Nastassya Saputra & Kevin Mintaraga

Kevin Mintaraga first met Nastassya Saputra when a mutual friend organized a ministry to a retirement home. Kevin took one look at Nastassya and knew she was the one. “I was usually very guarded and never let myself fall in love,” says Nastassya. “But when I met Kevin, everything felt so right.” Only two months after they met, Kevin playfully “fake proposed” as he calls it.

On Valentine’s Day while visiting Paris, on bended knee he offered a small box but instead of a ring, inside was a chocolate. “We had a good laugh,” Kevin recalls, “but she teased me that the real proposal would have to be better than that.” Later that year while the two were in Singapore there was nothing phony when Kevin took Nastassya to the rooftop of the Marina Bay Sands hotel and proposed with a diamond ring.

Years before she met her groom-to-be, Nastassya had fallen in love with the white glass chapel of Tirtha Uluwatu and knew the venue was the perfect ceremony location. After the couple spent several months searching for a reception location that could complement the ceremony site, they found JuMaNa restaurant at the Banyan Tree Ungasan resort.

The wedding day began with the couple’s first look. “It was a magical feeling when we saw each other,” recalls the bride. Nastassya then donned a red ball gown for the traditional tea ceremony before changing back into her wedding dress.

For its connotations of purity, holiness and sacredness, the bride chose white as the wedding theme. The breathtaking chapel of Tirtha Uluwatu was decorated with white orchids and roses, hanging honeycombs and butterfly ornaments. Unbeknownst to Nastassya, the venue had only recently incorporated the latter into its standard décor yet she had always dreamt of them for her wedding.

“I was stunned,” she recalls, “and I will always be reminded of God’s grace and blessing for my marriage.” The kiss at the altar was particularly magical for the couple – “we saved our first kiss for our wedding day,” Kevin says. “It was something we will remember and cherish for the rest of our lives,” adds Nastassya.

Following the ceremony, the 100 guests were transported to JuMaNa where they were treated to a sumptuous seven-course meal and special performances by Indra Aziz (vocal coach for Indonesian Idol). Secretly, Kevin had taken a month-long private singing lesson from Aziz so that during the reception he was able to surprise his wife. “I sang a special song, ‘Angels brought me here,’ by Guy Sebastian.” he says, “The lyrics represented my feelings.”

Yet another surprise was in store for Nastassya—her very own star. Kevin had asked an astronomer to calculate what constellation would have the brightest star in Bali on the wedding night. He bought the star and registered it in his wife’s name.

Years ago Nastassya had heard of a groom doing this and had only shared with her sister that she wished for the same. “I was speechless when Kevin did exactly what I prayed for,” says the bride. “It touched everyone’s heart.”