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Weddings in India are not just ceremonies; they are an integral thread in the knot of our traditions. They are a milestone in each person’s life. Lately, however, they have become less of a ceremony, more of a spectacle of one’s social status and opulence, leading to huge environmental costs and paving way for unsustainable social practices. The phrase “big fat Indian wedding” means lavish feasts, designer clothing, vibrant colours, with hundreds and thousands of guests celebrating a couple’s new chapter over several days. Beneath the glitter, though, is a troubling question that often gets ignored: What is the environmental cost of these grand affairs? Answer: It’s actually quite a lot.
As climate change accelerates with scorching summers, erratic monsoons, and rising sea levels, can Indian weddings be more mindful of their impact on the earth?
Indian weddings used to be sustainable in the old days. Our parents and grandparents got married in simple and meaningful ceremonies. The brides wore their mothers’ wedding attire, a gifted wedding dress by the groom, or the most beautiful clothing item they already owned. The grooms wore their best suits, sherwanis, or traditional wedding attire.
Of course, they still had many guests, but there was no pompous show of money, exotic food on the menu, or huge amounts of waste generated. There were no plastic decorations, and the venues were small with limited lighting. Extra lights were rarely brought in. Guests travelled by trains, buses, and cars in large groups, instead of smaller groups.
Compare that to today’s weddings. The Indian wedding industry is worth approximately INR 10.7 lakh crores (and still growing). If it isn’t a luxurious affair at a fancy destination, like in ‘Yeh Jawani Hai Deewani’, it has to be at a grand venue in the city. Everyone needs to be invited, because “log kya kahenge?” Guests fly in from different cities, states, and countries.
The Indian wedding industry is worth approximately INR 10.7 lakh crores (and still growing). If it isn’t a luxurious affair at a fancy destination, like in ‘Yeh Jawani Hai Deewani’, it has to be at a grand venue in the city.
More people equal a bigger venue. The bigger the place, the more decorations and lights are needed to make it “lively”. Flowers, props, carpets, tables, and chairs take over the entire venue.
The events list is also long. Cocktail or pre-wedding parties, mehendi, sangeet, haldi, engagement, the main wedding ceremony, traditional ceremonies like saptapadi, the bidaai, and the reception. Weddings that used to take just 2-3 days a few decades ago now span over a week or more, adding more outfits, jewellery, makeup, and footwear to create glamorous looks for each event.
First, let’s understand the metrics for quantifying the eco-impact of a wedding:
Carbon Footprint
Indian weddings, with hundreds or thousands of guests, often involve long-distance travel and energy-intensive venues. Carbon footprint is the total greenhouse gas emissions (measured in CO2 equivalent or CO2e) produced by the wedding, including guest travel, energy usage, and transportation of goods. For example, a single long-haul flight can emit 1-2 tons of CO2 per passenger.
Eco-friendly approach:
It is beneficial to minimise guest travel by choosing central venues, as this reduces emissions from transportation. Relying on renewable energy sources proves advantageous, while planning the wedding during colder months helps lower the need for air conditioning. Offsetting emissions through tree-planting and carbon credits also plays a significant role in reducing the overall environmental impact. For Rakul and Jacky’s wedding, they planted a tree for each wedding guest they invited, by partnering with Grow Billion Trees.
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“Mindful planning can significantly reduce food and décor waste, up to 80% carbon footprint, and divert 60% of waste from landfills”, shares Ketan Sawant, co-founder of A New Knot, a green wedding planner. In collaboration with The Naraai Project, they’ve developed the Good Print Calculator, which helps couples understand and manage their wedding’s environmental footprint.
Waste Generation
An average 500-person Indian wedding can produce 2000-3000 kg of wet and dry waste. Most of it ends up in landfills if not processed properly, adding to the pollution.It can be helpful to swap plastic décor with natural, recyclable, and reusable décor, and avoiding non-recyclable floral foam contributes to sustainability. Providing potable water with reusable cups instead of plastic cups and mineral water bottles is a practical choice. Donating excess food to NGOs and composting the leftover food that can’t be donated further reduces waste impact. Dia Mirza’s wedding had natural and recyclable décor. They did food-plating according to the exact number of guests, minimising food wastage. Plus, they spent more money on glass bottles, avoiding the single-use plastic water bottles.
Resources Consumption
If there’s a wedding, the use of water, energy, and materials (e.g., flowers, fabrics) goes up dramatically. For instance, maintaining floral decorations or water fountains can use thousands of litres of water, while non-local flowers being brought to the venue increase transport emissions.
It is helpful to use LED lighting, as it conserves energy compared to traditional options. Incorporating renewable energy sources like solar offers a sustainable alternative. Opting for locally sourced flowers and adopting water-saving practices can significantly reduce resource use. Choosing venues with a natural setting is known to cut décor needs substantially.
