If you don’t live in South Asia, wedding shopping as a brown bride can be… confusing. Even though I’m having my wedding in Mallorca, I knew from day one I wanted to wear traditional clothes to represent my heritage. I’m a proud brown woman, and so I definitely wanted that to be reflected during my wedding festivities. The problem is that I’m not familiar with South Asian fashion. I’ve never taken real interest in what the designers are up to, what’s in fashion, let alone bridal wear, which is a whole different ball game. So when it came time to figure out my wedding outfit, I didn’t even know where to begin.
So, I decided to go right to the source: to Delhi.
Now before the brown wedding police decide to get their panties in a bunch about me being Bengali and deciding not to shop for bridal wear in Dhaka, I’d like to point out that I did try. However, I wasn’t super excited about any of the ready-made bridal options here, and I wasn’t going to risk asking someone to design something without even having a clue as to what suits me and what doesn’t. However, for my reception event in Dhaka, I’m choosing to wear my mom’s wedding lehenga with a customized top which I’m getting made by a Bangladeshi designer. More on that later.
Getting back to Delhi. Here’s everything you need to know about bridal shopping in Delhi, starting with the basics:
- You can either take Ubers or hire a private driver to take you around – Uber car quality is generally very poor, but it’ll definitely get you to your desired destination. If you’re a woman traveling alone, I recommend getting a trustworthy private driver.
- When it comes to currency, if you’re buying your outfit from a designer, most accept USD.
- If you’re looking to exchange currency, ask around to see if you can find a private exchanger, as opposed to the bank which gives you a terrible rate.
- I stayed at Leela Palace, which I HIGHLY recommend – excellent service, huge rooms, central, convenient, and just overall one of the best hotel experiences I’ve ever had. Oh and make sure you get breakfast, it’s been one of my fave hotel breakfast experiences to date.
Time Frame Needed
Most brown brides have several ceremonies, and as a result, have to shop for several outfits, shoes, jewelry, gifts for the groom’s side, and everything in between. I, on the other hand, only had to shop for one event. I made a decision to only have a one day wedding event in Mallorca, and a reception in Dhaka at a later date. I also decided not to buy wedding jewelry because I’m never going to wear it again. Instead, I’m going to put that money into investments. So I went to Delhi to shop for one outfit.
I figured 2.5 days was enough to buy one outfit. I landed on the evening on the 20th of Jan, and had my return ticket booked for the 23rd. This was a huge mistake. It was the most rushed, hectic 2 days of my life. I wish I’d taken 3-4 days to go at a more relaxed pace.
The thing is, it takes a lot of time to try on bridal wear. Everything is heavy, and showrooms are located all over the city. If you’re like me, totally ignorant about the world of Indian fashion, give yourself a minimum of 3 days if you’re shopping for 1 outfit. More if you’re also buying jewelry and/or several outfits.
Where To Go For Bridal Shopping
Okay so first things first: Delhi is HUGE. You can definitely find bridal pieces at every price range. I knew I wanted to go the designer route, but I do have a few tips for you if that isn’t your cup of tea:
DLF Emporio
This mall has every luxury store imaginable. The first floor houses everything from Dior to Cartier. However, for luxury bridal, head to the second floor. Details on specific showrooms below. If you’re looking to dip your toes into the Indian fashion scene, go here because they have a ton of different designer showrooms.
Mehrauli
This is the area right next to Qutub Minar, and it has every major designer show room you need. Honestly speaking, if you’re pushed for time, I would go here directly and just not bother with anything else.
Shahpur Jat
For more affordable prices, definitely check out Shahpur Jat. Don’t be deceived by the small streets, there are a ton of shops here which carry stunning bridal pieces. You’ll find them all on Fashion Street. The prices start at 30k rupees and go up to 1.5 lakhs, a steal compared to designer prices.
My Personal Requirements
K so I had a few specific requirements for my outfit. I didn’t want it to be traditional (no reds or like tons of gold), but I didn’t want it to look like a wedding gown either. Like I wanted it to be a really artistic lehenga. My other requirement was that I did not want to spend a million dollars on something I’m going to wear once. Yes, you only get married once (or so you hope), but I’m a practical person. So I knew I wanted to go the designer route, but I wanted to be reasonable. I wasn’t going to spend 10 lakhs on an outfit I’m never going to wear again. And finally, I wanted to make sure I felt like me in the outfit I chose. Some of the pieces I tried on were really beautiful, but when I looked in the mirror, I couldn’t find myself. So those were a hard no.
Details on Designers & Price Ranges
So a quick note about prices. A lot here is dependent on the kind of bride you want to be. The thing is with Indian clothes, even a normal lehenga looks quite dressy to me. But on this trip, I realized how dressy bridal wear really is. So if you’re looking to pick something from the non-bridal section, but want to amp it up with jewelry, you can get something really nice in the 2.5-3 lakh rupees range, but if you want to dress up in real bridal clothing (I’m talking stone work and embroidery all over), think 5-10 lakhs. This is inclusive of the veil.
Most designers have only a small selection of their entire bridal collection on display. This is referred to as ‘off the rack’. Make sure you ask them to show you their runway collection to get really see their full range of offerings – they usually have pictures available on an iPad. Off the rack lehengas are much cheaper. However, the initial price you’re quoted doesn’t include any customizations (except for things being fit to your size). If you do buy off the rack, they’ll make you a new blouse, but the skirt will just be dry-cleaned and altered to your measurements (hence why it’s cheaper, it’s been tried on by a bunch of other brides).
If you’re looking to change the style of the blouse, get things customized, add a veil, add more work to your lehenga or dupatta, expect to pay more.
