It appears that the desire of Indian couples to have an even more spectacular marriage celebration than they were previously famous for has exploded, thanks to the Royal Wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton.

Thanks to recent booms in the Indian economy, many families are now allocating huge budgets for weddings, with opulent displays of wealth and prosperity being commonplace.

The trend to continually put on ever more extravagant wedding ceremony amongst the upper class continues to rise, with celebrity appearances, artistic performances and 1,000s of guests becoming just a few of the must-have’s when it comes to commemorating the special occasion.

Increasingly, huge buffets are prepared for the guests in lavishly decorated banquet halls and it is not uncommon for the bride and groom to arrive by elephant, helicopter or horse-drawn carriage. It is also becoming the norm for Indian weddings of the rich and famous to cost upwards of an astounding £4 million.

With the images and memories of the recent Royal Wedding providing inspiration families seem all the more keen to outdo each other, leading to an upcoming wedding season that will reach new levels of opulence.