With Hindu astrologers predicting very few auspicious dates for weddings this marriage season, spanning from October to April, the revenues from services related to weddings has decreased by 25 to 40 per cent. The most affected are banquets, which have recently come up in a great number in the periphery of the tricity.

Banquet halls, resorts and other venues for weddings, which are usually booked five to six months in advance are feeling the pinch due to the availability of only a few dates considered to be auspicious for marriage.

“We had 12 marriage bookings in last February, this year it is just two. After astrologers predicted that there are only a few auspicious dates for weddings this year, the business has been severely affected this year,” said Varinder Kumar, general manager of Sekhon Banquet on the Panchkula-Zirakpur highway.        

Suneet Paul, owner of Westwood Banquet, said, “Banquet halls of the tricity cater to clients from across the states of Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh. Though some clients do not believe in Hindu traditional dates, a large section of society follows them.”

To make up for losses, owners are giving discounts to customers with an option of change in schedule, for instance, from the night function to daytime. But this has not seen many takers.

“People usually prefer functions at night instead of afternoon. Of the total bookings, majority are for night,” said a owner of a resort on the Zirakpur-Patiala road.

Other services like flower decoration, catering and tent arrangements are also affected. “Flower decoration has been a major part of weddings. This year orders for marriage decorations have fallen considerably,” said a flower decorator in Sector 35 Chandigarh.  

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