After recurring waves of Covid-19 and restrictions, people are busy with weddings and shopping this summer. With 43 auspicious days this season, 40 lakh weddings are expected to be held in India between April and July.
On an average, as much as 40-50 per cent of the expenses in a wedding go, into jewelry and clothing alone, while 30 per cent go to venues, according to city based planners.
After little to no business for two years of pandemic, vendors and wedding planners are celebrating as much as brides and grooms are. “It is a lot of pressure off to finally pull off a big scale wedding and to have money coming in again as there were times we didn’t think we were going to make it,” an event planner said.
An Event planner shared that the headcount of guests has now increased to 800 to 1,000 from 200 during the lock down and restriction period. “The business is now reactivated. Even this whole week is packed, as we have 22 weddings in April alone. For the next five months, our calendars are booked. People are getting a chance to conduct a proper wedding after two years of restrictions and are going liberal on expenses,” he said.
Shikha Sharma, who is getting married later this month, said her brother got married during the lockdowns and compared how different the planning was. “We had to carefully organize our guest lists, figure out how to make sure they leave before night restrictions, and even with all this, we had to be mindful of having to scrap it all at the last minute as we were living in times of such uncertainty. Now with my wedding, I have the liberty to invite my colleagues, friends, and even families of friends. Never thought we would be seeing nor malcy again after the dreadful waves of Covid,” she said.
Budget for weddings, is 30 per cent higher than what it was before the pandemic, says event planner, “With no restriction and optional mask policy, up to 1,200 people attend weddings, the public is not shying away from spending quite good amounts on decorations as well. The materials used to make mandaps have become costly and even the rates of flowers are already very high. We have 18 weddings in April and 18 more in May lined up for now,” she said.
source: Deccan Chronical, Hyderabad
