The Ambani wedding extravaganza (Mukesh Ambani’s son Anant's marriage with Radhika Merchant on July 12) has set off a ‘rich’ debate. While one side questions whether such a lavish celebration is kosher in a country where half the individuals spend less than ₹3,000 per month in real terms (2011-12 prices), there is the other which says that an individual has the right to spend his or her money that is rightfully earned in whichever why he or she pleases. There is perhaps much to be said for both sides. It is a fact that large weddings create a chain of livelihoods, more so in India where the wedding industry is supposed to be the second largest globally after the US. And weddings are private affairs after all with the commentariat having no stake in them.
But socio-economic spillovers ought to concern us more than discussion around the event itself. Billionaire events trigger a ‘demonstration effect’ -- particularly among the burgeoning aspirational class. This could exacerbate indebtedness. A research paper on the impact of such weddings in rural India (by Francis Bloch, Vijayendra Rao and Sonalde Desai) published 20 years ago rings true today. A study by them of rural households in Karnataka finds that lavish celebrations are influenced less by norms in the village than patterns in cities. This is a variant of what sociologist MN Srinivas called ‘sanskritisation’ – mobility achieved by imitating the behaviours of families of higher social orders, with the difference that this goes beyond rural India or caste.
According to a report by Motilal Oswal Financial Services, household debt is estimated to have touched 40 per cent of GDP in the December 2023 quarter, led by unsecured personal loans. These loans cannot be linked to weddings, but some of it may be debt-driven consumption by those who believe in ‘keeping up with the Joneses’. Leading private banks and NBFCs offer personal loans for weddings, while five-star hotel chains tie up with fintechs to offer ‘marry now, pay later’ schemes. According to a recent Jefferies report, the Indian wedding industry is estimated to have grown to a staggering ₹10.7-lakh crore. Luxury weddings, ranging between ₹20 lakh and ₹30 lakh, constitute a major segment of the market. These generate livelihoods on a major scale, but compromise the savings even of the fixed-income upper middle class. The Jefferies report concludes that many Indians spend nearly double on weddings as compared to a tangible investment like education.
A 2020 World Bank study documented 40,000 marriages in rural India between 1960 and 2008 and found that dowry was rampant. It is incumbent on influential leaders, whether in politics or business, to be mindful of the consequences of endorsing shock and awe consumption. They should also be aware of the timeless struggle for social reform, led by Jyotiba Phule, Gandhiji, Dayanand Saraswati and others. Gandhiji’s dictum of moral restraint and minimalism (aparigrah) remains relevant today.