Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeks to prevent Indian couples from spending their wealth outside the country.
MUSSOORIE – For their wedding, Mr Anubhav Agarwal and Mrs Snigdha Agarwal wanted a small, intimate affair at an idyllic location. The bride-to-be had also long dreamt of getting married in Turkey, a favourite overseas wedding destination among affluent Indian couples.
They were married in March in Mussoorie, a scenic hill station in the lap of the Himalayas in the northern Indian state of Uttarakhand. Some 300 guests attended the two-day nuptials, which fused traditional and contemporary touches, such as a young guitar-wielding devotional singer who performed mantras as the couple wed.
His call to “Wed In India” seeks to prevent Indians from spending their wealth outside the country and instead have it boost the local economy. Industry estimates suggest around 750 to 1,000 couples hold destination weddings abroad each year, draining around 70 billion rupees from the economy. The vast majority go to South-east Asia, particularly Thailand, where one such wedding can cost between 30 million rupees and 60 million rupees.Justin Bieber said to be paid $13.5m to perform at wedding gala thrown by Asia’s richest manAbout 10 million weddings are held in India each year, with an estimated US$50 billion spent in total on them.
Mr Pradeep Rawat, 36, is among the many locals who have benefited. He runs one of Siya’s several small hotels. Every time there is a wedding or large event, Mr Rawat has the chance to let out his three rooms to workers such as cooks who come in from Delhi and other cities. They also eat at his restaurant kitchen.
Potential overseas clients include both Indian-origin couples and couples of other nationalities, such as those from Europe and the Middle East. “India is able to offer hills, oceans, also forts and palaces, deserts and forests – all different kinds of environments that families may be seeking,” said Mr Garg.
What really won over the couple was the special attention they and their 45 or so guests received while in India. Each was greeted on arrival at the airport, and pampered throughout their stay, including help with shopping for the right traditional Indian clothes and even how to drape saris, which many guests were doing for the first time.
Visa red tape can also throw up nightmares. A lack of quality wedding-related service providers such as tent decorators at wedding venues may force couples to hire them from nearby cities, raising costs.
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