As the wedding season approaches this part of the world, things cease to remain same and much of our free time is consumed in deciding gifts for the weddings and buying clothes for ourselves. In India, this sacred bond between two people is more than just about the nuptial rituals; more about the work of weeding decorators. The grand ceremonies have everything to offer that a beholder of this holiest of bondage could ever ask for: flowers, cars, lights, music, dance, cameras, flashes, rockets; you name it.

This opulent display of wealth and prestige is more than just a part of the social contract. It is the essence of the Indian social contract which has its genesis in the communitarian rather than the individual basis of the Indian society. These grand ceremonies and the associated wedding customs are frequently portrayed in the mainstream Hindi cinema and has been a theme which dominated the Post-reform era.



This celebrated facet of the Indian way of life could be attributed to its very social forces and cultural themes which are far too evident even without a deep research. Let us try a consensual explanation of this condition without wandering off in uncharted waters.

Can we even think of Diwali without lights or Holi without colors? And even more importantly, is there any place in the world or any society where these festivals are celebrated with equal display of light and color. Now, coming from culture to politics, in May last year, a former Indian Election Commissioner went to Britain as an observer of their electoral process. He came back to pen down his experience in an english daily with a very striking note. He observed that general atmosphere around the British Elections was rather “funereal” as compared with that of the Indian general elections of May 2014.

We Indians like to celebrate as big and loud as possible. It is just by the sheer grace of irony that Gandhi and Buddha were born in India. The idea of modern India has several connotations. One representing the modern vision of Nehru and associating themselves with liberal and secular values of the modern but post-colonial third world country. And the other representing the India of the 21st century; having its roots in vibrant and consumerist society.

It is this latter vision which has had an upper hand in expressing the exuberance of this society; thus making its presence felt at the global stage. The Indian way of wedding is always a great reflection of our society and tells a lot about the things that we really like display and express. Wedding decorators in India ensure that opulent display looms larger than the sanctified rituals in order to legitimize the nuptial ceremony.

The institution of marriage in India has a different connotation compared with that of west for the simple reason that the individual existence in Indian is just an extension to its social context.

When the personality is contextual rather than individual, one can always think of a healthy and everlasting society where human conduct is more dependent upon the social sanctions. And these sanctions in turn affirm and bless the mortal for his pursuits and dreams.