Behind The Glitter: How Picture-Perfect Weddings Are Draining Wallets And Stealing Peace

Last Updated:November 15, 2025, 08:00 IST

A wedding’s real purpose is to start a life together; yet too often, the industry and social currents push couples to finance a spectacle that rewards a single day.

Having grown up in a joint family, I’ve seen all sorts of events, but what stands out the most are weddings. From a very young age (when I was just able to roughly calculate the cost of an event), I noticed people spending money on weddings (their own or their children’s) that they simply didn’t have.

One thing was common: everyone organising the wedding seemed more concerned about how it would please the guests, relatives, friends, and everyone attending.

“Everything should be the best,” was something I often heard. But I also used to wonder — what exactly is this “best”? And how much do you spend on that “best” to make people “remember the wedding”?

Now that I’m an adult and many of my friends are getting married, I see the same pattern repeating, only with a few modern twists.

It is no longer just about the guests attending the wedding, but also about those scrolling through it on Instagram. Weddings today are about creating something personalised, unique, something no one has ever seen before, the “picture-perfect” dream wedding.

However, it still becomes all about having “the best” and “the one everyone will remember forever.” To achieve that, people are once again spending money they don’t have, the one pattern that hasn’t changed.

What has changed, though, is who’s calling the shots. Earlier, it was mostly the parents — yes, they asked their children for preferences, but there was still a cap on spending. It was expensive, but controlled.

Now, the decision-making largely rests with the couple, with parents supporting their choices. With every decision, from venue to décor to wedding outfits, the spending cap keeps stretching further and further, all in pursuit of that “unique” everything.

How Expensive Have Weddings Become?

Once a traditional event supported and managed not only by immediate family members but also by close relatives, friends, and neighbours, it has now evolved into a full-scale industry reportedly worth around Rs 10 lakh crore.

A 2024 WeddingWire India survey found that the average cost of hosting a wedding was approximately Rs 29.6 lakh, with a sizable share of ceremonies exceeding the Rs 30–50 lakh mark. Another industry report puts the average budget even higher for many couples, especially for destination weddings.

This scale shows how aspirational, high-spend weddings are becoming the new normal for many urban couples. The wedding industry has its own world — venues, caterers, designers, entertainers, and more.

And from numbers, we know that making all this happen doesn’t come cheap. For most middle-class families, that kind of money isn’t just lying around, so they end up dipping into their savings or taking loans to pull it off.

What Fuels The Overspending?

Several factors combine to drive budgets skyward.

Social-media Benchmarking: Instagram feeds and viral reels give couples ready-made standards like curated décor, cinematic shoots and celebrity-inspired wardrobe budgets. When a friend’s highlight reel sets the bar, ‘keeping up’ can feel like a social obligation.

Add-ons And Personalisation: Pre-wedding shoots, designer outfits, bespoke décor, elaborate floral installations, and high-end invitations add incremental costs. Each “extra” feels necessary for a picture-perfect result, but together they multiply the price.

Destination & Dates: Popular venues and auspicious wedding dates command premiums. Many couples now gravitate to destination weddings whose base cost alone often outstrips the typical city ceremony budget.

From Shaadi Goals To Savings Gone

The trend of destination weddings with personalised experiences, unique themes, multi-day celebrations, lavish décor, and cinematic photography is driving more and more Millennial and Gen Z couples to take out loans just to make their Insta-perfect wedding dreams come true.

To bridge the gap between aspiration and affordability, couples quietly turn to credit. At the household level, parents frequently shoulder costs or drain savings, sometimes liquidating investments or dipping into retirement funds.

Behind the glitz and grandeur of Indian weddings lies a complex financial reality. According to the WedMeGood Annual Wedding Industry Report 2024-2025, 82% of wedding expenses are covered by personal or family savings, making it one of the biggest financial drains for middle-class households.

When savings fall short, couples and families often turn to borrowing. About 12% of wedding funds come from loans, with 9.22% borrowed from banks and another 2.76% from friends or acquaintances. To bridge the remaining gap, some even resort to liquidating assets (6%), selling jewellery or property to manage the rising costs.

