Read This First
Why the compressed 2026-27 calendar changes every price you will be quoted.
The Numbers
What weddings cost today: the ₹6.5 lakh crore season, city averages, the per-guest maths.
Set the Number Before the Pinterest Board
The family money meeting, three worked budgets at ₹10L, ₹25L and ₹50L, and the 10% rule.
The Guest List
The one number that drives more than half your spend, and how to work the declines.
The Muhurat Calendar Decides Your Bill
Every date, the Kharmas lull, and why a weekday saves 10-20% for the same hall.
Venue and Catering
Booking windows, per-plate maths, the GST bundling trap, and three negotiation scripts.
Jewellery at Record Gold Prices
What gold really costs in September 2026 and six ways families are cutting the bill.
Clothes, Beauty and the Looks Budget
The 10-15% slice, and where renting beats buying every time.
Photography, Decor and the 14-Vendor Reality
The vendor contract checklist, clause by clause.
Destination Weddings
The ₹58 lakh average, decoded into its levers — and the six that pull it down.
Paying For It
Loan rates from six lenders, EMI tables, gold loans vs personal loans, and wedding insurance.
When Things Go Wrong
The insurance claim and the vendor dispute, step by step.
The Paperwork
Registration under both Acts, fees, documents, timelines.
The Last 30 Days and the Wedding Week
Payment trackers, the envelope system and the run sheet.
The Honeymoon
The last line of the budget, timed to the lean travel window.
The 25 Biggest Money Traps, Ranked
Where families lose money, and the fix for each.
Invitations, Gifts and the Shagun Ledger
The small lines nobody budgets — together, not small.
Master Checklists and Glossary
The worksheet, both countdown plans, and 30 vendor terms decoded.
Plus four appendices: a line-by-line ₹24 lakh wedding case study, the 50+ question vendor bank, the two-family split, and budgeting the smaller functions.
