What do army tanks, Bentleys, flying cakes, hashtags, elephants, horses, and copious amounts of flowers have in common? They all have roles in weddings.

In certain cultures, the wedding is about more than just the bride and groom’s whims – it’s a spectacular communal affair, bringing large groups of people together.

In Asian culture, for example, ostentatious nuptials are the norm as a wedding is an opportunity to invite all friends and family of both parties to meet, revel and, of course, party.

If you consider the bride’s extended family (we’re talking second cousins and beyond), her friends, colleagues and then multiply that by two for the groom’s side, plus guests who’ve invited you to their occasions, you’re left with a guest list that’s in excess of 500.




An Asian wedding is usually spread across several days, not just one. Of course, all these guests need a venue to go to and food to eat.

No wonder then that such weddings, which could be considered average for a South Asian family, set people back as far as £50,000.

In Nigeria too, the wedding industry is a booming business, helping the economy prosper. An average shindig can be anywhere between 3m naira (£6k) to 50m naira (£106k).

While most of us can agree that this is an astronomical amount of money to spend on a single event, the culture of extravagant weddings endures.

Where are couples getting all this money? And why are these pricey traditions upheld?

How much it costs to get married around the world The 2019 Global Wedding Report revealed that the UK is the fifth most expensive country in the world to host a wedding. But that figure doesn’t include the honeymoon or engagement and wedding rings. Here’s what the average wedding costs in certain countries. Countries and the average cost of having a wedding there: United States, £22,419 Spain, £17,970 Italy, £17,275 Canada, £16,814 United Kingdom, £14,740 France, £13,513 Portugal, £12,822 Mexico, £6,602 Peru, £5,911 Chile, £5,681 Brazil, £5,067 Argentina, £2,840 Colombia, £2,533



Keeping up with the Joneses

When Metro.co.uk published an article featuring men explaining the financial hardships presented from paying off large weddings, many in their droves commented that it was just to please others.

As counterproductive as this seems (after all, guests are not the ones paying it off), couples feel they have to deliver an incredible event, otherwise they risk being shamed for frugality.

As these flamboyant celebrations have become commonplace, many try to outdo each other or at least match their standard, even if it’s beyond their means.

Samuel, who is South Asian, explains to Metro.co.uk: ‘Many factors at play here, for one the elder generation go by the “log kya kahenge” (what will people say) mentality, which in itself is poison.

‘Another is “for the gram” mentality, showing off to the followers for clout. Simplicity is key! Marry within your means I say!’

Some Nigerian weddings are even open to all, inviting in guests from hundreds to thousands (but attendees do also shower the bride with large bills).

Wedding culture is so important there that Nigerian news website Bella Naija even has with a dedicated wedding section.

Bella Naija also has a staggering 1.2million followers on Instagram where it shares the latest couple to get betrothed.

Extravagance is just part of the culture for many Nigerians. When Molade Asunramu got married this year, she had two major celebrations as per Yoruba custom – the traditional engagement and the white wedding.



The occasion was so spectacular that one of the days nearly got shut down due to overcapacity. The security guards for the building had to close the door to prevent people from coming in.

‘My husband and I like bringing people together, so the idea of having a big wedding was not too far from our minds,’ Molade told Metro.co.uk.

‘We had a lot of people who were willing to chip in and help thankfully and my parents also paid for half of the wedding. My husband and I had also saved up the previous year and set a budget for how much we wanted to spend.

Molade’s wedding was in two parts, costing £25k on each day (Picture: SunboPhotography)

‘But yes, big weddings are bloody expensive. I believe it’s so popular in Nigerian culture because some people like to subtly show off what they (don’t) have.

‘Although I had a big wedding, I kept most things very simple. The most expensive item for our wedding I would say was the venue and then catering (mouths of people we do not know).’

Beyond culture

Muslims hoping to get betrothed might find themselves at a similar crossroads: Islam teaches that ‘the best of marriages is that which is most affordable’ and yet culture dictates that a wedding should be a huge affair.

Former bride Sabby Rani wanted to stay true to her Islamic roots and have the small affair prescribed by her faith.

She and her partner were able to keep the costs under £500.

She tells us: ‘I paid £55 for my wedding dress (£10 material and £45 for the tailoring service) – I had a red evening dress tailored to the style I wanted.


‘I wore used heels and scarf I had already bought, not especially for the wedding day. £60 for the makeup artist and £25 for the engagement henna.

‘Another £100 went on to burkas I wanted.