Sourcing and Materials
The environmental impact of materials used for attire, décor, and gifts can often be neglected, but it is equally important. Are the materials ethically sourced? Will they be used or reused? Will they end up in the trash? It is effective to use digital invites or seed-paper invitations to reduce paper waste. Selecting handwoven fabrics and repurposing heirlooms supports sustainable practices. Utilizing natural and recyclable décor, along with gifting eco-conscious items like plants, minimizes environmental harm.
Social and Economic Impact
How does the wedding affect the local community and its economy? Does it create new jobs by supporting local farmers, chefs, artisans, and more?
In July 2023, Anant Ambani, son of billionaire Mukesh Ambani, married Radhika Merchant in a wedding that redefined extravagance. This wedding produced 10,902 tons of CO2 (equivalent to 5.4k people’s yearly emissions), more than 25 tons of food waste, and used 600,000 litres of water.
It is valuable to hire local vendors, as this boosts the local economy. Including regional cuisine on the menu supports local producers. Gifting items from artisans encourages craftsmanship, while avoiding businesses using exploitative practices in jewellery or clothing production helps ethical sourcing.
These criteria simplify measuring the eco-friendliness of a wedding and help to optimise it further. The only key issue that comes up when wanting to go green is, how much does it cost to have an eco-friendly wedding?
It’s never the money that makes a wedding eco-friendly. For example, in July 2023, Anant Ambani, son of billionaire Mukesh Ambani, married Radhika Merchant in a wedding that redefined extravagance. Costing around $600 million, it spanned months, hosted thousands, and featured global stars like Rihanna and Justin Bieber. Talk about expensive, right?
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Of course, they had all the money to make this costly affair eco-friendly. Yet, this wedding produced 10,902 tons of CO2 (equivalent to 5.4k people’s yearly emissions), more than 25 tons of food waste, and used 600,000 litres of water.
On the other hand, an Indian bride, Zeal Desai, shared, “Surprisingly, our eco-friendly wedding also ended up being more cost-effective and unique than a traditional Indian wedding.” It’s never the money; it’s the intention, planning, and execution.
So, yes, Indian weddings can be eco-friendly, sustainable, and even economical, if you have a small budget. Celebrating love doesn’t have to cost the planet. In her wedding, Zeal Desai used digital-only invitations, local ingredients for the menu, donated leftover food, avoided conventional fireworks, didn’t get a ghodi for the baraat, planted 600 saplings as wedding favours, among many other sustainable practices.
In their wedding, Pulkit Samrat & Kriti Kharbanda had seed paper for stationery, the plant decorations were rented, the food ingredients were organic, and the water bottles were glass.
“We ensured that everything, from the décor to the food and even the varmalas, was biodegradable or reusable. There was absolutely no wastage.” – Sachit Mittal, their wedding planner.
In Rhea Chhabria and Divish’s Wedding, the leftover food was donated to an orphanage; they avoided using vinyl or flex for signage, skipped balloons and fireworks, and rented art and sculptures as décor for their themed brunch.
“Since I’ve been acquainted with this concept of sustainability and all of us today are so aware of what happens, we knew that the wedding had to have the least amount of impact because weddings can be very wasteful.” – Rhea Chhabria, the bride.
The “Big Fat Indian Wedding” trope is not inherently the enemy; it’s the unchecked overconsumption and waste within that framework. As the eco-friendly weddings of Dia Mirza, Zeal Desai, and Rhea Chhabria prove, a sustainable path can be profoundly beautiful and meaningful while also fitting your small or big budgets. Their weddings celebrated love and cultural richness, without having a negative ecological impact.
The “Big Fat Indian Wedding” trope is not inherently the enemy; it’s the unchecked overconsumption and waste within that framework. As the eco-friendly weddings of Dia Mirza, Zeal Desai, and Rhea Chhabria prove, a sustainable path can be profoundly beautiful and meaningful while also fitting your small or big budgets.
Of course, the obstacles like societal pressure, the allure of “keeping up”, and sometimes limited access to sustainable vendors can feel daunting. It requires couples brave enough to redefine norms, families supportive of their eco-conscious choices, vendors innovating sustainable solutions, and guests embracing the change.
Better solutions are already emerging with wedding planners stepping up. Greenmyna, With Love Nilma, To The Aisle, The Tamarind Tree, Nose to Tail, and A New Knot are some Indian wedding planners who enhance weddings’ beauty by making them eco-friendly.
This isn’t about sacrificing tradition, it’s about evolving it with the needs of the hour. The eco-friendly wedding model has been tested, and the solutions are scalable. It’s now all about scaling up the sustainable weddings responsibly, creatively, and empathetically.
About the author(s)
Mrudavi
Forget textbooks, Mrudavi got hooked on writing through her childhood obsession with fiction novels. Now, she tells engaging stories that address real-world topics with a touch of her experiences. When the writing bug takes a break, Mrudavi can be found curled up with a good book or with her favourite people, fueling her imagination with endless cups of iced lattes.
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