Stick to a budget. Plan well in advance.
Do a dry run of your wedding outfit and accessories to avoid any last minute surprises, says Alisha Shirodkar.
A wedding is the grandest party you would organise for yourself in your lifetime.
Indian weddings aren't a one-day affair; there are multiple functions to be organised, managed and co-ordinated.
Everything from the flowers, venue, decoration, food, guests and their hospitality, etc requires meticulous planning so that each function goes off without a hitch.
Yet, no amount of planning guarantees that last-minute disasters will not strike to lay waste to the perfectly planned process.
Which is why, your preparation must also account for such uncertainties in the first place.
Here are five things to bear in mind to ensure a smooth wedding
1. Don’t dilly-dally when it comes to booking the venue
Destination is an essential part the dream wedding as it provides the much coveted backdrop.
Do you want to get married near a lake, during sunset while a gentle breeze blows through the grass and sturdy oak trees nearby?
Or on a virgin beach or a heritage palace or even a vineyard?
Figure it out quickly and book the venue much well in advance, with written confirmation for the exact number of days you would require it.
Also, get a receipt for that advanced deposit which must be submitted ‘quickly, else someone else books the place’.
If you are getting married on peak dates make sure the good makeup artists, photographers, entertainment and even wedding planners are blocked.
2. Be timely about booking travel tickets
Ideally, do not take on the responsibility of friends and family travelling to your wedding unless you are prepared to rapidly upscale your coordination skills.
If you shoulder this responsibility, then be sure to book all the tickets, especially train and air tickets in advance so that unforeseen events at the last minute do not hinder the guests travelling to your wedding.
Make sure all the family tickets and visas if needed are secured on time.
3. Stick to the wedding budget
There is no limit to how much you can spend at your wedding. But it is essential that one has an idea of how much one actually wants to spend and what are the priorities to spend on.
With guests and relatives involved who may be up for suggestions and revisions till the late second, it is easy to go overboard.
Preparing and finalising a budget should be the first step of the planning.
You may set an approximate amount but be well prepared for the figure to spiral out of control.
Make sure you estimate the big heads early on and also keep a buffer for unplanned expenses that are bound to come up last minute in your planning.
4. Limit the number of people at the wedding
A wedding is not exactly a get-together.
It is a celebration of a couple’s union in holy matrimony.
So why does your fifth standard's best friend whom you haven't spoken to in twenty years need to be invited?
That’s what Facebook is for.
The more people you’ll invite, the more expensive your wedding will become.
Keep a cap on the number of guests to be invited.
At the last minute the guest list always tends to keep inching upwards which requires additional budgets, hotel rooms, logistics and more which can become chaotic.
Plan our a compact list of guests and stick to it.
Also there is a lot more warmth and charm to an intimate wedding with only your nearest and dearest around.
5. Cosmetic catastrophes and wardrobe malfunctions
Wedding pictures last forever.
Cosmetic and wardrobe problems might seem lame as compared to other potential things that can go wrong, but they are also tougher to deal with at the last minute.
A bridal lehenga with a noticeable tear or a sherwani with broken buttons on the day of the wedding are nothing short of disasters.
Try on your outfits with the jewellery well before the wedding.
Do a dry run with the hair and makeup if needed. Make sure the fit is perfect and everything comes together well before it's too late to change.
Lead image -- a still from Veere Di Wedding -- published for representational purposes only.
Alisha Shirodkar is vice president business development, Tamarind Global, an event management company.
