 "weddings, marriage")
A doctor and a businessman are about to get married. High net worth individuals that they are, they want a wedding that is special and memorable, different from the countless weddings scheduled for this season. So, they have set aside more than Rs 1 crore for the place where the wedding party plans to stay: A heritage hotel in Jaipur.
That is just for the stay, not including the catering, entertainment, and décor. The overall spend on the wedding will likely be a handful: The wedding planner has proposed a Bollywood association. A well-known lyricist is being roped in to pen a song exclusively for this wedding. An equally famous music composer and a singer are lined up to make the occasion memorably melodious.
A survey by the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) says 3.5 million weddings are likely to take place between November 23 and December 15 this year across the country, up from 3.2 million last year in the same period. This will lead to “a flow of about Rs 4.25 trillion in wedding-related purchases and services”, says the survey.
It goes on to say that in Delhi alone, more than 350,000 weddings are expected in the 23-day period, which translates into more than 15,000 a day. About 50,000 of the 3.5 million weddings will involve expenses of more than Rs 1 crore, while 650,000 others will entail an expenditure of between Rs 25 lakh and Rs 50 lakh each.
As the number of weddings rises, so does the marriage-bound couples’ desire to make theirs special, at times generating ‘wild’ ideas.
Going wild
Take for instance a couple who plan to marry in Delhi. Though not a destination wedding, this wedding will follow a jungle theme.
How does one get the “jungle feel” in the middle of a bustling metropolis? Simple: The flower vendor has been told everything must be fresh and wild. But keeping flowers fresh for long is a tall task. The event organiser is still scratching his head over it. Whatever idea he comes up with, it is sure to cost a bomb.
These bombs do not scare anyone anymore. Countless people are willing to shell out mega bucks for what they believe is a once-in-a-lifetime event. No wonder the wedding industry in India is getting bigger each year, the Covid years being the only blips because the restrictions on the number of guests led even the well-heeled to cut shaadi budgets. The compound annual growth rate of the industry is 25 to 30 per cent. This winter could raise it up a notch.
To cash in on the extravaganza, industry players are expanding their offerings.
Vikaas Gutgutiya, founder and managing director of Ferns & Petals, says he has launched Shaadi Central, a one-stop-shop for all things related to weddings. It was launched just ahead of the 2023 winter wedding season.
A Ferns & Petals statement refers to a “sharp” increase in the number of high-net-worth individuals to point out that weddings are expected to be more extravagant this winter. The company says it is doing more than 250 weddings this year, compared to about 215 last winter.
The House of Pataudi has launched a new collection. Under this series, the Nizam-e-noor collection has been inspired by the opulent Nizam dynasty and showcases intricate thread embroideries adorned with silver and gold zari, as well as zardozi highlights on luxurious fabrics. The Passage to Persia line draws from the rich tapestry of Persian culture and textiles, featuring use of gems, gold, silver and copper embellishments.
Gutgutiya says in the summer wedding season of 2023 (not 2022), the number of sayas —auspicious dates for Hindu weddings — was 15 per cent less than in 2022. This created a pent-up demand for winter weddings, making the 2023 season exceptionally busy. “People who got engaged in the five months between the summer and winter wedding seasons are keen to get hitched. There is a surge in wedding numbers this winter also due to the large number of auspicious dates,” he says.
Inauspicious no bar
For several couples, though, inauspicious is no deterrent. Parveen Chander Kumar, executive vice president, sales and marketing, with Indian Hotels, which owns the Taj chain, says the upswing in the wedding segment started in September this year and couples are abandoning the notion of marrying only on auspicious days.
“We are seeing a huge opportunity for business growth on non-saya dates. Depending on the brand and the size of the wedding, the average spend has gone up,” says Kumar.
The government has jumped on to the bandwagon. In August, the Ministry of Tourism unveiled a campaign to showcase India as a premier global wedding destination. “It seeks to expand India's wedding industry by enticing couples from around the world to embark on a remarkable journey to celebrate their special day in India,” the ministry said in a statement.
The campaign profiles 25 destinations and speaks of involving domestic and international influencers to redefine India’s perception beyond royal weddings.
Covid did not cause the only lull. The summer of 2023 was also lukewarm due to rising inflation, in addition to the shortage of auspicious dates. But growth is back with a bang.
Mohsin Khan, promoter of Vivaah Luxury Weddings, says since 2009 when he started his wedding planning business, his turnover has grown 50 times. He now does only destination weddings.
“People now want to spend money, but they also want more choices. If they want the shaadi in India, they want to choose from themes such as beach (Goa, Kerala), heritage (Jaipur, Udaipur, Jodhpur, Pushkar and Ranthambore), mountain, and jungle weddings. Fort weddings are trending now, because of the recent celebrity weddings such as Kiara-Siddharth and Parineeti-Raghav ceremonies at heritage sites. Others want weddings at foreign locales,” Khan says.
Kiara Advani and Siddharth Malhotra are actors. So is Parineeti Chopra. Raghav Chadha is a politician.
Kumar of IHCL says at the Taj group of hotels staycation weddings are in demand, with spacious indoor and outdoor venues being booked throughout the season.
“There is a huge surge in destination weddings. Larger-format weddings are back,” he says.
Also surging is the wedding business, and a few wild ideas.
