Aditi Sharma never thought she’d find herself at a wedding with no bride or groom. Yet, there she was, dancing to dhol beats, draped in a lehenga, surrounded by chandeliers, a “mehendi wali” in one corner and a chaat counter in another.
“So basically, there are two parts to it,” Sharma, a working professional in Mumbai, told financialexpress.com. “One, people are celebrating it as theme parties. It could be someone’s birthday, and the theme is ‘fake wedding’. They haven’t been to a real one in a while, so they want the whole sangeet-mehendi vibe without the actual ceremony.
The other? It’s a full-blown cultural phenomenon. Clubs across Mumbai, Delhi, and now even Tier-2 cities are hopping on. “Clubs are keeping that as their theme. It’s become like retro night or Bollywood night. You now have fake wedding parties,” she adds.
Welcome to India’s latest social escape, the fake wedding. Think of it as a sangeet for the sake of a good reel. The mandap is real, but the varmala is mock, and nobody’s getting hitched. The brand is just getting built.
A Rs 1,499 ticket to a shaadi-style celebration
Fake weddings are meticulously crafted celebrations that have the touch and feel of a grand North Indian wedding, but they do not capture the real essence of marriage. At clubs, hotels, and even private venues, guests arrive in ethnic wear, dance through a baraat, sip on wedding-themed cocktails, and click endless photos under fairy-lit floral arches. Ticket prices range from Rs 999 to Rs 3,000 per head, depending on the experience promised.
The phenomenon has been brilliantly coined to cash in on the off-season for weddings. In the months of June, July, and August, India’s $130 billion wedding market falls silent but has now found an innovative way to rake in the moolah.
For some, it’s a joke taken too far. For others, it’s a brilliant reimagining of Indian wedding culture without the pressure of actual commitment. And behind the scenes, it’s a business model growing fast.
According to Jumma Ki Raat, an event agency in Delhi that popularised this trend under the brand “Fakesangeet,” it’s not just Gen Z showing up. “We’ve done six such events so far,” Sahib Gujral, founder, said “, starting from 300 guests, then 450, and the last one had 600 people.”
“We were brainstorming and realised, if we do something that looks like a wedding, people would love to dress up and dance. It worked. Now it’s become a wave,” he noted. “People love being unapologetically desi.”
The scale is growing. Venues like Radisson Blu Nashik are now offering staged sangeet-style nights as open-ticket events. “Unlike traditional weddings, these are curated by the hotel and open to anyone with a fee,” Jatish Ghai, General Manager at the property, added.
The hotel doesn’t treat them as wedding bookings but as part of its “lifestyle and entertainment programming.” Photo booths, DJ nights, haldi corners — it’s all on offer.
From content goldmine to off-season lifesaver
For content creators and brands, fake weddings are a visual playground. “These events are designed to be highly Instagrammable, matching ethnic fits, aesthetic photo booths, and even dramatic varmala moments,” Nikhil Mahajan, Director at Kestone Utsav, a wedding platform by chef Sanjeev Kapoor, commented.
The numbers back it up. A mid-scale mock wedding can cost between Rs 15–20 lakh, while luxury versions with full-scale production can go up to Rs 50 lakh. Entry passes, sponsorships, and brand tie-ups often help cover costs.
“Nearly 7 in 10 young Indians would rather spend on a unique experience than a luxury item,” Mahajan added. Even wedding-tech platforms are adapting.
“We haven’t launched a separate category for fake weddings just yet, but demand has definitely surged,” Snigdha Johar, Consumer Marketing Manager at WeddingWire India, a wedding tech platform, said. “It’s all the glamour without the rishtedaar. Fake weddings let you wear that designer lehenga, dance all night and go home, no questions asked.”
According to WeddingWire’s internal data, these events now account for 0.5–1% of total vendor inquiries — small but fast-growing. “Our 2024 survey pegged the average Indian wedding at Rs 29.6 lakh. This offers a budget-friendly alternative at Rs 500–Rs 3,000 per guest,” Johar noted.
A response to a bloated institution
While the trend is being embraced by urban youth, it also serves as a pointed commentary on the changing face of Indian weddings. “We are just taking the commercial part away from weddings, if anything, by calling them fake weddings,” Gujral said. “Because lately, weddings have become fake. You know what I mean? It’s all a facade.”
At its core, the fake wedding boom is about reimagining joy, stripping it of obligation, expectation, and emotional strain. As Sharma puts it, “When you get so monotonous dancing at clubs every weekend, you want to do something different. Fake weddings have just become a trend on social media. Now, even birthdays are being celebrated this way.”
Whether you call it escapism, commentary, or content bait, one thing’s certain: the wedding without the wedding is here to stay. At least until the next party trend arrives.