At The Chancery Rosewood, Rochelle Pinto, Head of Editorial Content, joined friends of Vogue Tahira Chawla and Chhavi Seth Mediratta of CSME, for Vogue Wedding Atelier’s Evening with the Editor in London. The conversation moved between heirloom jewellery, weddings, fragrance and keepsakes, with legacy emerging as something people continue to reinterpret across generations and geographies.
Gifting partner Ahujasons presented finely woven pashmina shawls with ikat-inspired motifs and delicate zari work. Luxury Ayurvedic beauty brand Forest Essentials brought its ritual-led approach to the evening, extending a philosophy it has carried for more than 26 years from India to its flagship in London’s Covent Garden and a growing presence across the Middle East.
Ajmal Perfumes brought another strand of legacy into the room. Founded in India more than 75 years ago and now headquartered in Dubai, the fragrance house has grown into one of the world’s largest producers and distributors of oudh while maintaining its artisanal foundations. This month also marks the opening of Ajmal’s first experiential retail store and Experience Centre at Westfield London. Jewellery partner GoluBhai Badalia Diamond added its own three-generation history to the evening by focusing on larger, high-quality stones and careful selection.
Across the evening, the idea of inheritance was visible in how people dressed. Embellished cocktail dresses appeared alongside crisp shirting, relaxed denim and fluid silhouettes. Jewellery moved just as freely between dress codes, with statement chokers, sculptural earrings, delicate diamond necklaces, fine watches and metallic cuffs worn beside heirloom pieces. The result was a wardrobe where inherited jewellery no longer sat apart from contemporary dressing, but moved through it.
For many in the room that night, the modern Indian wedding still begins with something handed down. “Jewellery that’s handed down to you by your grandmother, repurposed for something modern and contemporary,” said Divia Thani. “It’s a nod to where we come from with a modern edge to it.” She gave us one of the clearest understandings of legacy as something that can’t survive in preservation alone but also in reuse.
“Weddings are long affairs, so comfort is number one,” said Seth Mediratta, who described herself as someone who naturally gravitates towards classic dressing. Chawla agreed, adding that she always wears “sneakers or flats under my lehengas”. Practicality now sits much closer to occasion dressing than older codes might suggest.
Akshay Ruparelia spoke about a different shift, describing today’s groom as far more involved in the process. “Being the modern groom is being a lot more free, enjoying the process and making decisions together with your partner,” he said. His answer widened the evening’s view of legacy beyond jewellery and heirlooms alone, towards the changing roles people now occupy within weddings themselves. And with the new groom’s section at this year’s Vogue Wedding Atelier, we’re giving them the space to embrace experimentation, because, as couturier Gaurav Gupta, who is showcasing at Vogue Wedding Atelier, once told us, “The Indian man is much more experimental than we think he is.”