‘The rest was spent on food, paid for by both families. My nikah (Islamic service) and the ceremony was held at my parents’ home and walima (post-wedding celebration) at my in-laws. The only people present were immediate family and friends.

‘The cost of the wedding day was kept minimal, a decision made by me and hubby in order to ensure the marriage was consistent with Islamic values.’

So the total cost of the wedding was around £500 (excluding mahr more on that later) We hired cars for the day but they were a couple of Ford Focus’ to get me and my boys up to Birmingham!! However on the way we hit crazy crazy traffic!

My mate pulls off the motorway — ℂ𝕖𝕣𝕚𝕖 𝕂𝕒𝕝𝕖𝕖𝕞 𝔹𝕦𝕝𝕝𝕚𝕧𝕒𝕟𝕥 (@CerieOfficial) December 2, 2019

Some like it big

For some lucky few, money is no object and a spectacular affair is a given. Amrit and Mandy Kooner are two such people. They enjoyed six international functions, spanning the UK and Dubai, two in the former and four in the latter.

And it cost as much as you’d expect.

Their events included a traditional sangeet, Sikh nuptials, a yacht party and more.

‘For us, it was about creating memories, not just for us but for everyone who attended,’ Amrit tells Metro.co.uk.

‘For most of our guests it was the first time they were able to go on a family holiday, and the first time they could visit Dubai.

Amrit and Mandy had a six-function wedding affair (Picture: Pooja Studio Net)

‘Our families are originally from Punjab in India. They immigrated to UK in the 1980s, they worked really hard for us to have a better life here. I still remember when I never used to see my dad as he was always working.


‘As a child, growing up I used to always ask if we could go to Legoland, but my dad never had time. My dad promised when I was older, I could have a party somewhere better than Legoland. That promise came true 20 years later in Atlantis the Palm.’

Their wedding costs were spread across the UK and Dubai (Picture: Pooja Studio Net)

The pros

Some argue that a wedding is a happy time that brings communities together, as each event takes lots of group planning, whether it’s the wedding favours, dances, or outfits.

Sayeeda, who has attended lots of desi weddings tells us: ‘People value this time together and the final day is just the culmination of it all.

‘The best thing about South Asian weddings is the fun build up… family gatherings, bants, outfit and jewellery shopping, traditional ceremonies – the works. Everything extends way past the one wedding day. It’s all so extra and I love it.’

The feeling of community is echoed in Nigerian bride Mary Osho, whose wedding included 600 guests.

‘The reason why Nigerian weddings are big is because everyone is family,’ she explains. ‘Everyone is aunty and uncle no matter how close they are to you. There’s a strong sense of community with some relationships older than me.’

And thankfully, many loved ones chip in towards cost.

Demands of a wedding have also helped many self-employed artists thrive.

In the UK, businesswomen have been able to flourish. Liza Syeda, who goes by Art of Liza on Instagram, has amassed almost 50,000 followers offering makeup and sari-fixing services.

Makeup artist Liza has made a name for herself offering bridal services (Picture: Liza Syeda)

She charges £420 to her bridal clients and for an extra £50 they can get their sari styled by her. She even has her own sari designs.

She tells Metro.co.uk: ‘I started doing bridal makeup as a hobby 10 years ago which very quickly turned in to a full-time profession as there was a huge demand for this in the wedding industry.

‘As my business grew, I started to sell a small collection of saris I designed to my clientele.

‘This picked up super fast and I now host bridal sari exhibitions and pop-ups on a large scale in London every year with a turn out of over 500 people.’

In Nigerian weddings, MCs can make a name for themselves as entertainers and comedians.

The rising cost of weddings seems inexorable, no matter where we find ourselves economically, and the thirst for large weddings isn’t slowing.

But while people love attending these exuberant affairs, it is taking a toll on those who have to foot the large bill.

Of course, people should have weddings within their means – but it seems people are unable to heed this advice when it comes to their own big day.

The Global Wedding Report from 2019 reported that 30% of UK couples go into debt to pay for their weddings. In other countries, that percentage is much higher, with almost half of couples (47%) in Peru and Brazil going into debt to pay for their weddings.

Isn’t it high time the bride and groom felt able to push back on societal expectations and express how they want the day to go down?

After all, no one wants to start a marriage drowning in debt.

MORE: Muslim men open up about the financial strain of extravagant weddings

MORE: Couple get married in jeans and T-shirts to show weddings don’t have to be expensive

MORE: The UK’s weirdest weddings include nudist nuptials and underwater unions

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