We had the pleasure of photographing Rida & Faraz’s wedding last summer in Toronto. Both their mehendi and nikkah were beautifully done and it was so nice to work with the family again after I shot Faraz’s sister Annie’s wedding back in 2017.

We started off with the colourful mehndi which was shot by one of my talented team members. Due to some delays, we weren’t able to get an outdoor couple shoot done but we made do by shooting at the venue, and the incredible decor served as the perfect backdrop. The beautiful decor added to the vibrant energy present throughout the event.

Rida wore a gorgeous gharara by Mohsin Naveed Ranjha and her henna was done by the talented Fizza Tabish, one of my favorite mehendi artists in the GTA.

The event was hosted in Capitol Banquet Hall, and having been to tons of Pakistani weddings in the GTA, and having eaten *a lot* of banquet hall catering, Capitol Banquet Hall has some of the best food from a venue I’ve had! 

The venue was completely transformed by the floor wrap and decor done by Sabi Creative Studio @sabicreativestudio. I loved the orange and teal tones which are a nice change from the usual pinks and yellows we’ve been seeing in mehendi decor.

The mehndi was super fun and ended with dance performances and an open dance floor, which is always so fun to shoot!

The next event was Rida and Faraz’s Nikkah & Reception at Casa Loma in Toronto. This was my first time shooting at Casa Loma and it was truly a stunning venue to shoot at! It’s super unique for desi weddings and has a magical touch, with its castle-style mansion and gardens.

We started off with Rida’s getting-ready shots in the bridal suite, which was one of the nicest bridal suites I’ve seen! The lighting was perfect. Rida wore a lehenga from Zuria Dor and had her henna done by Fizza Tabish.

We had the pre-wedding shoot outside in the gardens and got the most perfect first-look shots with the stairs leading into the grounds. I was absolutely in love with the location and hope I can shoot more weddings there in the future! Such a pretty backdrop for your photos.

We were also able to get some family portraits done in the gardens before the event since the couple had allocated a lot of time for photos, which is something I can’t emphasize enough!

Faraz was in the navy and his friends were there for the entrances. The couple walked under the sword arch done by the honour guards, which was a nice personalized touch to the event.

The floor wrap and decor were once again done by Sabi Creative Studio @sabicreativestudio and were simple and neutral, and complemented the venue really well.

The nikkah was followed by a cocktail hour outside and a sit-down dinner reception in the tents which was also a nice change! A sit-down dinner is something I recommend my desi brides to consider as it’s a lot less chaotic than having a buffet-style meal, especially if you have constraints like a smaller venue or a large number of guests.

The night ended with speeches, and more dancing of course!

Rida and Faraz were such a pleasure to work with, they were so good with communication and so detail-oriented with every step of their wedding planning! We worked together meticulously to plan out every detail of the day, and you can see it paid off in the end.  Wishing them all the best in their new life together!

Mehendi Details
Venue: Capitol Banquet Hall
Bride’s Outfit: Mohsin Naveed Ranjha @mohsin.naveed.ranjha
Bride’s Henna: Fizza Tabish @fizza_tabish
Decor:  Sabi Creative Studio @sabicreativestudio

Nikkah & Reception Details
Venue: Casa Loma Toronto @casalomatoronto
Bride’s Outfit: Zuria Dor @zuriador
Bride’s Henna: Fizza Tabish @fizza_tabish
Decor:  Sabi Creative Studio @sabicreativestudio