Couple book out St Paul's for Bollywood version of Charles and Diana's wedding

12 February 2024 , 10:41

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The pair went to great lengths to mimic the Royal couple's grand event (Image: No credit)

A couple from London hired out St Paul's Cathedral for their wedding - to stage a Bollywood take on Charles and Diana's big day. Ravina Bhanot, 29, and Sahil Nichani, 28, secured the famous venue for a mere £6,000 to mimic the Royal couple's grand event, and even went as far as having identical flowers and ring designs.

Like Diana, Ravina also arrived at the ceremony in horse-drawn carriage. The couple were able to book St Paul's because of the honorary OBEs and MBEs held by their parents. Both doctors from North East London, Ravina and Sahil tied the knot last September before a crowd of 300 guests. The wedding was an amalgamation of Christian and Hindu traditions.

The pair first met while studying medicine at Queen Mary University of London and had their graduation ceremony at St Paul's. Ravina, a specialist in women's health, said: "It was a fairytale opportunity. We felt Diana's was such a beautiful wedding, we wanted to emulate it and put our own spin on it."

The couple decided they wanted to copy the royals for their own big day (No credit)

"Diana was a woman of the people and a pioneer, and we have also done a lot of charity work. Sahil works for Great Ormond Street Hospital and Diana was a patron there - our work is what she stood for. We wanted to remember her and also do a beautiful wedding for us."

The couple were eligible for a royal-style wedding because Sahil's dad, Sanjiv Nichani, has an OBE, and Ravina's parents, Ravi and Sushma Bhanot, have MBEs. They were both inspired by the 1981 wedding of Princess Diana and Prince Charles.

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They even consulted with the dean of the cathedral who officiated William and Kate's wedding to help them create a truly royal experience. Sahil said: "Initially I was a bit sceptical about having a royal wedding because I didn't know what people would think. But then I realised we were lucky enough to have an incredible opportunity - life is short, so we should go for it."

He added: "In St Paul's, even for the rehearsal, as soon as you walk in, you feel the history. The wedding was one of the best days of my life for sure - it felt like we were in a movie, but it was our movie."

The wedding of Charles and Diana in 1981 (Getty Images)

Lady Diana Spencer entering St. Paul's Cathedral with her father (Getty Images)

Sahil also expressed his gratitude towards their parents, especially his mum, for their significant role in arranging the wedding. He said: "It goes by so quickly and you just want to pause time to savour and capture the whole moment. I'm so grateful to our parents - especially my mum - for having such an important role and helping us arrange the wedding."

For the big day, Ravina wore a white Pronovias dress while Sahil donned a custom-made suit he bought in India. Ravina carried a white bridal bouquet and her wedding ring featured a sapphire in the middle.

Ravina shared: "One particular scene I loved watching from Diana's wedding was the scene when she comes in her horse and cart and runs up to the stairs. The dress came out with the horses and the band playing. She looked so beautiful, nobody had ever seen such a dress, or such a veil. It was such an iconic moment in history."

Ravina walked down the aisle to the hymn Gloria, performed with an organ and their choir. But unlike the Royal wedding, the groom played the guitar to create an 'Indian Ed Sheeran vibe' - which Ravina said set the tone perfectly. Ravina continued: "I think we wanted to bring in a lot of Bollywood and also emulate the royalty - that angle was quite unique to us. I don't think St Paul's had ever seen it. We wanted to bring a first with a fusion."

The pair went as far as having identical flowers and rings to Charles and Diana (No credit)

Ravina and Sahil at St Paul's Cathedral (No credit)

After the ceremony, they moved to Hilton Bankside where 450 guests joined them for a huge evening affair. They enjoyed a meal of pan-Asian cuisine featuring Chinese, Japanese and Indian dishes. Their first dance was to an Indian song they both loved, before they both invited their respective parents onto the dance floor for a father-daughter and mother-son dance.

Sahil, responsible for planning the honeymoon, booked a week-long getaway of a lifetime to the Maldives. Ravina added: "We had a week left of annual leave each, and jam packed it full of relaxing, doing watersports and eating wonderful food. We had such a lovely time at the wedding, then we got to spend a week sitting back and enjoying it. It was so nice to think back on how beautiful the day was, it was like a dream come true."

Zahra Khaliq