'₹30 for one day?': Woman's stand against big fat Indian weddings sparks debate online

A woman’s honest opinion on spending ₹30 lakh for a traditional Indian wedding has hit social media and sparked a wider debate on whether lavish celebrations are worth the financial burden.

In a video shared on Instagram, user Pranati questioned the idea of spending what she described as one of the biggest sums of money many people see in their 20s for a one-day event. Instead, she argued, the same amount could be used to build long-term financial security and create more opportunities later in life.

“Wealth Creates Choices”

Pranati started her video with an impressive statement, “I’m going to spend ₹30 crore on my wedding and that will be the worst mistake of my life.”

She went on to ask why people in their 20s often spend such a significant portion of their savings on weddings.

“Why would someone in their 20s spend most of their wealth in one day?”

according to her ₹30 million is much more than the wedding budget.

“30 lakh is not just a wedding budget, it’s a down payment on a house, it’s the first investment in your business. It’s years of compounding SIPs, it’s financial security, especially if you’re a woman. But I have to do it for society.”

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She also reflected on the opportunities she believes such money could provide if it were invested differently.

“That money can be the difference between staying in a job you hate or quitting, between leaving a bad relationship or feeling trapped, between taking a break because you want to or because you have to.”

Pranati questioned societal expectations around weddings, adding: “We’ve kind of normalized spending the most money we’re ever likely to see in our 20s on an event that lasts a few hours.”

She suggested that investing money earlier in life could have a greater long-term impact.

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“Imagine if our parents started investing that money when we were born. When we’re 25, they wouldn’t just give us a wedding, we’d get freedom.”

Summing up her argument, she said: “As weddings create memories, wealth creates options. And if I had to choose one, I choose options every time. So I said a big fat no to a big fat wedding.”

The internet weighs

The video sparked a flurry of reactions, with many users agreeing with her view, while others offered a different point of view.

One user, identifying as a wedding planner, wrote: “I’m a wedding planner and couldn’t agree more. Your wedding has to make sense to you and your partner and maybe both your parents, you don’t have to do something just for the sake of it. More power to you.”

Not everyone agreed. Another user claimed that wedding expenses can sometimes generate long-term returns, commenting: “My family runs a business and we spent about 1.4 million on a 3-day wedding where we invited all our friends, family and most importantly invited our clients, the return is 10x, the clients feel good when you call them and the return on business is huge…… Don’t spend money unless both of you, who are all, improve your fortune.”

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Others echoed Pranati’s sentiments, with one user writing: “Finally someone addressed it.”

Another commenter questioned one aspect of her argument and said: “My dear for 30 lacs how much will you invest in gold. Jewelery is the biggest budget allocation. And it is not a depreciating asset.”

A fifth user simply wrote: “Well said.”