Long before she knew who she would marry, Nusrat Siddique [fondly known as Nishi] was already collecting references for the wedding she imagined. At around 10 years old, she created her first Pinterest wedding board, saving dresses, flowers and details simply because she loved weddings. Years later, as a bridal makeup artist and founder of Nishi Artistry, she would approach her own celebrations with the instinct of a bride and the trained eye of someone who has spent years watching women become brides. Her wedding to Shahjalal Sikder [nicknamed Shah], however, was never about recreating a single Pinterest-perfect aesthetic. Instead, it became a reflection of the many sides of her taste, unfolding across two very different celebrations.
From college friends to forever
Nishi and Shah, both Bangladeshi-American and based in New York, met in 2021 at a mall, during their first part-time job in their first year of college. They lived just one train stop from each other, travelled to work together and studied together. What began as an easy friendship gradually became something solid. “We were just college kids who became best friends, and somewhere along the way that friendship turned into something more,” she says. “We met before either of us really knew who we would become, and we were there for so many of each other’s firsts. We watched each other grow into adulthood, figure out our paths and build our careers.”
Six years later, Shah proposed at a lake house surrounded by their closest people. Lakes had always held a special place in Nishi’s imagination, and the setting gave the proposal the cinematic quality she had always loved. “I’ve always had a thing for lakes. I find them so dreamy and magical, and they somehow make me feel like I’m in a movie. Maybe it’s the The Notebook lover in me, but having our proposal at a lake house made the day feel like our own little movie moment.”
Planning a wedding with no single aesthetic
Years of Pinterest, followed by a career in the bridal industry, meant Nishi arrived at planning with a firm point of view. “I went into wedding planning with a lot of ideas and a very clear sense of what I liked, and I was extremely hands-on throughout the entire process,” she says. Nishi created the creative direction for every celebration, selected the smaller details and incorporated DIY elements into the nikaah. Rather than forcing the entire wedding into one visual language, she deliberately allowed each event to have its own identity. “I love too many different aesthetics to have ever chosen just one, so I treated each celebration as an opportunity to create a completely different feeling,” she says. “The nikaah was meant to feel soft, light and almost dreamlike, while the reception was the complete opposite: traditional, moodier and grand.” Day-of coordinator Nauplanning became a sounding board along the way. “She helped bring everything together and allowed me to stop thinking like the planner for a moment and actually be the bride.”
The Nikaah: a garden dream
The first chapter unfolded on May 20 at Park Château Estate & Gardens in New Jersey, USA. “I had loved this venue for years for its gardens and long outdoor aisle.” Rather than cover the architecture with décor, she allowed the setting to lead. “I never wanted to transform it into something unrecognisable. I wanted the gardens and architecture to be part of the wedding rather than simply a backdrop for it,” she says. White flowers, delicate blush pink accents and greenery created a romantic garden palette, with florals by Anisflowersny. Sage green, one of her favourite colours, appeared in the stationery, while custom menus and name cards added a personal touch to each place setting.
The emotional weight of the nikaah was equally important. “Our nikaah was the heart of everything for us. Beyond the outfits, flowers and celebration, this was the moment we became husband and wife Islamically, and that was what the entire wedding was really about,” she says.
A place for her late father
Some of the most significant details were not decorative at all. Nishi’s father passed away when she was young, but his presence was deeply felt throughout the wedding. “He had always dreamed about my wedding and used to get so excited about the idea of seeing me as a bride, so I knew his absence would be deeply felt,” she says. At the Nikkah, a memorial chair was reserved for him.
Then Shah added a surprise of his own. On the morning of the ceremony, he presented Nishi with a commissioned painting of her and her father together, with Nishi depicted in the exact nikaah outfit she was wearing that day, accompanied by a handwritten letter. “For a moment, that painting gave me an image that life never got to give me, the two of us together on my wedding day. It wasn’t created for the aesthetic of the wedding or for photographs. It was simply Shah finding a way to give me a piece of something he knew I had always wished I could have.”
The ethereal wedding wardrobe
For the nikaah, Nishi chose Pakistani designer Honey Waqar for an intricately embroidered all-white ensemble. The look balanced craftsmanship with simplicity, allowing the delicate embroidery to remain the focus. “I’ve always loved how delicate and intricate her work is. There is so much detail in the embroidery while still maintaining a softness, which was exactly what I wanted for the day” A yellow diamond added a subtle warmth to Nishi’s otherwise monochromatic look.
