Premi and Sam

Our Love Story (adapted from our ceremony script)

Sam and I first met at Fendalton Primary school but we weren’t really friends! I remember Sam picking on me, but this was the age where boys thought girls had cooties, so he is forgiven. The age of eight was a confusing time for us all, Sam did test the waters and took me behind a curtain at a birthday party and pulled his pants down. I was shocked so said thanks and left.

Luckily for us, we rekindled five years ago at a local bar in town, Baretta. This time I approached Sam via his best friend, Tom. Tom interrupted Sam, who at the time was chatting up a blonde German girl, to let him know that I was keen. Sam didn’t take any notice of Tom and carried on his pursuit with the young lady who seemed to have his attention. But I was pretty confident that if the message came from me he might take some notice. So I walked up to him at the bar and asked him if he got the message? His response was "oh are you serious, just give me a moment." He let the unlucky blonde down in about two seconds flat and we have been together ever since.

Sam and I have had an amazing five years together, with many ups and downs. We have supported each other through life and are amazing teammates, accompanied by our two children, Huxley and Frank (our dogs). We like to walk our dogs Frank & Huxley, are big socializers with friends and family, love to party and I love to go out for meals, am a big foodie and love cooking. Sam is a very keen gardener and has a bonsai tree collection, loves hunting and playing golf. I love cleaning, I don’t know if you have heard of the famous Mrs Hinch but I’m all about her!

Our engagement was one not only I was waiting for! With multiple opportunities for a romantic proposal while we were away in Greece, Sam refused to propose just because everyone was expecting it and egging him on. So, Sam decided the best time to do it would be after the State of Origin at midnight once I had gone to bed. He woke me up and proposed while I was in bed and half asleep. It wasn’t the romantic proposal everyone had been expecting but it caught me off guard, so, in our eyes it was perfect.

Our Wedding Planning

We wanted to bring our favourite people together, friends and family to celebrate our love. My father is Indian, and my Mother is British. Both my brother and sister married Indians and had big Indian weddings. I was the second in our family to be marrying a non-Indian, Dad being the first. It was extremely important to me to let all three cultures shine at our wedding. I didn’t want Sam to feel I was taking over and making it a big Indian event that he didn’t have any connection to. I didn’t want him to wear Indian clothing or a turban as to me that would feel like I was walking down the aisle to a stranger, not the good honest kiwi bloke that he is. He got an awesome made to measure suit from Working Style. I also wanted my Mum for the first time to embrace her own roots being from the UK. I wanted her to wear non-Indian attire and feel like a beautiful English rose with a big hat so that everyone knew she was the MOB, because to me she is my English rose. I wanted my Dad to wear a Turban for the ceremony because he is Punjab and I am so proud of that and my heritage. I myself wore traditional Indian because that’s how I feel inside and wearing a white wedding dress doesn’t identify with me at all. Having both my parents walk me down the aisle was very important to me as having just Dad didn’t feel right. They both are just as important to me as the other. It was very important to Sam that we each wrote our own vows and only shared them with each other on the wedding day. Daunting for me but so worth it in the end.

I am an organised freak and love planning events whereas Sam is so relaxed he could be laying down so it’s good one of us is onto it! I have known exactly how I’ve wanted my wedding day to be even before I met Sam. That teamed with hiring Lucy made for a smooth and exciting process. But I did realise quickly that the relaxed Sam did want to be quite involved and I started calling him Groomzilla by the end! It was lovely and made me feel so supported, the fact he wanted to be involved and come to all the meetings. We are very different and the whole opposites attract thing is definitely the case for us. I think the whole planning of our wedding was the only time we agreed on everything without disagreeing first. It was important for Sam and I to have a cocktail style/walk and fork reception. We wanted to be able to interact with our guests instead of sitting at a head table and feeling stuck to our area with people just looking at us. We did have ample seating and furniture for people to relax when needed. There were also many lawn games and a selfie station to keep people entertained.

Our Wedding Day

Myself and my bridesmaids all stayed the night at my parent’s place, so it was all very exciting. I’m not really a morning person and the first thing I heard was Emma and Courtney chatting away at about 5.50am - From memory I told them to shut up! Then I realised it was my wedding day and got excited. We got up and all went downstairs to a beautiful fully cooked breakfast by my mum. It was awesome to be at home with all my loved ones getting ready for the day. The flowers were the first thing to arrive and from there vendors at setup was happening. It was so cool to look out my old bedroom window and see things starting to come together. The Reception site was down the road a bit so I did do a sneaky drive by to see how the marquee set up was coming along. Hair and makeup arrived, the girls and I put on our matching robes and we started the beauty process with champagne in hand, of course. Slowly other close family members started to arrive. My dad and brother had their turbans tied and the flowers girls (my three nieces) got ready and matching outfits. I needed a hand getting into my dress and wedding bangles on.

