12 Months Before
Lock the date. Lock the venue. Both go before everything else. Once you have these two, every other decision becomes a follow-on.
10 Months Before
Hire the wedding planner (or assign the role internally — someone who isn't a parent). Book the photographer and cinematographer. The good ones are reserved 8–10 months out.
9 Months Before
Decide on a theme — colour palette and visual reference. Open a Pinterest board. Send the link to your decorator and your sangeet choreographer; they will all reference back to it.
8 Months Before
Block accommodation for out-of-town guests. Send the rough date and "save the date" cards. Begin shopping for the bride's wedding lehenga and groom's sherwani — these need 4–5 months for tailoring and final-fit alterations.
6 Months Before
Finalise the menu after a tasting. Lock in the music — DJ, live band, sangeet songs. Buy or rent the family's pre-wedding outfits.
4 Months Before
Send the printed invitation. Begin sangeet choreography rehearsals. Apply for marriage registration paperwork. Confirm vendor meals.
3 Months Before
Final fittings. Trial hair and makeup with the bridal stylist (and shoot a photo at the trial — natural light differs in person). Schedule the bachelor and bachelorette.
1 Month Before
Final guest count to the venue. Wedding-week itinerary printed and emailed to all family members. Gift bags assembled. Honeymoon flights ticketed.
1 Week Before
Mehendi, haldi, sangeet — in that order, traditionally. Pack for the honeymoon. Sleep eight hours each night (we know).
Week After
Hand-write the thank-you cards for the closest twenty guests. Submit the marriage-registration paperwork while you are still in the same city.
If your wedding is at The Grand Dularia, your dedicated producer maintains this checklist on your behalf — you just approve, decide, and sign.
