(Nakli) Shaadi hai! How Gen-Z is hopping on to this unique party trend

Band baaja baaraat aur khaana These are probably the only reasons why a wedding is worth attending Unless you are the dulhadulhan of courseThe big fat Indian wedding which Bollywood has made us aspire to and forced choreographers into our homes is nothing but an overthetop party with many micro partiesIf you are not the one going around in circles organising this event or taking pheras a wedding can be quite boringGen Zrsquos latest solution is taking away the pheras rituals judgmental rishtedaars and even the dulhadulhan mdash to just have the big fat Indian wedding party instead Sounds absurd no Turns out itrsquos the latest party trendA weddingstyle Diwali party organised by Nrsquovevibe in ThaneTwentyyearold Dipti Santrsquos friends planned a surprise weddingthemed birthday party for her last year and married her off to a lifesize cardboard cutout of the ultimate Bollywood dulha Shah Rukh Khan ldquoEveryone in my friend circle is obsessed with weddings In college we would watch wedding videos together and we have recreated the SidKiara wedding video so many timesrdquo she saysSantrsquos party set off right from the elevator door where her friends greeted her with an aarti thali welcoming her in and revealing her cardboard dulha ldquoEveryone was in traditional wear and they had properly thought out all the details I was very happy and I got a bit emotionalrdquo she saysYou would expect house parties with themes centred around the person they celebrate and their interests But what is more surprising is that a big fat Indian wedding has become a theme and party organisers are now hosting fake shaadis like they would any DJ nightDipti Sant flanked by her friends at the fake wedding party they threw for herIn Thane Nrsquovevibe an events company is hosting a night of revelry in shaadi form Therersquos no dulha or dulhan just baaraatis dressed in their best lehengas and bandhgalas ready to party ldquoWe saw such a party being hosted in Delhi and got inspired As an events company we always want to offer a new experience and we thought hosting a fake shadi would be a super crazy but fun idea Not many people are getting married now but they still want to attend weddingsrdquo says Shantanu Dandekar cofounder at NrsquovevibeThe night will see a baaraat complete with ghodi quirky photobooths mehndi artists shaadi wala khaana and Bollywood wedding songs and chartbusters for people to dance toThe mandap at Discover Resorts which can be used for a lsquofake shaadirsquo venueKarjatrsquos Discover Resort is taking things up a notch Their ldquoNakli Shaadi Asli Mazzardquo offers a complete twonight threeday destination wedding package It includes stay meals and six parties that start from the welcome with a Punjabi dhol a haldi foam pool party masquerade sangeet with professional performances neon DJ afterparty a baaraat on wheels with Nashik dhol a water varmaala event and a ghazal night There are even two pairs of a fake bride and groom who have been selected via an Instagram contest that saw over 100 entries As the reception is usually boring it has been swapped for an award ceremony where guests will receive giveaways and awards for titles like lsquobest dressedrsquo lsquobest dancerrsquo and so on The only thing left out are the rituals and nosy rishtedaarsPulling off an event of this scale for Discover Resorts is not new as they are a goto venue for destination weddings and have also won awards Their water varmaala ceremony which takes place in their pool is a viral soughtafter offering among many tobewed couplesShantanu DandekarldquoWe are a popular choice for destination weddings We thought why not have a destination partyrdquo says Naqisa Chaudhary CEO of Discover Resorts ldquoI think Gen Z and younger millennials are more independent A marriage is looked at as a restriction but a wedding is an excuse to party And they have a disposable incomerdquo says Chaudhary explaining that weddingthemed events could likely grow to become a party or even a holiday trendBut why does this generation love weddings as a way to party ldquoIrsquom not a fan of the big fat Indian wedding and with rituals weddings can be boring But for our generation weddings have long been romanticised Itrsquos aspirational Besides itrsquos also the way weddings are filmed itrsquos like a movierdquo says SantldquoItrsquos also your night to be the main characterrdquo says Dandekar But as an event curator and organiser he knows ldquoPeople love to dress up and get photographed Our Diwali parties are always a hit for this reasonrdquo he says but adds ldquoI donrsquot think this shaadithemed party should be a recurring event It can be an annual event at best Aakhir shaadi ek hi baar hoti hai baar baar nahi Afterall you get one wedding not manyrdquoNaqisa Chaudhary CEO of Discover ResortsChaudhary has noted ldquoPeople are looking for new holiday trends for different experiences adventure or even food Today I can sit in a city like Mumbai and enjoy a meal thatrsquos elevated and techniquedriven or ingredientdriven We are a country that offers and seeks unique experiencesrdquoCall it absurd but twentysomethings and folks in their early thirties are ready to party shaadi style Nrsquovevibersquos fake shaadi in Thane is almost sold out while Discover Resorts has pushed its dates to August to be able to host the party in better weatherThe question now remains Will the noshaadi shaadi turn into a trend or die down as a fad Sant is unsure ldquoIf itrsquos done amongst friends itrsquos funny A fullblown organised event may take the fun away as itrsquos not personal Amongst friends itrsquos a joke and everyonersquos in on it This year my birthday has a baby shower theme so SRK and I have a fake baby that he doesnrsquot know about But itrsquos a joke amongst friends so you get itrdquo she says