The summer wedding season has arrived, but the second wave of corona has cast a shadow over the celebrations with several marriage and banquets halls witnessing cancellation of bookings. The resurgence of Covid wave has compelled many couples to postpone their weddings.
The marriage season commenced from April 20 to 30, but the many marriages have been postponed. Govid Narayan Rai, a resident of Daltonganj said, “My niece's marriage was fixed on April 26 from a banquet hall in Ranchi. But now the groom’s family members are exerting pressure on us to postpone the marriage and fix it in July or November.” Rai said, “We too are afraid of a surge in Covid cases, but we can’t afford the risk of postponing the marriage as all the formalities have been completed.”
Not only are marriages getting postponed but the wedding industry, which was hopeful of turnaround after last year's dismal business is once again hit by last minute changes in marriage plans.
Proprietor of Sona Tent House, RK Singh said, “More than ninety per cent marriage bookings have been cancelled in past few weeks. The people who have booked marriage halls, banquets halls for marriage are now shifting to temples for marriage. The total cost of marriage which was earlier estimated to be around Rs 5 to 6 lakh has been dropped to Rs 15,000 to Rs 20,000 as people are moving to temples for conducting marriage ceremony.”
Singh said, “The shifting of marriage from marriage halls, banquets halls to temple has not only affected big marriage and banquets hall owners, but sectors linked with marriage industries such as tent house, catering, florist, light decorations and others are affected with Covid surge.”
In Ranchi alone there are 150 to 200 marriage halls and banquets halls. As marriage dates are finalized months before, most marriage halls and banquets halls take booking three four months back, but the spread of infection has brought things worrying for them. “Since Ranchi is a hotspot, clients are requesting us to postpone the events to July or November. We are ready to offer them the dates in the later part of the year,” said Lal Prakash Nath Shahdeo, owner of Lalgutwa Banquet Hall at Kathal More.
Even caterers too are facing tough times. The survival of catering business is a three to four months marriage season, but the cancellation of weddings has left them in difficulties as last year too there was no big marriage leaving the majority of workers with no job. The government has allowed marriage but with fixing only 50 guests.
Caterer Madan Gopal said, “We have a lot of problems as our business is getting destroyed. Our expenses are not getting fulfilled. What we will get from 50 plates of catering and what we will give to our workers.”