No one who has attended an Indian wedding could disagree with Bihar lawmaker Ranjeet Ranjan’s conclusion that wedding expenses need to be lowered. Her solution, however, is unorthodox – a suggested law that would limit wedding costs to 500,000 rupees (Dh27,500).
That amount, of course, is still substantial. And it is not merely in India that lavish weddings are the norm. For years there has been a debate within Emirati society about the cost of weddings, with even the Ministry of Social Affairs urging couples to have a modest wedding and to start their lives together without debt.
There are, of course, other options, as Indian newly-weds have demonstrated. One wealthy businessman, Manoj Munot, built 90 homes for the poor instead of spending the money on his daughter’s wedding. Another funded a mass wedding for 100 poor women. These choices made us think: what would you do instead of a lavish wedding?
