An article which appeared in “Service”, the mouthpiece of the Nair Service Society (NSS) in Kerala written by G Sukumuran Nair, (General Secretary of the NSS), criticises the practice of hosting extravagant and luxurious weddings and has advised members of the community (upper caste Hindu community) against doing so.
The NSS general secretary feels that one of the challenges that the society must overcome these days is the problem of extravagant wedding expenses. “Such extravagant spendings is leading many families into debt traps and financial crisis. False pride is the reason behind all of this,” Sukumaran Nair points out.
Sukumaran Nair has in the past also advised NSS members against the practice of extravagant weddings.
“It has to be said that people are continuing to spend lavishly for various functions such as weddings, house warming, funerals and so on,” writes Sukumaran Nair.
At a time when joint families are breaking down to form nuclear families, Sukumaran Nair points out that it is necessary for these families to cut down on unnecessary expenses in order to become self sufficient.
By stating that all parents will have a dream of getting their daughters married without making compromises, Sukumaran Nair goes on to explain that the parents should also have the sense to examine and understand their own financial condition before organising extravagant weddings.
“We have heard of a lot of instances where parents have had to end their lives because they lost their homes and property which they mortgaged to get money for their children’s weddings,” he says.
Sukumaran Nair says that financially stable people will have to become role model for the others. “It is after watching the extravagant wedding ceremonies of the rich, that the others also strive to do the same. The rich should think of these people and reduce their wedding luxuries,” stated the NSS general secretary.
This is not the first time that the state is hearing about a cap on wedding expenses. In 2015, the Kerala Women’s Commission (KWC) had submitted a proposal to limit the wedding expenditure to five lakhs but the UDF Government, which was in power at that time had rejected the proposal.