every 72 kind of palate. SERVICES PREPARING YOU We help you plan your wedding to make it the unforgettable experience 80 that you always dreamed of. JIVA SPA Drawing on the goodness of nature, Jiva Spa offers you a chance to take time off for 82 luxurious pampering before your wedding day. BRIDAL BOUTIQUE The Taj Khazana offers you a collection of breathtaking designs, to 84 make sure you look your splendid best. TRAVEL Allow us to take care of all your travel arrangements, be it by road, by air or by yacht. umaid bhawan palace, jodhpur 8 9 86 proposals when? where? how? what were you wearing? did he buy flowers? how did he slip in the ring? generations ahead will be listening. make it count. 10 11 proposals for a proposal that is no less than cinema, look at our unique bouquet of ideas at 11 most exclusive taj locations. you can rest assured that while you hear a resounding 'yes', our discreet staff will have made your private moment unique and unforgettable. sea lounge taj kumarakom reosrt & spa , 1the taj mahal palace, mumbai 4 kerala Since the 1970s, in the early evening hours, the Sea Lounge Lazy days. Star-kissed nights. Fabulous local cuisine. The sharp has been ideal for matchmaking. Everything from the meeting taste of pepper. The heady aftertaste of toddy. Make your of brides and grooms for the first time to families getting proposal one that stands the test of time against the beautiful, together for the finalizing of the match went on under the roof still backwaters. of the Sea Lounge. Decades later, you too, can surprise her with a square ring box during the high tea service and make the most taj safari lodges of a time-honoured tradition. 5All proposals require courage. Some, a little more than the others. In the wild atmosphere of the Taj Safari Lodges, you could the sunset point pick a gourmet dinner at your charming rustic suite or kutiya to 2taj fort aguada resort & spa, goa propose or do it on your own private Safari. An old fort. An uninterrupted view of the Arabian Sea. The balmy, soothing air of Goa. The Sunset Point at Taj Fort Aguada Resort & Spa presents many possibilities for a proposal. All of them warm, sensual and romantic. gol bungalow 3taj falaknuma palace, hyderabad The original residence of the Nizams of Hyderabad, the Taj Falaknuma Palace is a place that has history, the Kohinoor diamond and romance on its menu. You don’t just travel there for a proposal, you travel back in time. sea lounge - the taj mahal palace, mumbai 12 13 proposals proposals taj lake palace, udaipur vivanta rebak island, langkawi taj lake palace, udaipur taj exotica resort & spa, maldives vivanta rebak island, langkawi vivanta dal view, srinagar 8A private sit-out dinner for two on Lake Pichola. A sunset and 9taj coral reef resort & spa, maldives 10 It’s a private island reserved for romance. Making it 11 Perched on the Kralsangri Hill, it has the finest view of the a beautiful white palace for company. A boat that takes you there Why propose to her in solitude when you can propose amidst a perfect for a proposal. Sun, sand, cocktails and the sea make the Dal Lake and the majestic Zabarwan mountains. One glimpse of single and brings you back engaged. This kind of a proposal calls crowd? Shoals of marine life surround you as you slip the ring on perfect setting for languor and love and yes, a storybook proposal. this green valley, littered with tulips, will tell you why a proposal for a sari, a tux and a complete hark-back to the days of royalty. her finger and make for an absolutely original proposal. here, aided by fabulous service, is sure to be truly memorable. taj exotica resort & spa, maldives vivanta dal view, srinagar 14 15 weddings and banquets your wedding day is the day you begin to fill a treasure chest with secrets that are yours alone. is the day you inherit each other’s friends, families and belongings. is the day you decide to walk together, no matter what. when isn’t a wedding romantic? as the french saying on poesy rings went, “my whole heart, for my whole life”. weddings are open announcements of love. and love, as we all know, is a stranger to restraint. before you set the mood for your wedding, remember the assault on your senses when you first fell truly, madly, deeply in love? didn’t silk feel softer? didn’t the smell of autumn leaves make you leave your windows open despite the chill? didn’t you walk long hours in the rain, forgetting the effect it had on your new coat? your wedding should be a magnificent celebration of this joy and more. be it a bachelorette, a sangeet, a wedding or a reception, a grand banquet at the taj is an orchestra of beautiful venues, mood lighting, great music, attentive service, and spectacular food and wine - all lending the event a sumptuous air that needs to surround a celebration. 16 17 ICONIC CITY WEDDINGS AND BANQUETS the taj mahal palace, mumbai a mumbai wedding just has to be at the taj mahal palace. and who better to host it than the city's own grand dame?" It is, after all, the palace that took its place in history 21 years before the Gateway of India. It is the dome that features in every artist’s etchings of the Mumbai harbour. It is the first hotel in India to have had electricity. It is the hotel that housed India’s first ever licensed bar. It is where Hussain, Jahangir Sabavala, Ara and V.S. Gaitonde hang their works in a manner that can only be described as matter- of-fact. It is the place where the old Palace Wing still makes you speak a little softer once you enter its hallowed corridors. It is the Taj. And as for the romance that surrounds it? How would you like to be married in a place where Lennon and Yoko Ono spent five days in a suite without stepping out for even a minute? Or where the Beatles could have composed a love song? As for the experiences that The Taj Mahal Palace, Mumbai, offers, we recommend a wedding night at our heritage Rajput Suite – where a single-touch button lights up this carefully restored suite that is distinguished by an antique swing. Or an intimate dinner at Chef Hemant Oberoi’s signature Chef Studio – where ambrosial food decorates Versace designed Rosenthal crockery and wine is drunk in Riedel goblets as a toast to the beginning of your life together. 18 19 weddings and banquets ballroom and crystal room - the taj mahal palace, mumbai true to tradition, the ballroom and the crystal rooms still echo with the sounds of lavish feasts being served on pure silver salvers. making them the perfect venue for glittering wedding events such as yours. In the 1920s, it was where the Maharajahs entertained lavishly as guests vied with each other for a repeat invitation. In the 1930s, it was the first place in India to witness the birth of jazz, cabaret and the tango. In the 1940s, it was the first air-conditioned ballroom. In 1980, it was the first to bring down Michelin-star chefs and change the palates of the country forever. Today you’ll find that these versatile rooms are still reminiscent of the twelve-bar blues. They still tell tales of sit-down dinners, when Mumbai was Bombay and Bombay ended at Bandra. They still tell tales of how they were resplendent with the bejewelled turbans of the Maharajahs. The three Crystal Rooms - Central, North and South - with their imposing carved pillars and late 19th century chandeliers remember tradition while functioning as a modern gathering space.