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The bride wore white. But that was about as traditional as Alexandra Aitken’s wedding got.
The socialite who once tumbled out of London nightclubs in daring dresses is a changed woman these days.
And much to her parents’ surprise, she is also a married woman.
Alexandra, the daughter of disgraced former Tory minister Jonathan Aitken, wore a white turban at her wedding to the deeply religious Inderjot Singh in the holy city of Amritsar.
Their marriage was blessed by 150 holy men from the Nihang, a military Sikh order to which her new husband belongs.
However, amid the fanfare and celebrations there were two notable absentees – her parents Jonathan and Lolicia.
Alexandra, who has changed her name to Harvinder Kaur Khalsa, admitted that she kept the wedding a secret from everyone except her twin sister Victoria, who ‘insisted’ on attending.
When she finally broke the news to her parents, they were, perhaps understandably, ‘shocked’ and ‘upset’.
‘When I said, “Daddy, I might be wearing a turban next time you see me”, it was a bit of a shock,’ she told Hello! magazine.
Past life: The former minister's daughter in her socialite days
‘But my father loves my husband – it’s impossible not to. He’s happy for us.’
Aitken, who was sentenced to 18 months in prison in 1999 after being found guilty of perjury and perverting the course of justice, has since visited the newlyweds in India.
A family friend said: ‘The announcement of the wedding has been a little bit of a surprise, to say the least. But all of Ally’s friends are thrilled for both her and Inderjot, since they are such a close and happy couple.’
Alexandra, 30, first spotted her future husband two years ago when she was practising yoga at the Golden Temple in Amritsar, near the foothills of the Himalayas.
Daddy's girl: Jonathan Aitken and his daughter Alexandra, attending a film premiere
Although she spent a week in his company, they did not exchange a single word. It was only on her second visit that they declared their feelings for each other and decided to marry.
‘I knew I was blindly in love with this man, having never spoken a word to him,’ she said. ‘I knew straight away he was my husband. Within one second it was completely clear.
‘He’s the most beautiful man I’ve ever seen. He has this extraordinary presence.
‘Many holy people, saints, came to our wedding, which is rare. They came out of their caves. Normally saints don’t leave their place of meditation.’
The turban is usually worn by Sikh men, who do not cut their hair.
Although most Sikh women do not wear a turban, some of the more strict devotees choose to do so.
Alexandra wore one for her wedding ceremony, but was pictured during another ritual without it. Instead, she covered her head with a chunni, a type of long scarf.
Hello magazine
Alexandra and her twin were 18 when their father was jailed. Soon after, the details of their father’s secret love-child by Soraya Khashoggi, the ex-wife of international arms dealer Adnan Khashoggi, emerged.
The twins suddenly found themselves with a half-sister, Petrina. The twins became regular faces on London’s social circuit, often rubbing shoulders with royalty.
After her family’s money and possessions were seized by the bailiffs, Alexandra demanded thousands of pounds a day for photo-shoots and held non-stop parties in the grand central London family home.
Then she moved to Hollywood where she performed psychic readings for celebrities.
She later set up a yoga retreat in Los Angeles, spending her days sitting crossed-legged on a wooden floor imploring students to connect with their ‘inner Om’.
Now she is keen to start a family. And it seems she may have decided against a return to life in Britain.
‘I shall have my children running around the Himalayas,’ she said.
ਸਤਿਗੁਰਬਚਨਕਮਾਵਣੇਸਚਾਏਹੁਵੀਚਾਰੁ॥
