Couples reconsider their wedding celebrations in a post-pandemic world

The venue was fixed, the shopping for trousseau completed and the deposits made to various vendors. The wedding that city resident Chitwan Lamba had been planning

The venue was fixed, the shopping for trousseau completed and the deposits made to various vendors. The wedding that city resident Chitwan Lamba had been planning for the past one year was about to come true on May 3 but then the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic broke out. As restrictions on the movement started coming into force from late March onwards, Lamba and her family took the hard decision to postpone the wedding.

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“We had to postpone it because of the lockdown. Everything had been planned but we did not have any other option. My parents were sad but you can’t help it. On the other hand, they get to spend more time with me so you can’t complain about that either,” said Lamba, a 28-year-old doctoral research scholar with IIT Delhi.

The pandemic, however, has not just changed the date of Lamba’s wedding but also the scale and nature of it. What might have been a large-scale affair with friends, family members and relatives has now being scaled down to a small celebration with close friends and family to mark the occasion.

“We have not yet decided on the next date for the wedding but it will surely be a small one. It can also be celebrated at home with just a few close friends and family members. We are yet to decide on it,” said the Sector-73 resident.

Lamba is not alone in changing her wedding plans. Several brides and grooms in the country are re-imagining their wedding celebrations in a post-pandemic situation. The current situation calls for compromises, adjustments and changes to be made to the long-established concept of a big fat Indian wedding.

Government restrictions

The district administration of Gurugram, in its revised order on May 23, said that marriage-related gatherings shall ensure social distancing and a maximum of 50 guests. The order, which is similar to wedding-gathering orders being followed in several parts of the country, is expected to change certain characteristics of the Indian wedding with restrictions on consumption of alcohol, supervision by nodal officers and ban on the use of central air-conditioning at the venue. Wedding planners and couples are grappling with newer challenges like the reduced number of guests, sanitation, social distancing and reduced contact. This challenge has led to maintaining a tight balance between tradition and precaution.

Sanitation and hygiene

“The responsibilities of holding a wedding during this time has doubled up as you have to look into other factors like sanitation and hygiene, where we would need dedicated teams for it. It can start from the gate to the buffet to the washroom. We might just have staff at the base of the stage with sanitisers for guests before they meet and greet the bride and the groom. Certain aspects are going to change. For instance, eating at weddings is now going to be more of a sit-down affair than an open buffet, where you eat standing up. We have to think of innovative ways of organising the baraat (wedding procession) as the horse and chariot are no longer feasible options. We might opt for a no-contact delivery of gifts, e-invites and other such things but the essence of the Indian wedding will remain the same,” said Ruchika Arora Bansal, director of Gurugram-based wedding organiser, Plush Weddings. She added that for couples approaching her to get married this year, her personal advice has been to postpone the wedding. Dates are available for June, July and August but Bansal said that the season picks up only after October.

Deciding on the scale

Deciding the scale of the wedding has become a priority for couples. While some do not want to give up the opportunity of having a big celebration, others do not want to give the occasion a miss due to the forced small scale of the celebration. “I am ready to get married in the presence of merely 50 close guests as I don’t want to miss out the auspicious date that was pre-decided. We have invited only our closest relatives and friends. A wedding is such an occasion that comes only once in a lifetime. So we don’t want to miss out on the celebration,” said Prerna Singh, a 28-year-old bank executive, who is going to hold the ceremony on May 24 in Gurugram. She added that once the lockdown is lifted and the restrictions are removed, she will be throwing a bigger party for friends, families and relatives.

Proper timing

Restrictions, such as the cap on the number of guests and travel limitations, are also forcing couples to rethink the timing of the wedding. While some have postponed the weddings, which were scheduled to be held in the months of May and June, to the end of the year, several others are thinking of altogether skipping 2020.

“Weddings are going to be much smaller affairs so a lot of them are going to shift to homes and smaller outdoor spaces. There will be a virtual element to all weddings going forward because there might be travel restrictions and older people may not want to leave the house. As such, we can expect online streaming of the occasion. There will also be a lot of online shopping because people don’t want to step out unnecessarily like visit multiple venues or visit a lot of small markets. The traditional wedding of the past with numerous ceremonies will no longer be possible. Instead, the focus will be on creating smaller ceremonies that are well-curated and unique,” said Sanna Vohra, founder and CEO of The Wedding Brigade. She added that ceremonies are primarily centered around close family members who participate in them. However, now the consideration to be made by organisers is how many people outside the close circle will get to witness the celebrations.

She further added that 2021 is expected to be a busy year for weddings as those that were not held in 2020 are going to take place next year.

Food choices

Reduced guests also mean that the number of food items being served will also be curtailed. Ruchika stressed that guests are leaning more towards sit-in arrangements for dining to help maintain physical distance.

“A total of eight weddings, which were supposed to happen in May-end and the June first week, have been cancelled. Along with this, our clients have asked us to cut down the items in the menu considering only 50 people would be attending it. People are going forward with intimate dining rather than a buffet layout. They are more interested in pre-plated food so that less food is handled by the client. We have introduced a seven-course tasting menu for the same and are also coming up with immunity-boosting dishes in the menu,” said Karann Talwar, chef and managing director of Kitchen Kraft Luxury Catering.