My Wedding, My Finances

BLOG 21/2026 DATED 28TH MARCH 2026

Couple	Approx. expenditure in wedding (INR crs)	Business family
Ananth Ambani & Radhika Merchant	1260	Mukesh Ambani
Isha Ambani & Anand Piramal	700	Mukesh Ambani
Sushanto Roy & Seemanto Roy	554	Subroto Roy Sahara
Brahmani Reddy & Rajiv Reddy	500	Gali Janardhan Reddy
Shrishti Mittal & Gulraj Bahl	500	Pramod Mittal

“Financial stress over wedding expenses? Man dies by suicide in Gurgaon” -The Times of India 7^th Jan 2026,

“Rs 15 LPA salary but spending Rs 50 lakh on marriage” -The Economic Times 24^th Mar 2026

Parents saved ₹25 lakh for her wedding – this woman turned it into Rs.82 lakh by skipping a lavish shaadi – The Times of India, 20^th March 2026

Billionaires spends a whole planet of money on the marriages of their sons and daughters.  Any problem, any issue, NO and it should not be. These tycoons have spent a miniscule portion of their wealth on wedding even if we feel that the amount is huge. BUT once the middle-class start copying them and spends in huge sums on weddings, it does create an uneasy, untold burden in the system. A burden that no one shares but everyone enjoys.

Marriage has turned into an Industry, an economic activity adding to the GDP of the country. As per Worldmetrics report

• Indian Wedding Industry was valued at $ 60 bn in 2022.
• It is projected to reach $ 136 bn by 2030.
• It adds to 6-7% of the GDP.

With the above data showing the customs of wedding adding to the prosperity, only a sillypoint can suggest to cut down the wedding expenditure by middle class households in India. The need for control and reduction in marriage expenditure can be considered on the following grounds:

• We tend to spend a bit more than our capacity out of social pressures.
• The expenditure is wasteful in nature in many cases.
• There are marriage loans available in the market and people take loans and then repay for a long time curtailing other necessary expenditures, often leading to debt trap. It is reported in a 2019 survey that 20% of the loan applications among individuals between 20-30 years are for marriage purpose.
• The financial burden of a daughter’s marriage and dowry contributes to female infanticide.
• Lavish weddings often prioritise show off over the solemn purpose of the institution of marriage.
• Even if loans are not taken, a large chunk of life savings just evaporates in 2-3 days of functions.
• People are resorting to bribes and corrupt activities to accumulate funds for wedding purpose.
• Lavish weddings blatantly display the wealth gap by extravagant expenditure on luxuries while the country is still undernourished (although it does not mean that in an undernourished country, people should not enjoy life).

We can go on an on. Still, we hesitate to break the shackles and effect a change. A change for the benefit of the society. A change to bring back the solemn and pious ritual of marriage. If we as a society accept this change then marriage will become an easy to do function as it should be.

“Indian society is rapidly evolving with modern culture and wedding traditions have also changed significantly over the years. However, a practical financial approach and cost-conscious assessment of wedding budget can help to make your grand day memorable without any distress.” –

NDTV Profit Nov 2, 2025, an article on behavioural finance.

The funds that we save can solve many problems of the society. These funds can be utilised in 3 possible ways

1. Save for yourself and spend on health or recreational activities.

2. Give to the new couple who are beginning their new lives.

3. Help education of a poor child or any other social cause.

Can there be a second thought that the above efforts are better than spending 20 lakh on chicken biryani and 1000 guests. If the society agrees to change the way we spend on weddings, a few steps can be taken as under:

• Stop printing wedding cards (wedding cards have virtually become statement of ego rather than an invitation) and shift to digital messaging.
• Prune down guest list to close relatives and friends specially avoiding out of city guests.
• Grooms to stress their parents that they do not resort to dowry demands either directly or indirectly.
• Brides to make sure that a price tag is not attached to them. The one who desire to marry you, will get only you.
• Reduce the numbers in Baraat convoy and involve only very close family members or friends.
• More importantly, encourage simple marriage and congratulate the person doing it rather than attaching a kanjoos or Bechara prefix.

The GDP will find its way in some other activity, the industry will continue to run but world will be a better place to live, if we can exercise a break here. Think over it, to whom are we trying to impress? Does this matter for the future life of the bride and groom?