Why are Goan weddings different from others

A BIG FAT GOAN WEDDING

A detailed case study on the magnitude of a catholic wedding in Goa

A wedding in Goa is always carried out in a grandeur manner. If you think that every wedding is meant to be that way and there is nothing different about a Goan wedding, please, for once, attend it. To begin with, the amount of crowd present for a typical Christian wedding is enormous. The entourage consists of hoards of cars and they reserve special buses for the purpose of transit for the nuptials and reception.

The women are dressed in sarees for nuptials and resort to wearing gowns and short dresses for the evening celebratory reception. The vehicle for the newly weds is usually a sedan belonging to Mercedes, Audi or a BMW. It's rent is somewhere around Rs.40-60k for only about 2 hours of service. They only use it to take the bride and groom to the church from their respective houses and later drop them off to the wedding hall. There is no return offered. Tell me if that sounds economical to you. Almost everybody - rich or poor - decides to stick with renting such high-end cars because they don't want to feel left out.

Back in the days, an average reception would start around 4 p.m. after the mass and the revelry would only end at the first stroke of sun light on the next day. My mom reminisces about those golden days every time such topics arise out of thin air. The look on her face during those moments is enough to tell how much they enjoyed their life, even though it was coupled with hard work and exhaustion, those peeps really knew something about life that today's society is oblivious about.

A common belief among the locals is that weddings are a one time thing and therefore, it is justified if you squander. Their comprehension is however, incorrect since they think it's a one-day affair, when in reality, the preparation starts years back (a wedding hall booked 4-5 years costs nearly Rs.80k; any last moment bookings such as within an year draws a hefty rate of more than one and half a lakh and the slots are usually full). The debts that the families face into are so devastating that some of them fall into the trap of loans and have to spend the rest of their hard work money trying to repay everyone.

Nowadays, there is a high scope for event management and wedding planning expertise in Goa because of the amount of money spent on it. People be willing to spend lakhs of money without a second thought or bargaining. No matter what price you state, they are willing to go for it, as they feel that's the standard value.

The best part of any Goan wedding is the buffet. No matter how horrid the band is, that criticism is quickly forgotten and replaced by the opinions on food. All the wedding planners know this straight: Food is to be prioritised above all other options. You give them even the slightest opportunity to point fingers and they make sure you are slandered for the coming whole week. Everybody knows that if you want to please the crowd, all you need is delectable appetizers, buffet, not forgetting the desserts - since that's the last thing ingested by them - and tons of beverages. 

As the saying goes, "The way to a man's heart is through his stomach". Hence, if you want to be appreciated for your generous service as a host, then either give them delicious food or get their tummy full to the brim with fine beverages such as scotch whiskey.

Lastly, the trend for hosting the reception has changed drastically over the years. Although, nuptial is more or less the same because of restrictions by the pastors, reception is grandeur and a big attention seeking act. Nowadays, there is so much more to the traditional dance, dine and be merry event. Now there is live telecast, sky lanterns, bike stunts, flash mob and all sorts of madness incorporated to receive praises from the onlookers.

What are your thoughts about Goa weddings? Leave it in the comments below!

Also check out the awesome post about the hidden waterfalls and springs of Goa