Are Indian weddings becoming merely a display of wealth?

Namrata, agreed it is wasteful in name of tradition and culture.

If an individual has resources to waste let it be that way. May be this person only has this as resource to use thus obviously he must pay to get the missing ones.

People who tend to overstretch themselves or fall prey in imitating Or trying to think culture and tradition are linked to money are more at fault. How to celebrate or enjoy can surely not be defined by others for an individual. 

As long as loud music is heard in private and does not hurt the neighbors ears, one should have no objections.  

It is not just lavish spending alone. Leave out those billionairs think of others. 1000 people attending a marriage means they travel and use their vehicles, burn fuel and contribute to pollution and increased energy bill. They create traffic jams and increase spending on fule by other road users. Spending is great if the spender is rich. Let them spend so that lot of business opportiunity is created. But what 5 of our population is rich 1% or 2%. This discussion is to be focussed on the other 98% who are only middleclass and poor who spend their life time savings and waste money. Who gains by their spending? it is the owners of Marriage Halls, who are alrady rich, Big caterers and decorators or the event management firms, who make money. Do we need this?

Thanks Natteraja for the reference...Yes, It is now a days become fashion to spend lavishly on marriages. People tend to spend more on marriages to diplay their status and also to showcase their ability that they can spend and create a lavish environment in the marriages.

It is not the question if you have capacity you spend it lavishly. Some argue that marriage / party spending by the haves is a way to distribute income. It is the biggest economic adjustment which governments and banks cannnot think of. Spending creates opportunity for a host of industry and business enterprises. But what is really hapening is the rich may spend out of unaccounted or illgotten wealth or even if they have earned it properly it is only a portion of their income. The middle class and the poor either wants to show off that they are also rich enough or are pressuried by inlaws demands to spend their hard earned money, which would have been otherwise usefull for during their old age or for giving it as gift to their child for planning a better life than that of their parents. I feel Namrata is right spending huge amounts for marriages either for entertaining guests invited in large numbers or for jewellary is a mear waste of money. This is a social evil. People arguing for spending must be parents of boys because in our tradition it is the girls father who is made to spend a lt more than boys parents. Need of the hour is to stop this social evil and use these money for nation building. Yes one may want to rule the whole world himself if it is possible. it is not just the marriage alone there are other functions and parties where people spend lavishly. Even the Government is not lagging behind. We need to stop all sorts of lavish spending and display of wealth in this country if we have to build a honest nation with equality for all and share the wealth. That is the need of the hour.

YES!

It is a display of status and a colossal waste of money.

There is a need to change the way we perform marriage. We are wasting not only money on these rituals but it is also meaningless. Those who support the Indian wedding styles should analyse each and every part of such ceremonies. Today in Metros a marraige costs Rs.5-10 lakhs even for a simple marriage mainly because of number of guests who are to be invited and attend the marriage. Is it necessary to invite parents colegues, friends of bride and the groom, and brides and grooms friends, collegues, classmates, their brothers and sisters friends, collegues, inlaws and their friends, collegues and it is a chain. you will assemble 500-1000 people easily depending upon the size of your parents family and what they are and where they work. Most people do not have means to spend money. So they prepare themselves early to earn money for spending during marriages may be by curupt means or they end up withdrawing their PF and other savings and finally become beggers. Marriage ceremnies are like yek din ka Sultan and begger the next day. A friend of mine celebrated his sons and daughters marriage spending all his savings. He wanted to make the weddings a mamorable day in the life of his children. When he got his first grand child doctors told him the child has a medical problem related to heart and advised aborting, but being arthodox they refused. Afte the birth of child they were almost begging everyone to help them. I have become a outcast in my friends and family circle for not inviting people for my daughters marriage. Some people asked me dont you want people to come to your house at least when you die. I replied I dont beleive in rituals. I dont do shraddha for my father because I dont beleive in it. When I die if people think why should they arange for cremation then I am not going to be effected by it. only they will have the environmental pollution problem.

Well Mr.Namrata Pathak, I will not support the lavish spending in marriages, but the optimum level of what is required. But no one can deny the fact that marriages are very very important occasion in everybody's life. Friends and relatives have been participating to bless the couples. Hence the participants are required to take care well in marriages and the hospitality plays a dominant role in all marriages according to their financial standings. So hospitality is our rich culture. But on the contrary certain people are showing their financial strength during marriages through lavish spending, and instead they can spend for good social cause and the beneficiaries will whole heartily bless the couples to have all fortunes in their life.  

I do agree that Indian marriages are becoming a display of wealth.Even when the markets face a downtrend the amount of money spent on marriages is tremendous.If both the bride and groom are from a financially sound background there is a prestige issue involved on the number of invitees and the amount spent needless to add that the same amount could be utilised for important issues after marriage.

Marriages in our culture were occasions for the social sanction of a relationship. In many cases, the girl and boy would not have seen each other. If you look carefully at the many rituals, the objective was two-fold: to develop familiarity and for everyone present to bless the couple. With the passage of time, the real meanings have been lost and only the rituals remain. As an example, before performing the kanyadaan the bride's father asks the bridegroom whether he will take care of the bride as precribed by righteousness of conduct, ensure worldly comfort, and be faithful in conjugal relationship (Dharmercha Arthecha Kaamecha Naa Ti Charami?). Cut to 2010. How relevant is this question and the promise?

The institution of marriage was meant to insulate a couple from other stresses. Today, the institution itself has become a source of stress. Double income families mean the parents have no time for each other and even less time for children. Children are left to the care of grandparents or maids. Thus, they are deprived of parental love and affection that are critical in childhood.

"Living like the Jones'" syndrome has caught up for weddings too. In many cases, they have become instruments for the vulgar display of wealth. The food that is wasted in every wedding makes you feel sad. Why can't we be altruistic and use the occasion to do something good? Feed some poor people, provide scholarships to a few children, help a few needy senior citizens who have no one to care for them. Even if one can afford the expenditure, the money is better spent on such welfare activities than a pompous display of (often ill-gotten) wealth.

Simple living and high thinking should be our motto. We may yet be able to see a happy and peaceful society then.

Still, ugly display of wealth is against our ethos.

One can own whatever one can fancy or afford, but showing off it is difinitely a psychological disorder.

Lack of knowledge about the scientific logic of the vedic rituals and looking only the self convenience making indian marriage only a TAMASHA. And to in TAMASHA IT NEEDS TO BE DISPLAYED AS MUCH. For exposure you need money, which one is able to afford.