Where does all this money go? The biggest chunk: nearly 37.1% is spent on jewellery, followed by venues (22.9%), catering (20%), and decor (20%). In other words, the sparkle of weddings doesn’t just come from the diamond sets but from the mounting financial pressure behind them.

The Emotional Cost Of Big Fat Weddings

With a Big Fat Wedding comes big fat emotional stress. Weddings in India are already emotionally overwhelming affairs. The preparations often begin six months to a year in advance, from finding the perfect venue and caterer to choosing outfits, gifts, and coordinating both families. The stress builds slowly and silently.

By the time the wedding arrives (usually a three to four-day marathon), the exhaustion peaks. Sleepless nights, last-minute arrangements, family tussles (because what’s a wedding without some drama?), and the pressure to get every detail right take a heavy toll on the couple. In photos, they’re all smiles, but the joy often gets buried under the weight of creating a “picture-perfect” event.

And the emotional cost doesn’t end with the wedding day. It spills into married life, when the financial splurge that powered those grand celebrations starts creeping into everyday conversations.

Couples report increased stress, arguments, and regret after weddings when credit-card statements and EMIs arrive. That strain spills into relationships; studies of financial conflict repeatedly show money is among the top triggers for marital stress.

Counsellors say wedding-related anxiety is a twofold problem: the immediate stress of planning, and the long-term psychological toll of financial strain. Couples who enter marriage already saddled with debt often face the added pressure of delayed life milestones and a diminished safety net.

Not All Ceremonies Are Big Fat Events

Not all trends point toward excess. A visible countercurrent celebrates intimacy and sustainability. Couples are choosing smaller guest lists, weekday dates, DIY décor and experiences that prioritise memories over displays.

Practical steps experts recommend include: avoiding last-minute upgrades, comparing vendor quotes, using savings (not credit) for discretionary splurges, and setting a repayment plan if borrowing is unavoidable. Trusted guides in personal finance also advise against using retirement or emergency funds for a one-day event.

If the price of “perfect” is years of financial strain and lost peace, it’s worth asking whether the display is worth the debt.

Surbhi Pathak

Surbhi Pathak, subeditor, writes on India, world affairs, science, and education. She is currently dabbling with lifestyle content. Follow her on X: @S_Pathak_11.

Surbhi Pathak, subeditor, writes on India, world affairs, science, and education. She is currently dabbling with lifestyle content. Follow her on X: @S_Pathak_11.

“Everything should be the best,” was something I often heard. But I also used to wonder — what exactly is this “best”? And how much do you spend on that “best” to make people “remember the wedding”?

Now that I’m an adult and many of my friends are getting married, I see the same pattern repeating, only with a few modern twists.

It is no longer just about the guests attending the wedding, but also about those scrolling through it on Instagram. Weddings today are about creating something personalised, unique, something no one has ever seen before, the “picture-perfect” dream wedding.

However, it still becomes all about having “the best” and “the one everyone will remember forever.” To achieve that, people are once again spending money they don’t have, the one pattern that hasn’t changed.

What has changed, though, is who’s calling the shots. Earlier, it was mostly the parents — yes, they asked their children for preferences, but there was still a cap on spending. It was expensive, but controlled.

Now, the decision-making largely rests with the couple, with parents supporting their choices. With every decision, from venue to décor to wedding outfits, the spending cap keeps stretching further and further, all in pursuit of that “unique” everything.

How Expensive Have Weddings Become?

Once a traditional event supported and managed not only by immediate family members but also by close relatives, friends, and neighbours, it has now evolved into a full-scale industry reportedly worth around Rs 10 lakh crore.

A 2024 WeddingWire India survey found that the average cost of hosting a wedding was approximately Rs 29.6 lakh, with a sizable share of ceremonies exceeding the Rs 30–50 lakh mark. Another industry report puts the average budget even higher for many couples, especially for destination weddings.

