More than 5,000 weddings on the Valentine’s Day in Ahmedabad, followed by another 5,000 on Sunday.
It's Valentine's Day and wedding photographer Nishith Shah is faced with a unique problem. "I am getting married today (February 14). But, I have photography assignments at six other wedding venues. I have already turned down a dozen assignments for this weekend," said Shah, who owns Studio Image.
What can be better than getting married on a day when the world celebrates love, the Valentine's Day! That is precisely why Amdavadis like Shah are willing to ignore minor inconveniences for getting married on this special day. According to a rough estimate, about 10,000 weddings will be taking place in the city on January 14 and 15. The photographers are packed for the two days, with each having a minimum of six wedding events to cover.
Photographer Vijay Chawda of Chawda Films Studio said, "It's raining weddings in Ahmedabad on the Valentine's Day, and the day after. Each photographer in our team is packed with 6-8 assignments."
Gordhan Maharaj, one of the renowned caterers of Ahmedabad, says he has five wedding orders for Saturday. Fernandis Therattil, manager of control and audits, Grand Bhagwati, said, "Apart from five indoor marriages on February 14 and 15, we have a large number of outdoor bookings for the two days." Mandap decorator-cum-florist Vipul Rami said he was facing scarcity of flowers due to
the huge orders for today and tomorrow.
"At least 2,000 couples will be tying the knot in the city on Saturday itself," he said.
A large number of orders for the weddings has led to the scarcity of flowers. The costs of flowers have trebled. Roses, which would cost Rs7 per stick on other days, are priced at Rs25 a stick for these two days," he added.
The contractors for lights and sound, and DJs are also difficult to get by if you have not booked them well in advance.
"Since there are very few auspicious days in this calendar year, we have lots of weddings taking place on February 14 and 15," said Amiel Best of Best Sound System. Rajesh Tolat of Tolat Lights said,
"The bookings for lights, sound system and DJs got over months in advance. You will be lucky to find someone in this season."
With the wedding season in full bloom, beauty parlours and salons too are cashing in.
"For the entire week, we have been getting at least 14-16 grooms a day. We have 35 to 40 wedding-related orders for the two days, and our staff is only 10-people strong. We are wondering how to handle the situation," said Dinesh B Sain, owner of Krishna Hair Craft on Commerce six-roads. "We have received make-up orders of around 150 brides for two days," said one of the leading beauty parlours of Ahmedabad.
Sunny Dandwala, owner of Shivam Decorators, said that not a single party plot would remain vacant on Saturday and Sunday. "From the point of view of stars, there are two reasons for February 14 and 15 being auspicious for tying the knot," said astrologer Bhavesh Patni of Ganeshaspeaks.com.
"The Sun has just entered Aquarius sign, which means it is a good time for a large gathering, and hence the weddings are taking place. Secondly, the transiting Moon will be in Libra sign. And the ruler of Libra is Venus, which is currently exalted in Pisces. Libra denotes marital bond, while Venus signifies love. Hence these two days are very favourable for weddings," Patni said.
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