Big fat Indian weddings have taken a direct hit in days of social distancing. Team Viva delves into the immediate and long-term impact on the industry
Indians and their love for big fat weddings, with a thousand guests and lavish spreads, is legendary. So in times of a pandemic when it is advised to avoid large public gatherings and restrict travel, soon-to-be brides and grooms are facing tough and hitherto unheard of choices. The lockdown has sent ripples through the wedding industry, from vendors, wedding planners and venues to guests, relatives and couples. A layer of caution and concern, thicker than that of butter on dal makhni at the banquet, has enveloped the celebrations. And the question that we are faced with is — even if we emerge out of this situation, will Indian weddings ever be the same again or will we now be more cautious of social gatherings?
Luxury caterings
Well, Indian weddings, especially the big fat ones, aren’t just about their vibrant dance and music, decor and lights, and dresses, it’s a lot about food, too. However, with the food industry hit badly due to the deadly virus, experts predict that ‘bahar ka khaana’ would mostly be avoided for a long time even if we have fought this war and emerged out of it. So how is it going to affect the wedding catering business when ‘shaadiyon ka khaana’ won’t be appealing anymore?
Karann Talwar, managing director and the gastronome chef, Kitchen Kraft Luxury Catering, points out that he has already faced some of the brunt. He says, “A lot of replanning and cancellation of weddings has happened in the past one month. Close to half of those planning to tie the knot in the coming quarter have also postponed or cancelled their plans to the later part of the year. We had our bookings full for March-end and the first week of April but we saw nine wedding bookings getting cancelled and six being postponed.”
He highlights that the destination weddings have been hit the hardest with most of them, even if planned in the next few months, being cancelled already. “We had some bookings mainly for destination weddings in cities like Udaipur and Jaipur. However, due to the nationwide lockdown and advisory issued by the Rajasthan state, we cannot proceed further,” says he.
Looking at future prospects, he says that for some time, people will become more cautious and for that, even they, as a catering industry, will also have to take more precautions in preparing the food as and when they get the bookings and orders for weddings now. He adds, “We will ensure we get our staff members and employees vaccinated if any vaccination is available for COVID-19. Besides this, we will only hire people who have no previous history of Coronavirus or any other form of infection, including in their families.”
Wedding organisers might also hesitate in laying out a large spread for their guests at weddings since the very idea of large gatherings would see a scaling down. How will the luxury catering market deal with it? Karann says, “No one ever expected such a time. Nobody imagined themselves to be sitting at home, doing nothing for so many days. Not just the catering market, but all the other industries are also shattered. A wedding is such an auspicious moment where people cannot miss anyone and invite a huge list of guests and relatives. I believe gradually, when the situation gets better, people will start to trust and would indulge in surplus items in the menus. Right now, I believe it is a difficult time for us but I am sure things will be back on track for the whole food and catering industry.”
Beauty
The pandemic has affected the beauty industry drastically. It has brought a major shift in the mindset of the consumers which in turn has impacted the economy. “We have suffered a lot of losses as several make up bookings have been canceled and postponed. The pandemic has brought down the spending capacity of the consumers as everyone wants to save money for an emergency rather than spending on luxury. Approximately 70 per cent of my orders have been postponed to November and December and the rest 30 per cent have been canceled. I don’t blame my clients as no one has an idea of the future,” says Agrika Kalra, celebrity make up artist. It will take a couple of years for not only this industry but the entire economy to come back to normal.
However, the larger question that lies here is — even if we emerge out of this situation, will Indian weddings ever be the same again as we will now be more cautious of public gatherings? “I doubt that. Even after emerging out of this they won’t be the same for a couple of years as people will always have this sense of fear. They would prefer smaller wedding affairs,” says Kalra and adds, “People won’t go for costly outfits, makeup artists, venue, etc as they would focus on simple weddings with limited people.”
Fashion
The outbreak has sent ripples through the fashion industry as it has escalated in the midst of the 2020 spring-summer season, causing brands and design houses to shutter their doors and postpone upcoming runway shows. Last month we even saw some fashion shows getting cancelled in Paris, Milan and Italy. From vendors to fashion designers to wedding planners, everyone is going through a tough time.
“As we all know, April, May and June are the months when weddings are scheduled in bulk. And now they all are getting affected. Most of the weddings, social gatherings and events have been already canceled. Even the shoots have been canceled, this has affected our sales. The closure of malls and retail outlets with a view to control the situation has resulted in a substantial reduction in the sales of domestic textiles and clothing,” says Ravi Gupta, owner, Gargee Designers.
After we emerge out of this situation, people are going to be more cautious about gatherings. And Indian weddings are not a small affair. It’s like a three-day long festival that has people of all age groups. Ravi says, “People will be selective in inviting their guests now. I don’t think the invitees too would not take any risky steps of attending public gathering in the coming months.”
The lockdown has impacted everyone’s pocket which, in turn, will impact the shopping patterns of people. But, Ravi feels that once the cash inflow and outflow will regularise, people will start buying new things and market will witness a positive change.
Jewellery
The sudden outbreak of the virus has impacted the Indian global gems and jewellery market. If we look at the present statistics, the lockdown in the metropolitan has resulted in an additional loss of five percent in exports, besides a generally low demand due to economic slowdown. Also, as the outbreak has affected countries like Japan, China, and South Korea, there is a sharp fall in demand in the global market.
“As of now, we are having a 100 per cent cancellation, especially for all marriage orders. No new orders have been placed and the status of the old booking is also not clear. All the clients mentioned that they will only be able to confirm once the lockdown is over and the situation gets better. Most of the marriages have been postponed to later this year,” says Bhuvan Goel, founder, S.KA Diamonds.
He adds that more than 60 to 70 percent marriages have been canceled and 20 to 30 per cent have been rescheduled and 10 per cent have gone for court marriages and probably when things are better, they will go for some small reception or a small family gathering. So even when we emerge out of this crisis, nothing is certain about the market
“All this will result in the decline of demand and thus affect the business. Due to the current situation of the jewellery industry, there will be a massive drop in sales. I presume that there could be a 50 to 70 thousand crore loss in business activities in the jewellery segment,” says Goel.
Further, as we talk about rental jewellery options, people will be more hesitant as there will always be a fear about their hygiene.
A more holistic approach
The global rental market was expected to reach $335 billion by 2025 as it offers the convenience of living without the responsibility of maintaining or upgrading them. So will this affect the rental market as hygiene issues are involved? Sanchit Baweja, co-founder of Stage3, feels that rentals will increase post COVID-19 as consumption patterns would change. He shares that sustainability as a way of living and the pandemic we are witnessing are interconnected. We are all a part of the same planet. It is a wake up call to stop overusing the resources as the threat from climate change is as real as the pandemic. The year 2020 will be remembered as a turnaround point in global markets and pave the way in reinvention of how resources are consumed. “With sustainability being at the core, we expect to reach more and more people in reinventing their fashion consumption choices. More people will resonate with the vision of conscious consumption and would want to reduce their carbon footprint on the planet, and hence, explore renting outfits they hardly repeat,” says he.
