These pictures take you inside Armaan Jain and Anissa Malhotra’s starry mehandi celebrations

By Nupur Sarvaiya3 February 2020

Armaan Jain and Anissa Malhotra's mehandi celebrations were unmissable. Find out what Karisma Kapoor, Tara Sutaria and Kiara Advani were up to inside!

After officially getting engaged in December 2019 in front of family and friends, actor Armaan Jain (son of Reema and Manoj Jain) is all set to marry long-time beau Anissa Malhotra in Mumbai this week. Over the weekend, the couple kicked off the celebrations with a mehandi ceremony on February 1, 2020. The intimate affair saw A-listers including Karisma Kapoor, Randhir Kapoor, Rajiv Kapoor, Babita Kapoor and Akanksha Malhotra in attendance.

One of the first pictures of Armaan and Anissa's mehandi to hit the internet came via Karisma Kapoor, who posted an Instagram story of the couple. It wasn’t long before the 45-year-old star posted a series of pictures on her social media platform from inside the ceremony with a caption with read, “Love our Indian traditions #mehendi #familywedding #familyfestivities.” The photo carousel opens with Kapoor posing with her hennaed hands, followed by adorable pictures of the family having a blast together. For the special occasion, which was reportedly held at Jain’s residence, Kapoor chose a show-stopping yellow Payal Khandwala lehenga that came with a kurta and a feather-light dupatta. She topped off her ethnic ensemble with traditional jewellery⁠—think statement gold earrings, maang tikka and kadas.

Speaking of the ambience of the evening, Priti-S Sidhwaani of DreamzKrraft - Wedding Decorators & Planners, the name behind the decor and design of the venue, revealed, "For the mehendi on the terrace, we designed a Benarasi theme for the buffet. The palette ran the spectrum of pastels, peach and mint green colours. The setup included diya panels with numerous votives lit amidst the diwan seating that included candelabras and glamorous centrepieces with florals arrangements. Fragrances like jasmine, mogra and rajnigandha were used to naturally scent the venue for the couple."

Did you notice Karisma Kapoor dancing with the bride?

Day 1 of the festivities was soon followed by another pre-wedding event hosted at The St Regis Mumbai the next day, on February 2, 2020. This time around, Kapoor switched into another stand-out outfit. Her pick: a red kurta set by Raw Mango. Her relaxed fit ethnic ensemble was perfect for the evening filled with dancing. Inside pictures show Karisma Kapoor shaking a leg with the bride on the Punjabi track ‘Gud Naal’ from Sonam Kapoor Ahuja-starrer Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga.

Anissa Malhotra, who is a fashion blogger and image consultant, picked a cheerful yellow lehenga paired with floral jewellery, while groom Jain complemented his bride in an ivory bandhgala. Videos posted by guests in attendance also show Malhotra performing on ‘Maahi Ve’ with her parents, before Jain burst into dance moves on ‘Soni Soni Akhiyon Wali’ from Mohabbatein. Pouring his heart out about the wedding, Jain had once revealed in an interview, "I’m actually excited about everything. The wedding, baraat, sangeet, everything… and I am more excited about the families coming together. It is going to be so much fun and we have lovely cousins, lovely family and friends."

So far, Armaan and Anissa's pre-wedding festivities have been star-studded affairs, and the guest list this weekend included the likes of Suniel Shetty, Shweta Bachchan Nanda, Sunita Kapoor, Anil Ambani, Tara Sutaria, Tina Ambani, Ritesh Sidhwani, and Dolly Sidhwani. Scroll ahead to take a look at all the pictures and videos from inside Armaan Jain’s pre-wedding celebration.