The Bride Show is part of the Informa Connect Division of Informa PLC

This site is operated by a business or businesses owned by Informa PLC and all copyright resides with them. Informa PLC's registered office is 5 Howick Place, London SW1P 1WG. Registered in England and Wales. Number 3099067.

WHEN LIFE IMITATES ART… BRINGING BOLLYWOOD TO YOUR WEDDING DAY! LAVISH CELEBRATIONS. EXTRAVAGANT OUTFITS. BE INSPIRED.

Bride Show > News > WHEN LIFE IMITATES ART… BRINGING BOLLYWOOD TO YOUR WEDDING DAY! LAVISH CELEBRATIONS. EXTRAVAGANT OUTFITS. BE INSPIRED.

WHEN LIFE IMITATES ART… BRINGING BOLLYWOOD TO YOUR WEDDING DAY! LAVISH CELEBRATIONS. EXTRAVAGANT OUTFITS. BE INSPIRED.

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
WhatsApp
Pinterest

There’s certainly nothing plain about a big Indian wedding, often 3 days in length, hundreds, even thousands of guests on the list with one statement on everyone’s mind “DRESS TO IMPRESS”. The incredible intricate detail of Indian gowns often replicated on the groom’s sherwani is a definitive look of pride which ordinarily oozes wealth and extravagance. With a typical western wedding lasting only a day, according to hitched.com on average just 75 guests – stress levels can reach an all-time high so how do Indian brides cope with the event planning of a 3 day wedding extravaganza? Not to mention the outfits, we always talk about finding “the one”; after months of hunting for that one dress that makes you feel incredible – try adding an average of 3 more wedding outfits to the list and suddenly panic sets in! Here at BRIDE we have delved into the history of the Indian nuptials and brought you everything you need to know about hosting the wedding of the century. 

 

My wedding is bigger than your wedding…

According to Asiana magazine the average spend for an Indian wedding in the UK is Dhs234,000 versus a typically British ceremony and reception costing Dhs75,000. Looking at stats from the UAE plus information from a Dubai-based wedding planner and it’s a very different story, with non-tax paying salaries creating higher disposable income – the celebration costs are off the scale with Indians taking the lead in the spending stakes (averaging Dhs500,000). Indian Ex-pat Adel Sajan, Director of the Danube Group demonstrated this with his marriage to Sana Khan on board a luxury cruise liner alongside 1000 guests for an impressive 3 day celebration touring the Med (rumored at Dhs110 million). His father Rizwan Sajan appears in Forbes Middle East holding twelfth place last year suggesting he is one of the most powerful Indians in the Emirates. It was a star-studded guest list with Bollywood celebrities in attendance including Shilpa Shetty, Malaika Arora Khan, Gurmeet Choudhary, Gauhar Khan and Rohit Roy amongst others.

Moving on to India, the birthplace of extravagant nuptials and the end of last year potentially saw the most expensive wedding in the world take place in the Bangalore Palace. Dhs270 Million spent, 3,000 security guards, gold-plated invitations, 50,000 guests including politicians and celebrities, 5 day celebration hosted by mining baron Gali Janardhan Reddy for his daughter Brahmani, 21, and her fiancé Rajeev. This happy occasion did however create a backlash as it coincided with the Prime Minister Narendra Modi demonetizing India’s highest-denomination notes causing millions queuing up at the banks to exchange worthless money. Not ideal. 

 

Heeeeeeeeeelp!

As with all special occasions finding the right frock can bring drama to your life so if you’re the bride and taking center stage in front of over a thousand people IT HAS TO BE RIGHT! Always take body shape into consideration, more often than not, brides make the grave mistake of choosing a style they always pictured themselves wearing on their wedding day rather than what suits them. Shakira’s right “your hips don’t lie” so don’t deviate from the norm. If you usually wear high waisted clothes don’t suddenly decide to drop low on your wedding day and if you could give Kim Kardashian a run for her money in the rear stakes – an ‘A’ cut lehnga hides a multitude of sins! 

 

Gold or Bold?

Current trends are bountiful, inevitably it comes down to personal taste, gold has always appeared heavily in Asian weddings over the decades and is still going strong. If you like the classic gold tones for the ceremony perhaps address your wild side in bold colors for the mehndi!

An alternative look is the vintage yet modern combo of blush tones with silver adornments which creates a very light and Summery style in these desert climes, Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla’s collection demonstrates pure elegance…

Manish Malhotra brings a very contemporary look to the Indian wedding dress scene, his addition of feathers and plentiful yet minuscule embellishments provide a look of chic opulence. 

Can you keep a secret?! BRIDE has an exclusive for you, we all wish we could dress like the stars right? Well, we are making this possible for all our BRIDE guests because….. Queen of Style Rita Kumar will be exhibiting at the show! According to Vogue, Bollywood star Dia Mirza wore one of Rita’s wedding dresses and Soha Ali Khan sported a rani pink kurta for her mehndi, they also both packed Rita’s designs in their trousseaus.

Diamonds are a girl’s best friend but let’s not rule out other precious gemstones. Indian jewellery designers are renowned for exquisite, opulent and intricately designed bijoux and we are excited to announce that Jewels by Queenie will be starring in our Indian Pavilion, a dedicated arena for luxury products. 

Important Facts about the big Indian Wedding:

  • Be sure to secure your venue first – then everything will fall into place – you can’t plan a wedding until you know where it’s going to be.
  • Accept traditions. Although many modern brides don’t agree with this tradition the bride’s father pays for the wedding day (religious ceremony followed by a buffet).
  • You are obliged to invite everyone you have ever met plus a few you haven’t!
  • Entertaining is exhausting, even when it’s just having friends over for dinner –  imagine 3 days talking to hundreds of people! Be the hostess with the mostess by resting in the run up to the events.
  • Although a happy time, at the end of the celebrations comes heartache when typically, the bride bids a tearful goodbye to her parents and leaves to live with her husband. Pack your tissues!
  • Book your relaxing honeymoon in advance – you’re going to need it! 

 

Interesting rituals you may not know about:

There is a belief that the deeper the color of the mehndi the more she will be loved by her husband and/or mother-in-law. Housework is forbidden until it wears off – hooray!

  • In North India, some grooms are veiled behind a sehra believed to protect him from the evil eye.
  • A Hindu tradition is for the bride to enter the in-law’s home on the right foot and kick a pot of rice over to ensure good luck.
  • A Punjabi bride’s sisters/female cousins often hide the groom’s shoes, after the ceremony he must pay a ransom (cash or kalicharis) to get them back! Gold for the sisters and silver for the cousins.
  • A Gujarati Hindu ritual sees the couple dip their hands into a silver bowl of milk, vermillion, a ring and coins, whoever fin the ring 4 out of 7 times will be the boss!

 

If you need help organising your 3-day extravaganza of wedding fun don’t hesitate to join us at BRIDE with professionals on hand to lighten the load. 

 

THINK BIG. STAY CHIC. BE INSPIRED. 

Taken from: https://www.confetti.co.uk/wedding-ceremonies/10-interesting-facts-you-didnt-know-about-indian-weddings 

 

Image Source: Google search – desiblitz, Pinterest – wedmegood.com & Pinterest – weddingsutra.com