Omicron scare hits weddings?

With the threat of the new Covid-19 variant looming large, couples and wedding organisers rue uncertain times ahead

With the cases of new Covid-19 variant, Omicron rising in the Capital and Maharashtra, soon-to-be-married couples and those part of the wedding industry are finding themselves in a difficult situation yet again, especially after finally seeing a glimmer of hope in the last few months. While some couples have decided to push their wedding dates, vendors are bracing themselves for the uncertainties.

While some couples have decided to push their wedding dates, vendors are bracing themselves for the uncertainties (Photo: Arvind Yadav/HT)

Ever since the pandemic, the demand for print invites has seen a stark decline, paving the way for digital invites. However, with last-minute changes in terms of dates and venue, vendors are feeling the pressure. Dhruvi Doshi Chitalia, co-founder, Dhruvi Doshi Designs explains, “For digital invites, we are right now on tight schedules as venues are constantly changing. The wedding hosts are unsure if they can still organise functions and if guests will even make it,” adding, “With destination weddings, the level of uncertainty is higher since there is no clarity about the new Covid-19 rules.”

The Omicron scare is also forcing couples to reschedule their weddings to an earlier date to avoid last-minute hassle, reveal wedding planners. “A staff member of a luxury hotel in Delhi mentioned how couples are eager to shift to early dates as there is a rise in cases,” says Kaveri Vij, co-founder, Designer Events Inc.

And those who can’t change the dates are planning to postpone the wedding altogether till normalcy returns. Delhi-based entrepreneur Trusha Dobhiyal, 29, says, “My original wedding date was April 2020, which got moved to April 2021. With a sudden spike in cases during the second wave, we shifted the wedding to February 2022 but with the new variant, we have to decide how to go about it closer to the date.”

However, wedding vendors are bracing themselves to face the adversities. Wedding photographer Shiv Sharma of the The Wedding Conteurs says, “As of now, we haven’t received any cancellation from couples but we are preparing ourselves to rework and redo the budget in case it happens. In the second wave, we saw venues shifting to homes that meant trimmed guest lists and celebrations on smaller scale also leading to a change in the costs.”

For now, for the ongoing celebrations, a Covid-19 negative report or a double vaccination certificate is what couples are demanding for. Aditya Mahagaonkar, co-founder, WhatKnot Photography “The weddings that we have shot so far after getting news of the new variant, there have been no glitches. The only safety precautions that the clients are looking for are either a negative RTPCR report or a double vaccination certificate.”