Wedding Belle: Raman with her husband Indie.
By Nicola Moyne
IF you haven’t yet caught the new series of Four Weddings – the smash-hit show on LIVING – you’ve been missing out.
Each episode sees four brides-to-be come together to judge each other’s nuptials in a bid to win a luxury honeymoon. Sounds simple enough. But with four bridezillas vying for the prize, there’s usually a large dose of bitching and foul play to contend with, which all makes for killer viewing rates!
The first series aired in 2009 and fast became one of TV’s most talked about shows. So we knew it wouldn’t be long until an Essex bride showed the rest of the country how it’s done.
Fans of Four Weddings will have already seen Raman Rihal from Ilford appear on Monday night’s show, but for those of you who missed it, her traditional Sikh ceremony will again be aired at 10pm tonight (Thurs) on LIVINGit – and Raman is looking forward to watching her day unfold all over again.
“I was a bit dubious at first about having my wedding shown to the nation, but then I just thought ‘why not?” the pretty 31-year-old tells me. “I was approached by the producers after I hired a magician to perform at my wedding and I thought it’d be fun.”
And, despite dealing with some rowdy guests at one of the fellow bride’s nuptials, Raman insists there were no down sides to having her Big Day filmed. “I was advised it might interfere with enjoying the day. But I was pleased with the filming, and it didn’t get in the way at all; it was the best day of my life.”
Indeed, after 11 months of planning, Raman wed her husband Indie Chana in Ilford’s Gurdwara Karamsar Sikh temple and held the reception in The Coliseum Suite. The day was a complete success, but was Raman apprehensive about how the other brides would react, and what did she think about their weddings?
“Before I met the other brides I was really nervous. I imagine I’d have to attend some weird Pagan wedding ceremony, but I was relieved to find they were all normal and quite nice,” she laughs.
“I’d never been to a traditional white wedding before so it was a new experience for me, and I enjoyed them all. However, as all of their weddings were similar I knew my one would grab the most attention.” But while Raman maintains she wasn’t necessarily ‘in it to win it’, she does confess to enjoying the experience.
“I thought being on TV would be very exciting, and I wasn’t nervous at all about the filming – more excited if anything,” she laughs. “The fact is no matter how much we deny it, every woman loves to be in the spot light on their wedding day.”
For the sake of those who plan to watch the episode tonight, we won’t reveal who wins, but Raman remains thrilled to bits with her wedding.
“I had the time of my life,” she tells me. “The most important thing for me was that the day was enjoyable and memorable for everyone – and I think I accomplished that.”
Four Weddings is repeated on LIVINGit tonight (Thurs) at 10pm.