A Joyful Pelican Hill Wedding with Bold Hues and Immersive Guest Experiences

By Kevin Harson16 December 2025

For the wedding colors, Natasha wanted to add some vibrant color to the Southern California resort feel of Pelican Hill. The color palette of reds, oranges, and pinks blended traditional South Asian richness with modern sophistication. The colors were designed to become darker throughout the evening, with a red floral ceiling installation above the indoor dance floor.

Through the planning, the couple focused on creating a fun guest experience, with each night’s food, fashion, and decor tailored to different themes. The weekend began with a Chinese-style banquet at Natasha’s hometown dim sum restaurant, J Zhou. Friday night’s Pasta Party featured Pelican Hill’s Italian villa architecture and homemade pasta, with a color palette of greens, lavender, and yellow, and flower arrangements including vegetables and a fresh mozzarella pulling station. The couple hosted a dessert and dancing afterparty for a fun night out in Laguna Beach at local watering hole Mozambique.

Natasha Sakraney and Brian Chung are a Los Angeles-based couple who wanted to honor their Taiwanese, Indian, and American heritage in their May 2025 wedding at The Resort at Pelican Hill, Newport Coast, CA. Natasha and Brian met in 2012 at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, and started dating in May 2015. and celebrated their 10th anniversary weekend with a 4-day wedding celebration. Natasha is the Director of Finance for a group of nonprofit charter schools serving low-income LA neighborhoods. Brian is an orthopaedic surgery resident doctor at the University of Southern California. In their free time, they like to travel, work out, attend concerts, spend time with friends, and cook and eat all types of asian food.

Natasha and Brian chose a timeless black and white palette, echoing Western wedding traditions, while embracing the elegance of classic Indian silhouettes. Natasha wore a qipao from Taiwan for Thursday and then a Rachel Gilbert one-shoulder dress for the Friday Pasta Party and afterparty. She worked with OC based stylist Lesley Brickman to put together this outfit. Natasha worked with Kynah LA on her reception look and wore a custom ivory Dori lehenga by designer Seema Gujral. She wore a long-sleeved blouse with a western-style veil for the ceremony and changed into a sleeveless blouse for dancing to create two looks with one lehenga.

Natasha’s wedding party included her brothers, and everyone chose their own outfit in the warm neutrals color scheme, supported by Mumbai-based stylist Anushree Sardesai (@anushree_sardesai). Her brothers, Kavi and Shaan, wore light pink sherwanis.

Brian wore a traditional black Sherwani jacket fastened with ornate buttons, accompanied by a black dupatta with custom white embroidery by designer Shyamal & Bhumika. Brian’s groomsmen wore matching ivory embroidered Bandhgalas created by Tasva and accentuated by bright, floral boutonnieres.

Natasha and Brian love sharing their passion for food with others and wanted their guests to enjoy a varied culinary experience with a focus on both Taiwanese and Indian culture. The welcome dinner was hosted by Brian’s parents in a traditional Chinese banquet style, while the reception dinner was hosted by Natasha’s parents with a focus on traditional Indian cuisine, courtesy of chef __. The rehearsal dinner featured Italian classics highlighted by the handmade pasta of Pelican Hill, inspired by the time that Natasha and Brian spent together in Italian class while at Duke.

The couple leaned heavily on the design expertise of Orange Blossom Special Event’s incredible Christy Heng and Jaclyne from Heavenly Blooms to bring a unique design experience to life each night.

The wedding cake was created by Domi, a local Los Angeles bakery owned by Asian women with Michelin fine dining backgrounds, located less than five minutes from Natasha and Brian’s apartment. The layered cake featured interesting twists on Brian and Natasha’s favorite childhood flavors, including chocolate salted caramel black sesame and hojicha.

Everyone says that rain on your wedding day is a sign of good luck to come. The unexpected light drizzle during our wedding ceremony called for some creative pivoting on behalf of the incredible planning team and left us with some unforgettable photographs that we will cherish for the rest of our lives. Brian and the officiant walked down the aisle to an instrumental version of Odesza’s “A Moment Apart”, while Natasha walked to a string quartet’s rendition of “Bittersweet Symphony” by The Verve. The ceremony was highlighted by heartfelt speeches from Natasha and Brian’s college roommates as well as a Saptapadi led by Natasha’s aunt.

Chung family violin/piano performance
Sweatpant coat check emphasizing comfort and the guest experience
Surprise nunchuk performance by Louis, the father of the groom