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the-south-asian.com September 2004 |
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September
2004 Heritage
Salman
Ahmed - yet Indo-Pak TV Culture
Lifestyle
Lehngas - a limited collection Books Between
Heaven and Hell
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Designer Weddings – the ‘Theatre of the Absurd’
For many super-wealthy Indian families marriages have become style (or is it ‘non-style’) statements. Whether it is the choice of venue, delectable food or exotic flowers….these occasions are the time to flaunt wealth. The recent display of ‘wealth power’ at the Hinduja and Sahara weddings does little to suggest that simple can be sophisticated. It is all about show and overkill – and very little about sophistication. Money can buy all - but that.
‘To have and to behold from this day forward, for better, for richer not poorer, in possessions and in wealth, to live, lavish and relish till the costs do us part!' When hotelier Preeti Paul the scion of the Indian multimillion Apeejay Surrendra Group got married to Jaouad Kadiri from Morocco, she realised that the oft-repeated marriage vow had to be brutally revised if it was to survive into the new millennium. Preeti chose the exotic royal fort of Devigarh in the hills of Udaipur as her marriage venue. The fort was decorated like a fairyland with rare flowers and shimmering silk curtains. There were bilingual invites wrapped in a red velvet handbook with programming schedules in English and French. Apart from that there were gift bags in each room and a personal note from the host thanking the guests for gracing the occasion. No effort was spared to make the invited people feel they were part of royalty for the four days of the wedding. Preeti and Jaouad’s wedding is not one of a kind. Many of today's marriages are not so much made by planetary designs but rather by the designs on costumes, jewellery and invitation cards that establish status and marital bliss. "Marriages have become style statement for the rich and famous. They are occasions where the hosts want the world to know that no one can do it the way they do it," says Jai Thakore, COO of E-Factor Entertainment Pvt. Ltd. Concept weddings are in. And they don’t come equipped only with the designer couple! They are the time to flaunt wealth. Where fashion tabloids, honeymoon brochures and savvy marriage counsellors are all pressed into service. A package that no newly turned rich would-be in-law can avoid!
Mingling Tradition & Modernity Adds Thakore, "Weddings these days have become the focal point where tradition and modernity co-exist. You can now have the sari swirling around a champagne bar with no one raising an eyebrow." So, while be-decked horses have given way to custom made cars, it is not surprising that the dreams of most rich parents have galloped into the realms of the fantastic. The trend has gone a step beyond thematic. For a fantastic sum, one can avail of a custom made designer wedding. Companies have sprung up which promise to arrange everything from invites to guest management and from tulips from Holland to honeymoon destinations in the Caribbean. The Momentmakers, is one such Delhi-based company that specialises in a plethora of wedding concepts ranging from Japanese and Egyptian to Hawaiian and Goanese. "The emphasis is on packaging---from invitation cards, cuisines, trousseau co-ordination, decor, and other related activities," says proprietor Vijay Arora. Neeta Raheja, columnist and image consultant was one of the first women in the country to pioneer the concept of `designer marriages'. Says she, "When I came back from America to India in 1992 I realized there was a dire need for consultants who had experience in managing weddings professionally. Big industrialists eagerly lapped up new concepts. So there was already a ready market for professionally run services." With the estimated market size touching a whopping Rs.100 crores, a grand wedding requires meticulous planning that starts almost three months in advance. Wedding consultants and event management companies usually start with the concept proposal which the company sets out after being briefed by the client. The theme is most important because accordingly the rest of the paraphernalia falls into place. "The concept selection is the fulcrum around which the complete occasion is built," says Thakore whose company has to its credit weddings of members of leading industrialist families like the Pauls, Frodias, Punjs and a large part of the most talked about weddings of the two sons of Subroto Roy of the Sahara Parivar. " The Roys had the Saptpathi or the seven marriage vows concept and every section from the main gate to the lounge was giving the feel of the sacred vows," says Thakore whose company did the main gate, the temple, the VIP lounge and the mammoth 80 feet revolving stage for the orchestra.
Palace Weddings
Since many marriages involve overseas and cross-cultural guests, it is not surprising to see many wealthy people opting for a royal Rajasthani theme held in a real Rajasthani Palace which many scions of the nobility hire out for an exorbitant sum. These palace weddings come with gypsy dancers and camel rides and the hosts can welcome their suitably awed foreign guests with traditional thali greetings. The most important element is entertainment. Thanks to the depiction of the glamorous weddings in films where families sit around and sing in a state of domestic bliss most people have started expecting the same. The modern day planners arrange dancers, DJ’s and choreographers and voice trainers. Guests are given instant lessons in singing and dancing much the way it is done in the movies. Some companies also double as celebrity engagement outfits and can be called upon to invite some star to dance, sing and entertain the crowd. Depending upon how deep your pockets are you can call practically any filmstar. But be warned. The star will go back with a lot more than just ladoos in his pockets! The designer touch starts with the wedding card itself. Most moneybags go in for cards which are decorated by the artistic flourish of an established artist who `offers' his personal brush...sorry touch! Pre-wedding cocktail parties have also become the norm in most urban weddings these days. And the location is usually a farmhouse situated conveniently close and thankfully far away from the hoi polloi of the cityscape. However, five star hotels are still the norm for many weddings in the cities and in richie-rich weddings it has almost become the standard to have orchids from Thailand and tulips from Holland welcoming you.
Vijay Arora recalls one wedding where Rs. 1.5 million was spent only on flowers flown in from all over the world. The hosts usually land up booking entire floors of a hotel for their outstation guests and can avail of the ballrooms and reception halls for the numerous functions that are held before and after the wedding.
The cuisine is becoming more and more daring. Indian-mingles-with-Continental-mingles- with-French-mingles-with-Chinese...a gastronomical nightmare that guests welcome! Return gifts are another aspect, which is becoming quite the talked about thing in weddings these days. Dry fruits in gilt edged trays, cologne bottles, gift coupons, silver jewellery have replaced the simple thank you's! The brides trousseau is more often than not the most talked about thing among the guests and these days brides are finding increasing ways to re-interpret the lehnga and the sari.
Opulent Outfits Top designers offer opulent bridal outfits. Ritu Beri's white bridal collection has Swarovski crystals embedded in them and given the penchant for topical fashion it perhaps won't be far when you will have a bride in virginal white, taking the seven pheras around a computerized havan giving the illusion of a real fire burning in it! And if one is talking of weddings being a fine mix of the modern and the traditional then the honeymoon is probably one trip where the ritual-weary couple can really let their hair hang loose! So while Shimla, Mussoorie and Ooty went out of fashion for the affluent many years ago, the new destinations are dream honeymoons to the Caribbean, Europe, Africa and America. All of which make great settings for video films. And when the entire shindig finally comes to rest, the last of the guests have departed and the last of the Cartier watches been marvelled at, perhaps it is reasonable to expect that the couple can finally enjoy precious moments of solitude from whence they begin the journey into their destiny-designed matrimony! ***** |
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