Ikaasa Suri and Jaywin Singh Malhi’s five-day wedding celebration in Mexico City was a masterclass in meaning, movement, and modern cultural storytelling. Later featured in ELLE India, their wedding was not designed for spectacle alone, but as a deeply personal expression of faith, fashion, and community, set against one of the world’s most vibrant cities.
For Ikaasa and Jaywin, the heart of their planning centered on sangat, the Punjabi concept of community. Having spent their entire relationship long distance, travel had always defined how they loved. A destination wedding felt like the most honest way to honor that journey while bringing together the people who had supported them across time zones and seasons. Mexico City became their canvas. Accessible yet richly layered, historic yet alive, it offered the perfect backdrop for a celebration that unfolded across rooftops, forests, convents, and haciendas over five immersive days.
Rather than anchoring the weekend to a single venue, the couple invited guests to experience the city itself. A Sangeet in a 16th-century ex-convent, an Anand Karaj on a sprawling hacienda, and a reception set deep within a national forest transformed each day into a distinct chapter. Even their accommodations became part of the story, with gatherings hosted in a presidential suite that has welcomed world leaders and cultural icons alike.
Fashion was integral to how the story was told. Ikaasa described the weekend as her “personal Met Gala,” and every look was designed or conceptualized by the couple themselves. For the Sangeet, she wore a custom 22K gold corset created with MISHO, engraved with the cities that shaped their relationship, orbiting a central scene of Jaywin’s proposal. Above it, delicately inscribed in Gurmukhi, was Tu Hi Ah, the song that played when he proposed. The architectural corset was paired with a flowing Banarasi lehenga, heirloom emeralds, and jewelry passed down through generations.
For the Anand Karaj, the couple spent weeks across India designing their garments from scratch, drawing inspiration from pichwai embroidery, layered textiles, and classic Indian craftsmanship. Ikaasa’s lehenga featured lilac, sage, and ivory panels depicting peacocks, florals, and boats, a tribute to Rajasthani artistry and her father’s legacy in textiles. Jaywin’s sherwani echoed her palette, completed with a custom sword engraved “IKWIN FOREVER,” symbolizing unity and heritage. For the reception, Jaywin surprised Ikaasa with a tuxedo embroidered with the exact constellation from the night they first met, a poetic love letter written in stars.
The Anand Karaj itself was deeply intentional and spiritually grounded. In preparation, the couple studied the meaning of the laavan together, annotating translations they now plan to frame in their home. During the ceremony, family and friends played active roles, from reciting hymns to performing live music. In a profoundly intimate moment, Ikaasa and Jaywin performed a shabad together, grounding the celebration in faith, learning, and devotion.
Their reception, held in the ruins of a 400-year-old monastery in Desierto de los Leones, was themed “Extraterrestrial.” Guests entered through a laser-lit tunnel into a glowing forest of ice sculptures, celestial visuals, and music that blended nostalgia with wonder. A live mariachi band even accompanied Jaywin’s baraat, performing Punjabi songs, a joyful fusion that captured the spirit of the entire weekend.
Though rooted in Sikh tradition, the celebration was also a love letter to Mexico City. From street-style tacos and mole bars to mariachi-dhol mashups and locally inspired cocktails, the city’s culture was woven into every detail.
As Ikaasa and Jaywin shared, “We weren’t chasing trends. We were chasing connection, delight, and intention.” Their wedding stands as a reminder that when celebrations are grounded in meaning, culture, and care, they become not just memorable, but transformative.
