Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s appeal during the Mann Ki Baat program on November 26 last year to choose India’s incredible destinations for destination weddings instead of going abroad has been taken seriously by many. As a result, the number of destination weddings held within the country has significantly increased this year.
While no official survey has been conducted on the number of Indian destination weddings held abroad, it is estimated that approximately 5,000 such weddings take place overseas every year, involving an expenditure of around ₹50,000 crore .
The Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT), represented by its National President, Mr. B.C. Bhartia, and Secretary General, Mr. Praveen Khandelwal, emphasized that if the concerns raised by Prime Minister Modi about destination weddings abroad are seriously discussed, it could lead to a transformative change in domestic trade and the Indian economy. They pointed out that it is a well-known fact that a certain section of society considers hosting destination weddings abroad a status symbol, choosing to celebrate overseas rather than within India, which results in a significant chunk of trade opportunities being directed away from the country.
Mr. Khandelwal noted that today, every major city in India has venues capable of hosting exquisite weddings, but several prominent locations across various states are particularly popular for destination weddings. These include:
• Goa
• Maharashtra: Lonavala, Mahabaleshwar, Mumbai, Shirdi, Nashik, Nagpur
• Gujarat: Dwarka, Ahmedabad, Surat, Vadodara
• Madhya Pradesh: Orchha, Gwalior, Ujjain, Bhopal, Indore
• Rajasthan: Jaipur, Jodhpur, Udaipur, Jaisalmer, Pushkar
• Uttar Pradesh: Mathura, Vrindavan, Agra, Varanasi, Kanpur
• Southern India: Chennai, Yadgiri Hills, Ooty, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Tirupati, Cochin, Trichy, Coimbatore, Pondicherry
• Delhi-NCR: Delhi, Noida, Ghaziabad, Gurgaon, Manesar, Bahadurgarh, Faridabad
• Punjab & Haryana: Chandigarh, Mohali, Amritsar
• Jammu: Jammu City
According to Mr. Bhartia and Mr. Khandelwal, these locations are equipped to cater to destination weddings ranging from moderate to extravagant budgets. Over the years, a vast network of companies and groups specializing in wedding planning and execution has developed in India. These companies contribute significantly to the wedding industry, which has become a major sector of trade in the country.
Whether domestic or international, destination weddings rely heavily on these companies for seamless execution. Each year, destination weddings held across India capture attention for their grandeur and unique elements, underscoring the validity of PM Modi’s concerns. Hosting destination weddings within India aligns with the ethos of preserving Indian cultural values, keeping the nation’s wealth within its borders, boosting trade and the economy, and generating substantial permanent and temporary employment opportunities.