Shah wore an ivory prince coat, deliberately cleaner and more contemporary than the sherwani he would later wear for the reception.
The bride did her own makeup
There was one part of the bridal transformation that Nishi never considered outsourcing. She did her own makeup for both wedding events. After years of working with brides professionally, sitting beside them in those intimate hours before they walked down the aisle, the experience of preparing herself carried a particular emotional resonance.
“I’ve spent the last several years sitting with hundreds of brides in those hours before they put on their wedding dress. Then suddenly, I was doing it for myself. Beauty is such a huge part of my life and career, so doing my own makeup felt incredibly full circle. I knew exactly how I wanted to look, but more importantly, I wanted to recognise myself when I looked in the mirror.”
The reception with old-world glamour
Three months later, the couple reconvened at Leonard’s Palazzo, an iconic venue in Great Neck, New York, for their August 31 reception. The venue was meaningful to Nishi because it had always been her mother’s favourite. Sapphire Events by Ujala created a room layered with deep red roses, rust-toned drapery, candelabras and low, warm lighting. A grand stage became the focal point, while the darker palette deliberately echoed Nishi’s red lehenga. “The nikaah felt like a garden dream, while the reception felt dramatic and grander,” she says.
The contrast was intentional, but the two celebrations remained connected by their personal details and the couple at the centre of them. Together, they represented two distinct sides of the bride’s aesthetic and, more importantly, two chapters in the same story.
For the reception, the mood shifted completely even in terms of the wardrobe. Nishi wore a bespoke red bridal lehenga by Mihha Official, built around rich zardozi and a traditional silhouette inspired by the bridal glamour of the ‘90s. Her cousin, Mirage Studio, helped translate years of visual references into the final look, drawing from designers, Bollywood films and archival bridal imagery, particularly the femininity and old-school glamour associated with Madhuri Dixit. “I knew I wanted to look like a very traditional South Asian bride rather than a modern interpretation of one,” Nishi says. “The final look was a heavily worked red lehenga with intricate zardozi, paired with a contrasting rustic brown dupatta and traditional kiran along the border. I wanted it to have that old-world feeling without looking like a recreation of one particular look.”
Shah complemented her in a light cream sherwani by Republic by Omar Farooq, finished with a beige turban and emerald necklace. For the reception jewellery, Nishi leaned into antique gold and heritage-inspired pieces, referencing the jewellery and styling of older Bollywood films.
Capturing the magic
Photographer Sara Idrees documented both celebrations with the same cinematic sensibility that first drew Nishi to her work. She didn’t rely solely on posed portraits, but on the couple’s movement, emotion and the fleeting moments between the formal ones.
“I chose Sara Idrees because I had always loved the storytelling in her work. Her photographs have this dreamy, cinematic quality that almost feels like stills from a movie, and that was exactly how I wanted our wedding to be remembered. She photographed both our nikaah and reception, and I loved seeing how she captured two events that looked and felt completely different while still making the photographs feel like part of the same story.”
Holding on to the private moments
For all the grandeur, Nishi remembers one of the simplest moments most clearly. After the nikaah, once the guests had gone and the celebrations had quietened, she and Shah prayed together and thanked Allah for their union. “After such a big day, ending it with just the two of us and our faith felt like the perfect way to begin our marriage,” she says.
The Bride’s Checklist
The Bride: Nusrat “Nishi” Siddique
The Groom: Shahjalal “Shah” Sikder
Photographer: Sara Idrees Portraits
Wedding Venues: Park Château Estate & Gardens and Leonard’s Palazzo
Day-of Coordinator: Nauplanning
Wedding Décor: Sapphire Events by Ujala
Florist: Anisflowersny
Bride’s Outfits: Honey Waqar and Mihha Official
Groom’s Outfits: Pernia’s Pop-Up Shop and Republic by Omar Farooq
Stylist and Hair Artist: Mirage Studio
Makeup: Nishi Artistry
Mehndi Artist: Shamima
Photobooths: Flash Haus Photobooth and Opal Ink
Car Rental: Monaco Experiences
Content Creators: Captured by Asifa and RAH Film Club
Coffee Cart: Bar With Me
