Delhi Weddings Embrace Air Purifiers as Essential Items Amidst Dangerous Pollution Levels

New Delhi:

In the midst of wedding season festivities featuring traditional garlands, flowers, food, and music, Delhi couples are adding an unexpected item to their must-have list – air purifiers. As air quality deteriorates and smog envelops the city, families are adjusting their wedding budgets to ensure guests can breathe cleaner air during celebrations.

According to Mohsin Khan of Vivah Luxury Weddings, clients are ordering between 4 to 10 air purifiers for their indoor events. Khan, a 15-year industry veteran, notes that people are willing to spend an additional Rs 20,000 to Rs 40,000 for better air quality this season.

These purifiers typically cost between Rs 3,000 and Rs 4,000 each to rent, with prices varying based on brand and specifications. The demand comes primarily from families hosting international guests, particularly NRIs (Non-Resident Indians), who are accustomed to air quality index levels below 100 and are shocked when Delhi's reaches 400.

"It is a matter of genuine concern for them," Khan explained to PTI, adding that some are even reconsidering Delhi as their wedding destination.

Megha Jindal from Mega Weddings and Events confirms this shift in priorities. Indoor functions, particularly sangeets (pre-wedding musical celebrations), now routinely include requests for air purifiers at hotel venues. Families are effectively transforming banquet halls into clean-air zones through multiple purifier rentals.

Many couples are abandoning outdoor lawn venues in favor of indoor banquet halls, while others are relocating their celebrations entirely to destinations with better air quality such as Mussoorie, Chandigarh, and other nearby cities.

Sangeeta, a South Delhi wedding planner, observes that even middle-class families are adapting to the situation. "They cannot afford sprawling outdoor lawns, so banquet halls are their safest bet. And many health-conscious clients are requesting air purifiers there too," she said.

Some families discreetly place purifiers near buffets or stages to avoid appearing excessive. Sangeeta recalled unusual requests, including a client who wanted a portable purifier specifically for the bride during rituals.

Another client from a medical family asked to hide three purifiers behind the DJ console and stage backdrop, concerned about appearing ostentatious while still prioritizing air quality.

The pollution concern has extended to wedding fashion choices as well. A West Delhi wedding planner mentioned a bride who coordinated masks with her outfits for several functions and insisted her groom do the same.

Guests are also coming prepared, with one wedding planner noting that at a recent morning function, approximately half the attendees arrived wearing their own masks.

Despite these challenges, wedding planners remain optimistic about Delhi's resilient celebration culture. As one planner aptly put it, "Delhi weddings can survive anything; they survived the COVID-19 pandemic, and now pollution."