Sneakers instead of high heels, and lighter lehengas are only some of the personal choices brides are going for. Couples are also redefining which rituals they will partake in and what they’ll do away with for being too archaic. In the end, these weddings end up being not just celebrations but authentic reflections of the couple.
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HerZindagi spoke to couples and experts to trace how the wedding industry is changing gradually.
Focus on Sustainability
Kolkata bride Komal Bhargava opted to get married in her farmhouse on the outskirts of the city. The sprawling lawn was done up in shades of red, white and orange. Except for the main wedding area, all decor was made using shola flowers.
“We used as few real flowers as possible. It was more sustainable, but the decision was also made because ours was a day wedding, and sometimes in the sun, flowers tend to wilt or get spoiled. Instead, we went for shola flowers, which were crafted and dyed to keep in theme with our colour scheme,” said Komal, a Punjabi bride.-1736501544110.jpg?resize=1200%2C675&ssl=1)
Credits: Malvika Periwal Photography
For her chooda day, where women in the family make the bride wear bangles, she opted for shola flowers. “Even for Chooda day, where the flowers in my hair look absolutely like real flowers, were shola flowers, made to look like rajanigandha. It was also very light, and comfortable for me to wear,” she added.-1736501599633.jpg?resize=1200%2C675&ssl=1)
Piyush Gupta, CEO, VOSMOS, which has a premium wedding and celebration planning service also harped on how couples today are very keen on sustainable weddings. Finding outdoor venues, amidst nature, has been in vogue, he’s observed.
“Couples are choosing environmentally conscious options including hosting events in natural locations, utilizing biodegradable décor, and giving preference to food that is in season or locally produced. For instance, a couple in Jaipur planned a wedding where all of the décor was reusable and the food leftovers were given to a nearby nonprofit,” he said.
Unique Events, Like Cricket Matches and Storytelling Sessions
Doing away with multiple days of rituals, couples today choose fun events that resonate with their hobbies and interests.
At Komal and Aaditya’s wedding, a cricket match was the highlight on the day between the sangeet and the wedding. Initially, mehendi was considered, but Komal was allergic to it. “I am allergic to mehendi, so we knew I wasn’t putting it and neither was Aaditya, so we wondered what to do instead. That’s how the cricket match came into the picture. Aaditya and I had our first-ever date at an India-Pak cricket match – they were selling tickets in pairs, and that’s when it all started,” explained Komal.
She added that the experience proved to be a great bonding exercise as well. “It also makes the atmosphere very informal, and guests get to know each other better. We had no professionals hosting anything, so a friend was doing commentary, another was umpiring and even I umpired for some rounds,” she said.
Piyush too, noted the rise of unconventional events, that are growing more diverse, with seminars or cultural storytelling sessions taking the place of traditional cocktail nights.-1736501787522.jpg?resize=1200%2C675&ssl=1)
Another observation he’s had is the rise of technology, as part of the wedding. “Couples are using digital tools like virtual invitations and custom websites to streamline communication and logistics. A Hyderabad couple recently set up a wedding website that included travel details, event schedules, and a digital guestbook. Live streaming has also gained traction, especially for guests unable to attend in person,” he added.
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Decreasing the Guest List
The big, fat, Indian wedding may slowly be making way for smaller, meaningful, carefully curated weddings, with shorter guest lists.
“There is a clear trend toward smaller, more focused guest lists,” said Piyush. “Many couples are prioritizing meaningful interactions with close family and friends over large gatherings. For instance, a Pune couple recently hosted a two-day celebration for just 40 guests, incorporating intimate meals and personalized thank-you notes.”
While intimate weddings have been in trend for a while, guest lists are growing shorter for many couples tying the knot and choosing to only keep immediate family and the closest of friends in attendance.
A Vancouver-based Indian couple reportedly celebrated their wedding in Jaipur over two days, with only six guests in attendance. They only had their immediate family in attendance and celebrated with a barbecue-themed dinner, a Sikh wedding ceremony, and a Rajasthani thali sit-down reception.
Deviating from What Culture to Fit Personal Interests
For Bollywood buff Sinjini Roychowdhury, her dream wedding consisted of elements she’d only watched on screen, especially in Karan Johar movies. However, when the wedding planning came around, her mother and relatives were quite surprised to hear that she wanted to deviate majorly from Bengali customs – especially when it came to outfits and rituals.
Slated to be held at the end of January, her wedding will see elements from different non-bengali cultures, like a joint haldi, the groom arriving with a baraat on a horse and sunset varmalas.
The couple also picked out their own outfits, based on what they wanted to wear, which is a shift from what Bengali brides and grooms usually wear. “Both of us are wearing what we wanted to – I’m wearing a lehenga instead of a Benarasi saree, and my fiance will wear a sherwani, instead of a dhuti-panjabi. Instead of plain gold jewellery, I’m also opting for jewellery that goes with a lehenga. These won’t have much of Bengali elements,” she said.
There was resistance from her mother, and it took almost a year of convincing, for her to come around to these changes. “It was very difficult to make mother understand, especially because they’ve always seen weddings a certain way. My partner and his family supported me, which was very helpful in making my mother come around. The only clause she kept was wearing red on the wedding day, and I happily obliged to that.”
However, the couple will be partaking in some of the Bengali wedding rituals afterwards, with some tweaking. They’re not doing kanyadaan, and other bits that felt patriarchal and outdated to them.
When it comes to clothes, Komal too, chose to be a comfortable bride, opting for sneakers, lighter lehengas and no extensions on eyelashes. “A comfortable bride is a happy bride,” she reiterated.
The rise of comfortable footwear, especially sneakers is also visible from the growth a homegrown brand, Anaar footwear has witnessed over the last few years. They won the award for Fashion Entrepreneur Of The Year, at our flagship Womenpreneur Awards 2024, and had reportedly witnessed huge interest and engagement with their products since their launch. Their brand was built on the foundation of the evolving preferences of modern brides who sought comfort without compromising on style during their special day.
Komal’s advice to couples planning their weddings? “Keep the wedding as real, and try to make it about other people. Give friends and family importance, and they’ll give you importance, making your wedding perfect,” she said.
As societal norms evolve, weddings are becoming less about grandiosity and more about authenticity. They’re more about fun than endless rituals, all while keeping in theme with the couples’ interests. At the core of it though, they remain a celebration of love, focused deeply on creating memorable experiences, just how weddings have always been.
-1736500792257.jpg?ssl=1 "Cricket Matches, Shola Flowers, and Small Gatherings: The Changing Face of Indian Weddings")