The Iconic Proposal - Sahil Ki Hana
Dubai businessman Anis Sajan brought together more than 400 guests from around the world for a spectacular two-day destination celebration marking the engagement of his son Sahil Sajan to Hana Khan
We have all heard of the big, fat Indian wedding. But how often do you hear of a big, fat and truly blockbuster engagement?
That was precisely the idea behind "Sahil Ki Hana", the destination engagement celebration of Sahil Sajan, director of Milano by Danube, and Hana Khan, hosted by Sahil's father, Anis Sajan, vice chairman of Danube Group, in the picturesque city of Salalah, Oman.
For Anis, the brief was simple. If the family was going to celebrate such an important milestone, it had to be somewhere people would remember long after they returned home. And Salalah ticked all the boxes.
Less than two hours by air from Dubai, the Omani destination offered a dramatic change of scenery during its famous Khareef season, with cooler temperatures, light rain, mist-covered mountains and landscapes transformed into lush shades of green. Add to that the setting of Club by Fanar at Hawana Salalah, its hospitality, food and ambience, and the destination quickly became the family's choice.
What followed was nearly two months of planning to bring the celebration to life. More than 400 family members and close friends travelled to Salalah for the occasion, with guests arriving from the UAE and wider GCC, India, Australia, the UK, Canada, Pakistan, Bangladesh, China, Italy and several other parts of the world.
Despite the scale, the idea remained deeply personal: to bring together the people closest to Sahil and Hana and give them an experience they could share as a family. Anis Sajan said: "For Sajan events, we usually have Bollywood stars, but for me, the biggest superstars have always been my family and friends. They are the ones who truly bring an occasion to life and make every celebration memorable."
For Anis Sajan, the focus was never simply on creating a âbig fat engagement'. What mattered most was adding a personal touch to every moment and ensuring that each family member and friend felt genuinely welcomed, cared for, and personally looked after.
The celebrations began on August 7 with a colourful Sangeet night packed with music, dance and performances by family and friends. It set the tone for a weekend that blended the energy of an Indian celebration with the natural beauty of Salalah.
On August 8, the mood shifted from traditional festivities to a lively daytime pool party, where guests enjoyed the pleasant Khareef weather of around 25°C, fun games, music, food and the resort surroundings. The celebrations culminated later that evening with the engagement ceremony, an elegant gathering marking the formal beginning of Sahil and Hana's journey towards marriage.
For Anis Sajan, however, the occasion carried a particularly personal meaning.
"Family has always been at the heart of everything we do. When I got married, my wedding was completed within one day, and we did not have the opportunity to celebrate with occasions like a Sangeet or other pre-wedding festivities," he said.
"More than anything, I wanted Sahil and Hana, as well as every family member and friend who travelled with us, to leave Salalah with memories they would cherish forever."
For the Sajan family, the engagement is only the beginning. The Salalah celebration marks the first major chapter leading towards Sahil Sajan and Hana Khan's wedding, with more festivities expected in the months ahead. When asked, after celebrating the engagement on such a grand scale, what plans he had for the wedding, Anis Sajan smiled and said: "That is something only time will reveal. When the occasion arrives, the celebration will speak for itself."
Expressing gratitude, Sahil Sajan said, "I feel incredibly blessed to have a father and a family who have gone to such lengths to make this milestone so special for Hana and me. What made the celebration truly meaningful was not just the scale of it, but the thought, love and effort that went into bringing everyone we care about together."
But if the engagement was any indication, the family has already set the bar rather high. After all, when a celebration brings more than 400 people from around the world to the misty mountains of Salalah for two days of music, dancing, celebrations and family memories, calling it simply an "engagement party" might be something of an understatement.
Sahil Ki Hana was, quite literally, a blockbuster engagement.
