The Billion-dollar 'Baraat'

AS INDIAN DESTINATION WEDDINGS GROW MORE EXTRAVAGANT, LUXURY HOTELS AND TOURISM BOARDS FROM THE U.A.E. TO THE FRENCH RIVIERA ARE ROLLING OUT THE RED CARPET TO CAPTURE HIGH-VALUE CLIENTELE.

- BY SMITA TRIPATHI

On a bright June afternoon, the narrow street beside the Mandarin Oriental in Prague fell silent save for the thundering beat of dhols. A procession of more than 100 guests, dressed in sherwanis and sequinned lehengas, accompanied by the groom on a horse, danced its way towards the hotel, blocking traffic for an hour. The interruption wasn't accidental; it had been sanctioned by the tourism board.

The occasion was the wedding of Arjun Reddy, a Tesla executive from the U.S., with Marie Benes from Prague [names changed]. For the couple's families, the seamless execution of a full-fledged Indian baraat (wedding procession) in the heart of the Czech capital was nonnegotiable. For Prague's tourism officials, it was a calculated investment. The two-day wedding with 180 guests cost around ₹5 crore and included chefs being flown in, especially from Hyderabad.

Czech tourism is not alone. From Bahrain's dedicated immigration counters for wedding parties to Abu Dhabi's complimentary visas for nuptials, tourism boards and hoteliers from Thailand to the French Riviera are increasingly bending rules and budgets to attract the Indian wedding market.

The stakes are high. India's broader wedding industry is valued at more than $75 billion, according to KPMG in India, with high-net-worth families spending $2-15 million on a single celebration. The destination segment alone, estimated at $3.5 billion in 2024, is projected to balloon to $25.7 billion by 2033, according to market research firm IMARC Group.

WOOING INDIANS

It's a windfall for the host economies. A single multi-day celebration can inject more than $500,000 into local businesses, from hotels and caterers to florists and transportation companies. That potential is spurring a race among tourism boards.