How do you go from a banquet hall or a farmhouse to a Punjabi dhaba or a rustic chic wedding? With the million and one options and decision, planning your wedding decor can also feel overwhelming. You can easily go from $200 here, $5000 here to $100K + decor bill. From getting the most value from your decor investment to balancing between too little and too much decor, with input from Bilen Walga (Designer at Prashe) and Ketan Mistry (Founder of Divine Decor of Dallas), we have created the Indian Wedding Decor 101 guide to help you on your wedding planning journey.
How much does Indian wedding decor cost in Texas?
Decor is easily one of the top costs of your wedding budget, alongside your venue and catering / alcohol.
Indian wedding decor is usually 20-30% of your overall wedding budget. As an example, for a $150,000 wedding in Dallas, your wedding decor may cost $30,000 – $50,000 (across a sangeet, wedding ceremony, reception and a home mehndi / grah shanti / haldi). Notice how there can be a large range in the cost of decor. There really is no cap – the more fresh flowers and customization you add, the higher your bill people grab food and get out as quickly as they can to rest and get ready for the grand reception. Most will not pay attention to your centerpieces, so we recommend going for something more simple for the lunch tables. Finally, your mandap and stage should be at the center, and your centerpieces should just subtly elevate the entire room. Bilen, from luxury wedding decorator Prashe, actually says that he likes the couple to focus on the mandap / stage designs, and he can design the table centerpieces around that design.
How to get inspired and figure out the vision for the different wedding events, from the sangeet to the wedding reception
Given the amount you will invest in Indian wedding decor, we recommend that each event have a very different vibe or theme. Even if you end up having your grah shanti and pithi at home on the same day, you can work with the wedding designer to make each room or backyard feel completely different. The change in Indian decor and aesthetics will help guests feel the change in tone between events, and of course, you’ll appreciate seeing your vision come through in pictures and videos after the wedding. Bilen Walga, a Lead Event Designer at Prashe, often uses color to create different looks. “Different monochromatic colors can immediately change the whole look and feel.”
As you attend other friends’ and family weddings, take note of what you like and don’t like for each wedding. As an example, you may find that you want more dark and bold colors, or you may want more florals. It’s much easier to build a vision from weddings you see in real life over Instagram pictures. While Instagram and Pinterest pictures can help you get a feel for themes, they are often filtered, cropped, and not always the real deal! Bilen mentions that he likes for couples to point out things they might like across different pictures e.g., you may like colors from one sangeet but maybe the mandap from a different wedding.
Create mood boards on Pinterest, with one board for each event. Here you can start pinning inspiration from what you see on Pinterest, Google, Instagram, Facebook, and real weddings you’ve attended.
If you are positive about color themes you like, one way to get Indian wedding decor inspiration is by searching for Indian weddings [sangeets etc] with those color themes on Google.
A checklist of the basic decor pieces for a modern Indian wedding in Dallas, Houston, or Austin
Aside from the details like signage, entrances, and props, we’ve included a checklist that will take you through the basic decor items you will need for an Indian Hindu wedding.
Wedding Ceremony
Mandap
Sofa chairs for couple, parents, pandit and siblings if you like
Mandap
Chokhi for fire and pooja saman
Charter or decorative plates for pooja samagri
Aisle decor
Ganesh statue
Baraat entrance gate / decor
Toran
Linens and centerpieces for lunch
Mehndi
Seats or cushions for guests
Backdrop
Swing or couch for the bride / couple
Haldi
Backdrop
Swing or couch for the bride / groom
Grah shanti
Backdrop
Chairs / sofa seats for the parents, bride / groom and pandit if required
Chokhi for the fire
Matki if you choose
Guest seating
Sangeet / Garba
Swing or loveseat for couple
Backdrop
Dance floor
Table centerpieces
Wedding Reception
Loveseat for couple
Sweetheart table
Backdrop
Stage decor
Dance floor
Welcome table decor
Reception table centerpieces
