Raymond & Lara: Take 2

Typhoon Isang was cooperative that fateful Saturday, July 28, when Raymond Bagatsing and Lara Fabregas exchanged marriage vows in Ananda Marga rites, the second time the couple were doing so (the first having been last July 5 when they got married in civil rites after a whirlwind courtship of only two weeks).

Take 2. Good shot!

The rains did fall but only after the barely 30-minute ceremony and while the only more than two dozen guests were already well-ensconced inside the sampaguita-decorated cottage for the reception.

The wedding was held at the Sonia’s Garden in Tagaytay City, officiated by monks (didi for the female monks and dada for the male monks).

It was Lara’s good friend Kate Fernandez, sister of Maritoni, who dressed up the place with hundreds and hundreds of sampaguita, turning the scene into a scented paradise just perfect for a solemn wedding.

The ceremony started 40 minutes late. First to arrive was the groom, dapper in a kurta designed by Nono Palmos who also did the bride’s sari.

In the typical weddings (Catholic, that is), the bride and groom usually march on a red carpet down the aisle. In this one, Raymond and Lara walked on white pebbles scattered along the way, lined by more sampaguita flowers made into balls. At the end of the aisle hung a straw curtain also made of sampaguita. The straw curtain covered the door to the cozy room where the wedding ceremony was held.

After the ceremony, which included a 15-minute meditation, the guests (who came mostly in Indian-inspired outfit), a sumptuous vegetarian buffet was laid out, a regular fare at Sonia’s Garden.

Lara’s separated parents (but are now happy with their respective new loves), Jaime Fabregas and Bing Caballero, were present, and so were Raymond’s parents. Raymond’s sister, actress Monina Bagatsing, was also around.

Raymond and Lara are among the half a dozen showbiz couples married this year, including Aga Muhlach and Charlene Gonzalez (now six-months heavy with twins, a boy and a girl), Jessa Zaragoza and Dingdong Avanzado, Paolo Abrera and Suzi Entrata, Candy Pangilinan and her non-showbiz boyfriend, Vicky Morales and her non-showbiz lawyer boyfriend, and Karen Davila and David Jude (DJ) Sta. Ana.

Although their paths have been crisscrossing, Raymond started courting Lara only on the set of The Lark, with Lara playing Joan of Arc, presented by Actors’ Actors this weekend (Aug. 3, 4 and 5) at the St. Cecilia Hall of St. Scholastica’s College, and on Aug. 24, 25 and 26 at the Shaw Theater at the Shangri-La Plaza.

It’s their passionate love for theater, among other things, that made Raymond and Lara gravitate toward each other.

"I just love her so much that I had to marry her – at once," said Raymond in a decision so sudden that even Lara’s father was caught by surprise.

"It was one of the most beautiful weddings I’ve ever attended," said Bibsy Carballo, Lara’s manager. "Simple and solemn, but very memorable."

Among the other well-wishers were Tessie Tomas, Rachel Alejandro and boyfriend Lee Robin Salazar, Bart Guingona, Michael Williams, Dodo Lim, Anton Juan, Apa Ongpin, Lito Pimentel, Romy Vitug, direk Lav Diaz (Ang Kriminal ng Bo. Concepcion, in which Raymond starred with Angel Aquino) and Boots Anson-Roa who stood as one of the godmothers.

Did anybody "indian" the wedding?