{"id":1626,"date":"2022-04-13T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2022-04-13T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sofarsoundsblo.wpengine.com\/blog\/articles\/sofar-love-stories-stefan-priya\/"},"modified":"2022-04-13T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2022-04-13T00:00:00","slug":"sofar-love-stories-stefan-priya","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sofarsounds.com\/blog\/articles\/sofar-love-stories-stefan-priya","title":{"rendered":"Sofar Love Stories: Stefan and Priya"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Ever seen a surprise proposal? It\u2019s a truly electric energy that runs through the room. For Stefan and Priya, their big moment was made special by their love, but also the roomful of people surrounding them. \u201cI wanted to try to do something that would be a bit different to your traditional engagements,\u201d Stefan said. \u201cSofar [was] a nice intimate space where you have a crowd of people you\u2019ve never met before, but they share the moment.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>Stefan and Priya met back in August 2019 through a mutual relative at a wedding. By the end of the reception, they\u2019d been talking nonstop and decided to meet for a date. Clearly, it went well. By the summer of 2021, the two were talking about the future. As Stefan brainstormed how and when he might propose, he thought of Sofar. Not only is Stefan a former Local Lead from York, but he and Priya had one of their first dates at a Sofar in London. \u201cI thought it would be nice to tie it back to one of those initial dates so it\u2019d be more sentimental,\u201d Stefan said. He reached out to UK Regional Director Esther Saunders-Jennings, and the two got the ball rolling.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The night was set\u2014November 20th in London at The Sheriff Centre, a charity space nestled in an old church in West Hampstead. The plan was for the audience to play the Mr and Mrs game, where two people stand back to back and answer a series of questions by pointing to one another, then turning to see if they both had it right.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The evening of the big night, Stefan handed the custom-made ring off to Esther for safe keeping, and he and Priya took their seats in the crowd. \u201cI do remember when we walked into the building before the show started, and I saw how everything was set up, and I did have a thought of, \u2018if Stefan proposed in here it would just be perfect.\u2019\u201d Priya said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The first artist wrapped their set, and Esther asked for volunteers from the audience for the first round of Mr and Mrs, and quickly got two volunteers. \u201cLuckily they didn\u2019t propose because that would\u2019ve probably ruined the moment when I came out to [do] it,\u201d Stefan said. \u201cThe guy was really into the girl he was with and it looked like he was pulling at [a ring]. It\u2019s lucky that didn\u2019t happen.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The second artist played, and Esther once again called for volunteers. This time, Stefan put his hand up. He and Priya got up in front of everyone and the questions began. First, who\u2019s the better dancer, then onto the second, who\u2019s most likely to get rid of a spider? Then came the third, who\u2019s the most romantic? \u201cIt was on that point I pointed to Stefan, and then I heard this loud gasp from the audience,\u201d Priya said. \u201cI turned around and Stefan was down on one knee. Everyone was literally screaming.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sofarsounds.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/1665185668featuredimage.avif\"><span class=\"sc-kpOJdX jVJdyv\">The big moment. Photo by Jane Jimenez<\/span><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sofarsounds.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/1665185668featuredimage-1.avif\"><span class=\"sc-kpOJdX jVJdyv\">Spoiler Alert: she said yes. Photo by Jane Jimenez<\/span><\/p>\n<p>\u201c[There was] probably a good 10 to 15 seconds of cheering before I actually had a chance to even ask the question,\u201d Stefan laughed. \u201cLuckily she said yes.\u201d By the end of the night, people were coming up and offering their congratulations, and even video clips they\u2019d filmed of the big question. After guests left, the Sofar crew had a chance to toast the newly engaged couple. \u201cThe difference with [proposing] in a Sofar environment versus a restaurant or public environment [is] with Sofar it\u2019s just so intimate,\u201d Stefan said. \u201cEverybody\u2019s so involved, you&#8217;re appreciating all the music and everything that&#8217;s there together. Even though we didn\u2019t know the people, they felt part of something. That connection is just there with the music.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Priya added, \u201cI can\u2019t imagine it being done without the people there. It did add to that special feeling.\u201d <\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sofarsounds.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/1665185668featuredimage-2.avif\"><span class=\"sc-kpOJdX jVJdyv\">The newly engaged couple. Photo by Jane Jimenez<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Ever seen a surprise proposal? It\u2019s a truly electric energy that runs through the room. For Stefan and Priya, their big moment was made special by their love, but also the roomful of people surrounding them. \u201cI wanted to try to do something that would be a bit different to your traditional engagements,\u201d Stefan said. 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