Happily Ever After: How Deepika & Chitang Put A Ring On It

Try as you might, you can’t rush love. Even when ‘the one’ has been under your nose for decades. Timing, after all, is everything in every great love story. Stylist, dancer, and social media influencer Deepika Ghose, and her now-husband Chitang Mehta, the international marketing head for an agro-textile company, are testimony to this.

They went to the same high school in Mumbai, studied at neighbouring universities in California, and had common friends; but their paths never really crossed. Cupid struck years later at Deepika’s best friend’s birthday party. “We had only known of each other until then. But that night, we got chatting about our favourite music and a recent Arsenal game,” says Deepika. “Everyone headed to a club after the party. We both had our flirt on that night… and a couple of Jägerbombs led to a magical kiss on the dance floor,” reveals Deepika. “It may not have been love at first sight, but it was definitely ‘love at first kiss’. In that moment, I knew,” she smiles, a dreamy look on her face as she reminisces about the heady charm of new love. Over the next few years, the much-in-love couple realised that they were opposites in most ways — he’s the calm to her crazy, and she is whimsical while he is practical. And this turned out to be the secret sauce in their love story. “We bring out the best in each other, and balance each other out. He has made me more level-headed and I make him live a little. He has definitely become goofier all thanks to me,” she laughs.  

We bring you a closer look at their dreamy ‘she said yes’ moment and the natural diamond ring that sealed their lasting affection. 

She Said Yes
Six years of sweet romance later, in 2019, Chitang decided it was time to pop the question. The hunt for the perfect ring began, which culminated in a dreamy proposal in the hills. Every bit of it was personalised and thoughtful, down to the timing which coincided with the date the two first started dating. He flew to Bengaluru — where Deepika was based at the time — and whisked her away to Coorg under the guise of a ‘surprise anniversary celebration’.

The next morning in Coorg, Deepika woke up to an empty room and a note from Chitang. It was a poem that held a clue that led her to two other notes. The instructions were simple: She was to get ready and join him at the poolside deck. Naturally, she played along. What awaited her was a beautiful sit-down meal comprising her favourite food and wine. “Chitang then brought out six notes, one for each year we’d been together, on which we wrote down our favourite moments together. It was such an emotional and beautiful walk down memory lane,” Deepika recalls. “Next, he suggested we visit the waterfall close to the hotel to click some pictures. I thought he was just being his usual supportive self and encouraging my work as a social media influencer.” 

Little did she know that this was the lead-up to the big moment. All this while, what she thought was a lovely anniversary celebration, transformed into something more monumental when Chitang went down on one knee in front of a cascading waterfall and asked Deepika to marry him. It was a moment she had dreamed of for a long time and without hesitating, she said yes. “I had always dreamt of a perfect proposal even more than the wedding. And this was it. Everything was so thoughtfully planned that it exceeded all my fantasies. Chitang ensured we had a member of the hotel accompanying us, who caught the whole thing on camera, including my hysterical sobs,” she adds.

Putting A Ring On It
As romantic as the proposal was, Chitang made some practical decisions too. Afraid that he might accidentally drop the precious diamond solitaire in the water, he popped the question with an elegant natural diamond-studded eternity band instead.  “My actual engagement ring, he informed me, was waiting back home,” said Deepika.

The couple knew how important the natural diamond ring was as a symbol of their relationship and didn’t take the decision lightly. “A diamond is forever, just like our love. So it had to be the marker of this new phase of our commitment to each other. Moreover, diamonds are also my birthstone. That added another layer of significance to the ring for us.”

Over the years, they had discussed the dream ring that would seal the deal; right from the colour to the cut, shape, carat and clarity. “Chitang was very grateful for this as he did not want the entire responsibility of picking the ring to rest on him alone.” So while he did buy the diamond—a timeless round solitaire—he let Deepika choose the setting after the proposal.

They settled on a 4-prong setting and a simple white gold band to complement the bride-to-be’s classic style. They personalised the band by engraving it with their proposal date and wedding hashtag #Deetang. On their wedding day, Chitang gifted his wife another natural diamond eternity band. “I love that I can keep wearing them in different combinations. I’m currently wearing them as a stack with the solitaire sandwiched between both the eternity rings.”

A Special Symbol
The ring (or rings in this case) serve as a constant reminder of the most special day of their lives. “And the fact that my partner pulled out all the stops to make my dream come true, makes it all the more memorable,” admits Deepika. “Even though I knew we would end up together one day, the ring set it in stone. Something changed… and while I can’t quite put my finger on it, I am happy to put it on my finger!” What made the moment doubly special for the duo was that the grand romantic gesture was entirely outside Chitang’s comfort zone. While Deepika is a hopeless romantic, he can’t even sit through a rom-com without rolling his eyes. This stepping out of their comfort zone for the happiness of the other has been the foundation of their relationship since the beginning. And it was the note on which they stepped into their happily ever after too.