This scale shows how aspirational, high-spend weddings are becoming the new normal for many urban couples. The wedding industry has its own world — venues, caterers, designers, entertainers, and more.

And from numbers, we know that making all this happen doesn’t come cheap. For most middle-class families, that kind of money isn’t just lying around, so they end up dipping into their savings or taking loans to pull it off.

What Fuels The Overspending?

Several factors combine to drive budgets skyward.

Social-media Benchmarking: Instagram feeds and viral reels give couples ready-made standards like curated décor, cinematic shoots and celebrity-inspired wardrobe budgets. When a friend’s highlight reel sets the bar, ‘keeping up’ can feel like a social obligation.

Add-ons And Personalisation: Pre-wedding shoots, designer outfits, bespoke décor, elaborate floral installations, and high-end invitations add incremental costs. Each “extra” feels necessary for a picture-perfect result, but together they multiply the price.

Destination & Dates: Popular venues and auspicious wedding dates command premiums. Many couples now gravitate to destination weddings whose base cost alone often outstrips the typical city ceremony budget.

From Shaadi Goals To Savings Gone

The trend of destination weddings with personalised experiences, unique themes, multi-day celebrations, lavish décor, and cinematic photography is driving more and more Millennial and Gen Z couples to take out loans just to make their Insta-perfect wedding dreams come true.

To bridge the gap between aspiration and affordability, couples quietly turn to credit. At the household level, parents frequently shoulder costs or drain savings, sometimes liquidating investments or dipping into retirement funds.

Behind the glitz and grandeur of Indian weddings lies a complex financial reality. According to the WedMeGood Annual Wedding Industry Report 2024-2025, 82% of wedding expenses are covered by personal or family savings, making it one of the biggest financial drains for middle-class households.

When savings fall short, couples and families often turn to borrowing. About 12% of wedding funds come from loans, with 9.22% borrowed from banks and another 2.76% from friends or acquaintances. To bridge the remaining gap, some even resort to liquidating assets (6%), selling jewellery or property to manage the rising costs.

Where does all this money go? The biggest chunk: nearly 37.1% is spent on jewellery, followed by venues (22.9%), catering (20%), and decor (20%). In other words, the sparkle of weddings doesn’t just come from the diamond sets but from the mounting financial pressure behind them.

The Emotional Cost Of Big Fat Weddings

With a Big Fat Wedding comes big fat emotional stress. Weddings in India are already emotionally overwhelming affairs. The preparations often begin six months to a year in advance, from finding the perfect venue and caterer to choosing outfits, gifts, and coordinating both families. The stress builds slowly and silently.

By the time the wedding arrives (usually a three to four-day marathon), the exhaustion peaks. Sleepless nights, last-minute arrangements, family tussles (because what’s a wedding without some drama?), and the pressure to get every detail right take a heavy toll on the couple. In photos, they’re all smiles, but the joy often gets buried under the weight of creating a “picture-perfect” event.

And the emotional cost doesn’t end with the wedding day. It spills into married life, when the financial splurge that powered those grand celebrations starts creeping into everyday conversations.

Couples report increased stress, arguments, and regret after weddings when credit-card statements and EMIs arrive. That strain spills into relationships; studies of financial conflict repeatedly show money is among the top triggers for marital stress.

Counsellors say wedding-related anxiety is a twofold problem: the immediate stress of planning, and the long-term psychological toll of financial strain. Couples who enter marriage already saddled with debt often face the added pressure of delayed life milestones and a diminished safety net.

Not All Ceremonies Are Big Fat Events

Not all trends point toward excess. A visible countercurrent celebrates intimacy and sustainability. Couples are choosing smaller guest lists, weekday dates, DIY décor and experiences that prioritise memories over displays.

Practical steps experts recommend include: avoiding last-minute upgrades, comparing vendor quotes, using savings (not credit) for discretionary splurges, and setting a repayment plan if borrowing is unavoidable. Trusted guides in personal finance also advise against using retirement or emergency funds for a one-day event.

If the price of “perfect” is years of financial strain and lost peace, it’s worth asking whether the display is worth the debt.

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