Funding A Fairy Tale Wedding

Weddings are a big deal in India! It is all the more reason to leave no stones unturned if it is your sister’s wedding! Harday Gupta, 27, is a public relations professional who has taken two separate loans to cover his sister’s wedding expenses. One is an interest-free loan of Rs1.5 lakh from his office as salary advance, and a personal loan of Rs3 lakh from a private bank payable at an interest rate of 14.5 per cent per annum. His sister has also taken personal loans of around Rs3 lakh each from two separate banks for her D-Day.

While the loan Gupta took from his office helped in covering the engagement ceremony, is payable in 15 months’ time, the bank’s loan was spent during the wedding is payable in two years. He is currently paying close to 20 per cent of his salary as monthly EMIs to repay these two loans.

Gupta already had a salary account with the bank, which helped him getting a good deal in borrowing a personal loan, which otherwise was charging more. He had also approached two private lending companies, but were charging a high interest fee. Gupta made a smart move by spending more than half of the borrowed sum in buying jewellery, which he considers an investment. Rest of the sum was spent on buying clothes, gifts, transportation and booking venue.

Meanwhile, this was not the first time that Gupta took a loan. He has previously availed loans to buy a bike, washing machine, two TV sets and a laptop. He does not have any ongoing EMIs except for the personal loans he borrowed for his sister’s wedding. According to Gupta, one should avail such loans at least three to six months prior, and manage the financials accordingly. He has also continued his recurring deposit, fixed deposit, and also invests in mutual funds in both tax saving MF and blue chip and direct investments, and also invests some amount in the share market and gold.