their ‘I dos’ with a close-knit circle of the nearest and dearest wove a magical charm and is here to stay for a longer haul,” said Shubham Gupta - Founder & Creative Head - Beyond Photos. But on he said... “ Yet there is no denying that there are couples still dreaming and waiting to host the big fat Indian wedding. A lavish affair or intimate nuptial ultimately should be a day you can look back upon fondly with nostalgia. The wedding season is booming in 2022.” The pandemic has forced the Indian market to re-think one of its most grand affairs —A Big Fat Indian Wedding. According to a survey conducted by WedMeGood in 2021, only 60% want to plan large weddings with over 200 guests. But that’s not all, according to a report by WeddingWire India, there has been a paradigm shift in how Indians are planning a wedding in the new normal. From intimate and micro, civil and digital weddings to e-invites and customized wedding websites, and with as many as 76% of couples (compared to the year before) opting for non-saaya dates, the approach has become more modern and practical. The wedding industry has seen a drastic change during the pandemic that is continuing to live on even after. In today’s world of weddings, “.. everything is more minimal and more detailed,” said Anika Dhawan. “Along with lavish weddings, it is in trend to have intimate pre-wedding functions. It’s also quite in vogue to have glitzy cocktails and bachelor parties. An upcoming trend is having theme-based pool parties,” points out Ajit Singh Garcha, General Manager, of The Park Hyderabad. Intimate weddings, elaborate events, same spending power A small guest list with close-knit people, that initially started as a mandate for weddings to contain the spread of COVID, seems to have carved a niche for itself in society. Small-scale, intimate weddings are becoming a preferred choice for many, no matter what the socio-economic status of an individual might be.“I feel like there’s been a huge shift inmindset.People aremore about unique personal details post-pandemic. People are enjoying the concept of smaller intimate weddings where they can concentrate on the details. It’s also much more personal. People are choosing more fun destinations, their own homes and smaller gardens to host their weddings,” says Anika Dhawan, Founder of Rani Pink and Rani Pink Gifts. But does that mean the luxury aspect of weddings is eliminated? We’d say no. While guests list, luxury and opulence remain a central theme for many wedding celebrations. “Intimate soirees as far as I have witnessed are based on individuals’ choice of how many guests they would want. And yet, their events are quite elaborate,” shared Manish Malhotra. For Anika, weddings have changed in terms of scale, but the spending power remains the same. The key change she has noticed is a change in their priority list that is redefined on things that matter more. “The scale is definitely smaller but I don’t think that luxury is defined by it, and so that hasn’t been affected. People are spending on things that matter most. I don’t think that aesthetics or experience is defined by budgets, so people are still spending, but more thoughtfully. She goes on to say....”The budgets aren’t changing immensely, but the concept of design has changed today. The idea of luxury consumption is a lot more understood because people want to pay attention to the smaller details. For me, it’s all about storytelling today.” Weddings and sustainability Yet another noteworthy outcome of the pandemic, is rising conversations around sustainability in terms of weddings – from couture to décor, jewellery and more. While some brides are upcycling old sarees carried down over generations, others are using ancestral jewellery. Anika also pointed out that there has been a change in the use of materials pre, and post covid... “everyone is more aware and less wasteful.” Anuja Joshi, Founder of luxury flower company, Interflora India, further validated this point saying that sustainability is at the root of their philosophy when organizing special occasions, especially weddings. She says, “We upcycle flowers after events to create floral candles and diffusers and we use floral waste to turn it into biofuel post.” But at a deeper level, not only is the material sourced ethically but they also follow cold chain solutions at every stage from sourcing to delivery to ensure minimal wastage. However, the idea of slow and thoughtful living is today intrinsically interwoven into every aspect of our life. People are more conscious and there’s a new understanding of slow living and luxury as per wedding designer Anika Dhawan. Today, people want luxury which is more valued and brings more happiness versus large sets,bignumbers and lavishwasteful concepts.The idea is toworkwith the Mumbai Event Decor The Big Fat Indian Wedding Photo Courtesy: Beyond Photos Dhol Night Destination wedding Rajasthan set up Photo Courtesy: Beyond Photos N A Mehendi Anika Dhawan, Founder Rani Pink and Rani Pink Gifts 10|L U X E B O O K|O C T O B E R 2 0 2 2 O C T O B E R 2 0 2 2 |L U X E B O O K| 1 1
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