Big fat Indian weddings to be an intimate, pocket-friendly affair?

As per the new guidelines announced by the MHA (Ministry of Home Affairs), weddings can take place with 50 guests, wedding industry experts share their views.

Lockdown 3.0 has brought with it some relief for couples who were set to tie the knot in the first half of the year. As per the revised government guidelines, weddings can take place with a maximum of 50 attendees. So, does that mean the big fat Indian weddings will now be an intimate, pocket-friendly affair with only closed relatives?

Bride-to-be, Anushka Verma, an IT professional who works in Bengaluru but was at her home town in the Capital to prepare for her wedding functions shares her opinion. She says, “Even though we incurred huge losses because of the sudden cancellations, it’s comforting to know that I can still get married during the lockdown with my immediate family around me. I’m in talks with my fiancé to figure out arrangements now.”

This positive news has come as a breath of fresh air in the whole light of negativity going around feels planner Kaveri Vij of Designer Events Inc. She states, “There were couples who were stuck and not been able to decide what to do next. Now they don’t have to wait for November and December for the celebration and at least can proceed with the rituals right now, and probably do a reception later. She also, however, feels that for people to adapt to this scenario will take time because there is still a scare in stilled in them with regards to the regulations and social distancing norms.”

Trimming the wedding guest list to a fewer attendees will have more of personalised elements and better quality time with guests who matter to you the most feels Vishal Punjabi of The Wedding Filmer. He has previously beautifully captured weddings of cricketer Virat Kohli and actor Anushka Sharma and actors Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh. He says, “Weddings had become a spectacle with artists coming from all over the world, royal treatments, and fireworks going on — just so much noise. They started from 200 guests in Goa to now 2,000 in Como. Families didn’t have time to think about what was going on and not even been able to spend time. But when the guest list restricted to such numbers, you are reminded how humble weddings should be.” He also believes that home is the best location to get married at, and adds, “When you actually do it at home, there’s a place where you have made memories. You will be ultimately saving on the grand decor, saving on venue; videos are something you can cherish for life.”

He also feels that homes allow us to film with smaller crews and films will be shorter and more affordable. He says, “I have been struggling out to reach out to a wider audience but the hindrance has been size of the wedding. I have always wanted to do with smaller crew which means lesser footage which means lesser editing time and whole thing that costs a bomb, can made it small and inexpensive which means a lot more people can afford and also means, more work for us too.”

However, Shweta Acharya, founder of Baraati Inc, a wedding planning company believes that it’s a big relief for families than us as professional planners and from industry point of view and couples who can’t really postpone the wedding dates but they need to know there will be more of ‘auspicious’ dates next year too. She also questions, “At least 20 will be family members then that it means in remaining 20-25 you have to take care of everything else - photography, planners, decorators, caterers? So, how do we cut that out?”

Interact with author/sanchita_kalra.