Anushka -Virat designer wedding : Sabyasachi reveals how he weaved magic

Even though details of the much-anticipated Anushka Sharma-Virat Kohli wedding were made public at the last minute, it’s quite clear that the royal gala was being planned for months. From the picturesque venue in Tuscany to gorgeous bridal wears and frozen frames — everything was perfect to the T.

Their fairytale wedding took place in Borgo Finocchieto in Buoncovento, which is about an hour from Tuscany, known for its celebrity-endorsed resorts. In fact, it’s the same place where the Obamas went holidaying after Barack Obama’s eight-year-long presidency.

And if you are gushing about how beautiful both the bride and the groom looked in Sabyasachi ensembles, then let us tell you that it involved a lot of hard work and expert craftsmanship to get the finished products. Talking about Sharma’s gorgeous lehenga that she wore while exchanging vows, the designer delves into the reason behind the choice.

Sabyasachi decked her up in a pale pink lehenga and it had to fit in! “Surely, something had to compliment the amber skies along the vineyard. With Renaissance embroidery in vintage English colours embellished with silver-gold metal thread, pearls and beads, it took more than 32 days and more than 60 karigars (artisans) to embroider the “tropical flora and fauna” on her choli and skirt.

Even her jadau jewellery was hand-made. Unveiling his heritage jewellery collection earlier this year, he argued how he believes in a making them in an old-fashioned way, “painstakingly assorting coloured gemstones and diamonds”. And this is exactly what he did, for her bridal jewellery. Her stunning handcrafted choker, jhumkas and the mathapatti



flaunted uncut diamonds, pale pink spinel and baroque Japanese cultured pearls. While her necklace with uncut diamonds featured Tourmalines.”

Not to forget how flowers added to her charm. So, much so that even the designer thought that the fresh Tuscan hydrangea was the “hero” of the look.

Even her velvet sari worn during the engagement and lehenga skirt worn at the mehendi celebrations were handcrafted for days. The maroon sari from his Gulkand Collection “was hand-embroidered using miniature pearls and the finest quality zardosi and marori. She wore a stunning uncut diamond and pearl choker with matching studs. The entire look was complemented with kohl-rimmed eyes, red roses and micro dot bindi.”

Her mehendi outfit too was a combination of various forms of artworks and techniques – a beautiful amalgamation of the modern and the old. “We created a graphic lehenga in fuchsia pink and Indian orange. It was hand-printed by the famed Calcutta block printers and hand-embroidered with gota and marori. Artists from The Sabyasachi Art Foundation rendered a beautiful sixties pop print and it was silk screen printed, hand woven Indian silk. Anushka accessorised herself with earrings from the Sabyasachi Heritage Jewelry collection, a stunning pair of jhumkas crafted in 22k gold with Iranian turquoise, tourmalines, uncut diamonds and Japanese cultured pearls. Custom juttis in hand woven brocade and zardosi completed the look.”

The baroque ensembles were planned to the point where even the shoes for both the bride and the groom were handmade. Be it the special zardosi crests on tan leather juttis for Kohli and brocade mojris for Sharma.