Safety is a priority

With health and safety being the new mantra do restrict your guests to the bare minimum and try to host the event in an open space or ground to minimize the risk element and facilitate social distancing. Ensure that all invitees including the bride and the groom have tested COVID-negative as close to the function date as possible.

Ascertain that the venue staff, vendors and your invitees adhere to norms like hand sanitising, thermal screening, masks and social distancing. The staff and vendors could additionally opt for gloves, hairnets and face visors.

Ensure that all public spaces like - food stalls, stage etc. are sanitised prior to the event.  Other must-haves include - bins for disposal of face masks, multiple hand-wash facilities and separate entry and exit gates; along with ascertaining that the food court isn’t occupied to more than 50 per cent of its capacity.

On your menu

With health and immunity being the key words, you can repurpose the wedding menu too, to include – 

1. Welcome drinks - Kadha, coconut water, turmeric latte, kahwa etc.
2. Soups – Broccoli, carrot, pumpkin et al
3. Salads – Escarole salads with warm vinaigrette dressings, kartoffelsalat
4. Other Items – Piping-hot millet khichdi (albeit this may clash with the belief that khichdi is not served on auspicious occasions), sweet potato chaat, dry fruit basket, roasted vegetables, au gratin etc.
5. Deserts: Green tea soufflé, honey-cinnamon pie, jaggery kulfi, ginger ice-cream et al

Replace wedding gifts with benevolence

How about requesting your guests to divert your wedding gift contribution to your favourite charity? The pandemic has been harsh on all more so on the underprivileged so lending a helping hand to them would attract blessings for eternal wedding bliss wouldn’t it…!

So, ready for the band, baaja baarati…?