Okay, so one thing to note is that most brands have a strict no picture policy. They send women into the dressing room with you to ‘help you try outfits on’, but it’s actually because they don’t want you to take a picture. I think it’s the stupidest policy on the planet because if someone wants to copy designs, they can do it after seeing a picture on Instagram or at a wedding. However, some brands are more reasonable and let you take pictures. For me, the no picture rule was SUPER irritating, because I couldn’t compare my outfits. So when you do go to a brand, make sure you tattoo the image of you in a specific outfit into your memory *major eyeroll*.
Here are the designers I visited and what you need to know.
Suneet Varma
If you’re looking for glitter and more glitter, go to Suneet Varma. His pieces are stunning showstoppers, but not at all traditional. They look like fusion pieces and a lot of the lehengas could pass as gowns. In terms of prices, you’re looking at 2 lakh rupees and up. I will say, I found that his pieces were probably the most reasonably priced, you can find a real bridal piece for way less than anywhere else. I went to his store in DLF Mall, which also had a large range of lehengas on display.
Tarun Tahiliani
There are two Tarun Tahiliani showrooms in Delhi – one in DLF Mall which is quite large. However, his showroom in Mehrauli is even bigger. In terms of prices, it totally depends on what kind of bridal you’re going for. If you’re thinking super light (and I mean super light, not really from the bridal section at all), you’re looking at 1.5 lakhs. If you want to go actual bridal, you’re looking at 3.5 up.
Anita Dongre
I thought Anita Dongre would be a strong contender for me, but when I went to the showroom at DLF Mall, I didn’t really fall in love with anything. She does have a bigger showroom in Mehrauli, which I didn’t visit. Her current bridal collection looks like it was made for Rajasthan royalty. The colors are really bright. In terms of prices, think 3.5 lakhs up.
Shyamal & Bhumika
I went to Delhi specifically to see Shyamal & Bhumika. They were my top choice. It was the first showroom I visited. They have a showroom at DLF, but the problem is the selection is super limited. They do have a larger collection which can be ordered and fully customized, but since I don’t have a clear idea of what suits me and what doesn’t I didn’t want to take a chance. If you buy off the rack, they have a fixed price of 1.5 lakhs, which is insanely reasonable. However, if you order something, then you’re looking at 2.5 lakhs plus, not inclusive of the veil.
Sabyasachi
Sabyasachi is ubiquitous with Indian bridal fashion. When I initially got engaged, I figured I’d go straight to Sabyasachi for my outfit and call it a day. However, after doing more research, I wanted to explore other options as well. I did end up going to his showroom in Mehrauli, which was, in my opinion, the most beautiful showroom of all. Unsurprisingly, his designs were stunning. I actually fell in love with one of his pieces, but ultimately decided against it because, while it was a stunning lehenga, my mom pointed out that the work was too easy to copy. I didn’t want to buy this gorgeous couture piece, only to see that someone else was wearing a knockoff.
In terms of prices, you’ll pay a pretty penny. To give you an idea, the piece that I loved was 8 lakhs, and that wasn’t even considered bridal. They said it was something people generally wear to their reception.
Sabyasachi also does really beautiful, incredibly artistic jewelry. If ever I was tempted to buy impractical bridal jewelry that I’d wear once, it was at the Sabyasachi showroom. The prices are quite reasonable for jewelry. Think 4 lakhs for a heavy choker.
Sulakshana Monga
Their showroom is also in Mehrauli, right next to Sabyasachi. They do really eclectic designs. It’s definitely not for the typical brown bride. Go here if you’re okay with wearing something a little more daring. In terms of prices, you’re looking at 2.5 lakhs plus.
Manish Malhotra
Another iconic Indian bridal designer. He has a massive showroom in Mehrauli – it’s actually his biggest showroom in the whole of India. Honestly, I was a little disappointed, I just didn’t love what I saw! I thought other designers were doing more cutting edge stuff. What I did like were the sleeves on his blouses, I thought those were really cool. For pricing, thing 4 lakhs up.
Rimple & Harpreet
Okay so this was a VERY strong contender for me. The handwork on their pieces are on a different level. So they have two showrooms in Delhi – one in Defence Colony, which I visited first; and the other in Mehrauli. When you try on a lehenga here, they fully dress you up like a bride. They deck you out in jewels, wrap your dupatta really nicely, and put a veil on your head. Honestly, I looked like I was going straight from the showroom to my wedding.
Their pieces are super intricate with a lot of beautiful motifs, and everything is super sparkly and beautiful. When it comes to prices, you’re looking at 2.5 – 10 lakhs for the lehenga and 85k for the veil. Out of all the designers I saw, I found their veils to be the most beautiful, but they don’t sell their veils separately. You can only buy their veils if you’re getting your whole outfit from them. For me, at the end it was between them and the designer I went with, but I ultimately decided against them for of two reasons:
- They couldn’t customize something exactly to my liking which I was really unhappy about considering how much I was going to pay.
- Upon further investigation, I saw that they’re so popular that everyone wears them. An outfit from here, while beautiful, just wouldn’t have the unique look I wanted for myself.
Varun Bahl
A few people had suggested I go to Varun Bahl, but I never really looked at their pieces properly until I went to Delhi. I fell in love with their collection, I think their stuff is very different from most other designers. They have two showrooms, one in DLF Mall and the other in Mehrauli. I went to both and was really blown away by everything from the designs to their customer service. I highly suggest you go to their DLF showroom and see Monica. She’s one of their designers and is just the coolest and most helpful. What I loved about their customer service was I never felt pressured. Their prices range from 2.5 – 7 lakhs.
Falguni Shane Peacock
If you’re into the ‘more is more’ aesthetic, go straight to Falguni Shane Peacock. Every single piece from their collection is over the top and will surely make a statement. And they’re probably one of the most expensive brands I saw. I think their cheapest lehenga was about 3 lakh, and their real showstoppers were around 12 lakhs.