Last Updated:
A budget-friendly wedding is necessary for a balance in extravagance and expense.
Financially plan your wedding day by spending on what truly matters to you and your partner and cutting costs wherever possible. (Images: Pexels)
Indian ritual-oriented weddings mostly showcase grandeur and can be very taxing for people who lack proper financial planning. From decorations, and food expenses to wedding invitations and outfit costs, there are several things to keep in mind while planning a ‘big fat Indian wedding’.
Here’s your guide to planning a dream marriage day without going over your budget.
Choosing Wedding Date
You can opt for dates outside the most in-demand ones to save money. Marriage is a celebration of love and any pious date can be picked for heading to the new journey of togetherness.
You can consult with a religious priest to check astrology and look for auspicious muhurat to suggest the ideal wedding date, ensuring that it aligns with favourable cosmic conditions for the couple’s new life.
Wedding Venue Planning
The foremost thing to keep in mind while planning a wedding is to take into account the cost of essential elements such as venue, catering and outfits. Consider options like community halls to reduce venue costs.
People with big yards or big rooftops can get them clean and have the wedding ceremony in their homes to make the celebration even more meaningful.
Now-a-days, some couples even opt for destination weddings, which makes the wedding more intimate, with fewer guests, owing to travelling expenses. You can try to look for nice, lesser-explored locations in your desired state/country, ensuring a less expensive booking and also guaranteeing unique wedding photos.
ALSO READ: How To Plan an Unforgettable Destination Wedding
Wedding Food Expense
If the wedding venue expense exceeds your planned amount, you can adjust it in the food segment. You can choose to invite only close friends, family, and the must-invitees to the wedding, to check food and beverage expenses.
If you want to invite more people, you can opt for a simple and less-pricey menu to cut down on catering expenses. For example: you can go for good-quality local ice creams available in your area, instead of branded ones.
Accommodation Of Guests For Wedding
For lodging arrangements of travelling guests, choose a venue that includes per-day pricing accommodation. That will make it easier to track the lodging expenses.
Wedding Decoration Cost
For decorations, you can use a mix of artificial flowers and real flowers, as real flowers are costlier.
You can even utilize DIY techniques to save money on decor and invitation cards. It can be a fun activity to do with people interested in being a part of the wedding organisation.
ALSO READ: ‘Twice Than Education’: Big Fat Indian Weddings, How Much Does India ‘Invest’ In Matrimony?
Transportation Expense For Wedding
Another big part of the wedding expense is the transportation of decorative items and other necessary goods. You can utilize local vendors to avoid extra transportation costs.
Wedding Outfit Selection
Cutting costs in the above-mentioned areas can enable you to save a good amount to invest in your dream wedding attire. As it is a once-in-a-lifetime moment for many people, they want to look their best on the special day.
However, even after budget-friendly marriage planning, affording an opulent outfit might not be possible for everyone. In that case, you can opt for local tailor-made versions of your dream designer wedding outfit. It is a smart way of having the spotlight on you on your big day, without going past your budget.
Sangeet/Wedding Dance Expense
The entertainment segment has become a crucial part of Indian marriages in the last two decades. Most Indian wedding celebrations consist of a day, commonly known as Sangeet, dedicated to dancing, singing and doing other entertaining acts. The friends and family of the bride and groom perform with them on the day.
Some even hire professionals to choreograph their performances. However, you can save up the choreographer payment amount by learning the dance by yourself from Sangeet dance tutorial videos available on YouTube or Instagram. You can even customise the performance by mixing and matching songs and dances from two or more videos.
These are a few ways to attain your perfect big fat Indian wedding, without the ‘big fat’ part. One doesn’t need to break the bank to celebrate their special day. Expend on what you think needs spending most and cut down on outlay wherever possible.
Financially plan the day by focusing on what truly matters to you and your partner. Remember, a budget-conscious wedding can also be a beautiful and memorable celebration of love.
