Newlywed Anshula Kapoor opened up about the emotional void she felt during her wedding celebrations, revealing that all she truly wanted on her biggest day was a hug from her late mother, Mona Shourie Kapoor, who passed away on 25 March 2012 after battling cancer. The heartfelt admission came through a video Anshula shared on her social media account, where she reflected on how the journey of wedding planning became an unexpected reminder of her mother's absence.

The Video That Moved Everyone

In the emotional clip, Anshula paired photographs of her mother with moments from her own wedding. She anchored the video around a cherished image: 'This is me and this is my mom. This picture was taken on my fourth birthday and over the years it has somehow become the picture I always come back to whenever I need to feel close to her.'

She admitted that the wedding planning process surprised her with its emotional weight. 'I thought wedding planning would mostly be about flowers, outfits and guest lists,' she said. 'I didn't expect it to be filled with moments where all I wanted was my mom. I wanted to ask her questions, I wanted to see her face when she saw me as a bride. Mostly though, I just wanted one of her hugs.'

A Scent to Bridge the Distance

Ahead of her wedding, Anshula found a deeply personal way to keep her mother close. During her bachelorette celebration in Seoul, South Korea, she worked to recreate her mother's fragrance as a customised perfume — a sensory tribute she carried into her wedding day.

'She gave the kind of hugs that made everything feel okay. So, on my bachelorette in Seoul, I did something I'll treasure forever. I tried to turn this memory into a scent because on my wedding day, there was always going to be that one hug missing,' she said.

She described wearing the perfume just before stepping out as a bride: 'I wore this perfume hoping that I'd feel like she was still there beside me and this is the closest I'll get to having her there.'

Her Written Note: Memory, Scent and Grief

Alongside the video, Anshula shared a lengthy written note reflecting on the science of memory and loss. 'People say scent is the strongest trigger for memory. So before my wedding, I wondered... Could a fragrance hold a feeling? Could it remind me of a hug? Could it make me feel close to someone I missed?' she wrote.

She added: 'I don't remember every little detail anymore. But I remember how safe I felt in Maa's arms. I remember the comfort of her hugs, and being close enough to catch the faintest trace of her perfume. So on my bachelorette trip to Seoul, I tried to recreate what I remembered Maa smelled like. And on my wedding day, just before I walked out as a bride, I sprayed it on. For a moment, it felt like I was wrapped in one of her hugs again.'

About Anshula and Her Family

Anshula recently married her longtime partner Rohan Thakkar in an intimate ceremony attended by family and close friends. She is the daughter of film producer Boney Kapoor and his first wife, Mona Shourie Kapoor. Mona passed away on 25 March 2012 at the age of 48, just weeks before her son Arjun Kapoor's debut film Ishaqzaade released. Her absence has been a recurring theme in how the Kapoor siblings publicly process milestones — Arjun Kapoor has spoken about his mother's loss on multiple occasions, and Anshula's wedding tribute continues that pattern of grief expressed openly and with grace.

As Anshula steps into this new chapter of her life, her tribute to Mona stands as a reminder that the biggest celebrations can also hold the deepest silences.