Exotic Locales, Offbeat Weddings

Young couples are now exploring the idea of stepping outside the traditional mandaps and scouting for unique destinations in India and abroad

- Agnideb Bandyopadhyay

AROUND 2018, Lake Como had already become a buzzword for late-adolescent teens and young professionals. Be it in the form of a friendly jibe, banter or even aspirational promises shared among couples in middle-class circles, the imaginative lure of a destination wedding was a conversation starter.

Destination weddings have already been around for a long time now as a commonplace reality for the super-affluent in the country and a conversation for the rest. However, when Delhi’s favourite on-screen wedding planners, Shruti (Anushka Sharma) and Bittu (Ranveer Singh) from Band Baaja Baaraat, chose the serene Italian destination to host intimate ceremonies for their respective weddings, the prospect of an exotic, yet offbeat-wedding-generated popular interest, especially among youngsters.

In India, the destination wedding market has flourished in the past decade, witnessing a surge in demand. Factors such as hospitality sector growth, a burgeoning middle class, social media influence and diverse options have contributed to it. A survey conducted in September last year, by the research arm of the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) projected a record-breaking wedding season with approximately 3.5 million weddings and a business worth about Rs 4.25 trillion.

Tamarind Global, a high-profile, pan-India wedding planning consultancy since 2006, notes a shift in destination weddings from intimate gatherings to grand events in exotic locales, reflecting their decade-long experience in high-profile wedding planning. Traditional destination wedding regulars like Goa, Bali and Thailand remain popular for their beauty and affordability. However, there’s a growing trend towards unique locales like Jordan, Doha, Dubai and Rajasthan. These off-beat destinations cater to NRIs seeking distinctive wedding experiences.