Karan and Lydia Surprise Proposal on a Private Rooftop

We both went to NYU and in our Sophomore year we lived across the hall from each other in the dorm. I first met Karan at a party he was hosting in his dorm room and he was DJing the party and wearing a long, curly wig. We talked at the party and I found him hilarious and we became friends over the next couple of weeks. A month or so later we started dating and have been together ever since (now for almost seven years).

My parents’ wedding anniversary is in July, so Karan arranged for them to come into the city to take me to dinner and celebrate their anniversary on July 29th. They told me their friend who is a chef had booked a space and was going to cook them an anniversary dinner. When we arrived at the lobby of the venue, my mom received a phone call from their dog sitter saying that their dog was sick and needed to be taken to the vet (which was a lie). I went upstairs alone while they dealt with the phone call and when I went upstairs I was taken to a terrace facing the Empire State Building and Karan was standing their behind his keyboard with a guitarist next to him and started playing and singing “Say You Won’t Let Go” by James Arthur. I cried through the whole song and once he was done he got down on one knee and proposed! He had a few friends and family members waiting at a nearby restaurant to congratulate and celebrate with us afterwards. (c) By Lydia McGuiniis

Musician: Aaron Short

Photographer: Jimmy Chan

Planning: Tatiana Caicedo