We all sat in my room once we were ready and watched all the guests and Grooms Party starting to arrive. All I could think in my head was where is Sam, I need to see him. I spotted him quickly and instantly felt relieved he was on time. He is LATE to everything! It also became very real to me at that moment and I felt so overwhelmed. Friends and family put me at as much ease as they could and I knew it was time to walk. The acoustics were outstanding thanks to Lucy making sure we had a sound technician and right speakers. The songs played were loud and clear which we were both so happy about. It then dawned on me that my vows would be heard far and wide. I am terrified of public speaking and when I read the first line which was my own name I burst into tears. Sam grabbed my arm and I took a few moments and read them out proudly making it the first time I have spoken in public not and failed miserably. The ceremony was amazing and we had a 32 degree stunning day.

After the ceremony we had a few bubbles and beers with everyone congratulating us and then it was time for the family and bridal party photos. We moved around some stunning spots in Clearwater then joined the rest of our guests who were enjoying themselves in the marquee. When we arrived, the bridal party were drummed in by the Beat Singh who played the Punjabi Dhol. The Dhol is a double-sided barrel drum used to celebrate and bring the party alive at Punjabi weddings. This was really cool and something different for all of our guests and a way to show off some of my Indian culture. Sam and I ended up doing an impromptu dance which made for quite the entrance. We commenced speeches straight away as we wanted the formalities over as quickly as possible. When it comes to partying Sam and I just love it and I was more than ready to hit the dance floor! The band was awesome, and I actually ended up on the drums at the end of the night. I used to play, and I don’t think anyone believed me and I sure showed them haha! Sam and I got some beautiful sunset photos and danced into the night. The day and night were perfect and everything we could have hoped for and if anything went wrong, I’ll never know about it. Lucy ran such a tidy ship that to me everything was perfect and our vision really came to life.

Our Advice

A wedding planner/stylist is so helpful and if this fits into your budget then I couldn’t recommend having one more.

Having a wedding budget and to-do list spreadsheet is so ideal. Even if you’re not the planning type it is one of the most helpful things I used. A great way to track RSVPs, postal addresses and thank you notes as well.

Brides, remember it’s not just about you! Your future husband needs to feel included in the planning process, even if they say they don’t mind or care.

When it comes to your wedding guest list you can be cutthroat. At the end of the day it is all about you and your partners nearest and dearest. Inviting every tom, dick and harry out of politeness is not necessary at all.

When choosing your bridal party, choose who you want, don't feel you need to have someone because they had you or you feel bad. There is no time for that. It is very important that you have your favourite people close to you, because you really need them. If someone gets upset that they aren’t in the bridal party then you can be sure that you made the right decision by not asking them because a real friend wouldn’t be offended.

How did you use Christchurch Weddings to help plan your day and what was your experience?

I looked on the Instagram page for helpful tips re vendors and style inspiration.

Our Dream Team

Lucy Chappell of Truly Yours Design Studio was outstanding and really brought our wedding to life. It was completely all about Sam and me through the whole process. She didn’t try and put ideas in my head or persuade me to choose things I wasn’t comfortable with. I could contact her anytime or the day or night with worries, concerns or just a chat to check-in to see how I was going. She was at all vendor meetings and worked around what suited us best. I only had to deal with her for everything, I didn’t have to make contact with millions of different vendors. She took all the stress away from us. My whole family fell in love with Lucy and thought she did a fantastic job.

Our hair and makeup team were both so accommodating and made me feel relaxed and like we could be ourselves. Just two very down to earth lovely people.

Both Little India and White Tie were a real dream to work with. All the staff were incredible, the food was outstanding, and everyone raved about how tasty everything was.

The way Dolly from Goobara Styling put our candy cart together was amazing! There were even little biscuits with photos of Sam and I on them. She thought of everything. I had one meeting with her and gave her a list of our favourite lollies. There was so much more detail and creativity behind it and it was a real highlight for me.

Truly Yours were wonderful to deal with and all the hire items were in amazing condition. They helped move things between sites without any issues. The black frame marquee was so stunning and everyone commented on how elegant it looked.

Our Vendors

Venue | Private property at Clearwater Resort for Ceremony and Marquee Reception.

Marquee, Lighting, Dancefloor and Furniture Hire | Truly Yours

Photographer | Rebecca Claridge

Videographer | David Duckworth of South Island Media

Full Planning, Furniture Hire, Design and Styling | Truly Yours Design Studio

Florals | Bourbon Rose

Champagne Wall, Stage and Tech | Theme Productions

Rigging and Lighting | Insight Audio Visual

Restrooms | Silk Estate

Catering | Little India and Catering Department

Celebrant | Hannah Duder