If is okay if you do not want to spend much on high-end designer cards. Shopkeepers in the capital city of India are ever ready to provide affordable options, especially in the Chawri Bazar of old Delhi. They have a wide range of options to offer, from paper to color to size to everything you can think of.
Indian wedding cards mostly reflect designs outlining Hindu gods and goddesses. Even if those are still popular, pocket-friendly cards have gone through various changes with satin and silk fabrics replacing paper in shades of color. Customers have become more creative today and so are the card designing shops.
Vipin Bharti, the owner of Card Gallery in Chawri Bazar sells as low as Rs.1 per card. They stock expensive ones too that range from Rs.200 to Rs.500. His company changes designs twice a year.
“We change designs after every six months. Sometimes, we use craft paper with digital printing or design it in a book form with pictures of Lord Krishna and Radha,” Bharti said.
Again a few entrepreneurs renew their stock in August. “We get a lot of customers in October, so we like to get new designs before that. The summer season is not that good in terms of business; so we avoid new ones during May or June. Apart from paper, we also use silk or satin to make cards,” states Sunil Khandelwal of New Age Cards.
Color has a huge impact on Indian culture. While black is barred, pinks, reds, yellows and blues are loved by many. Design also changes depending on gender and theme.
“When the bride’s side gets the cards made, they are usually in rani pink. Chocolate brown and golden appeals to both genders. People also like to get separate cards designed for ceremonies like the ladies sangeet and the cocktail – cards showing women dancing and wine bottles are some of the designs we offer for such ceremonies,” Khandelwal adds.
“Sometimes, brides want cards that match their lehengas and the decor of the venue. Once, someone wanted a lotus theme. We created a box in the shape of the flower. The card inside it looked like a leaf,” says Arvind Bhargava, owner of Sundram Cards.
As far as various cultures are concerned, colors and designs remain same but the symbol of the god changes.
“Hindus mostly go for Radha-Krishna designs, the Waheguru symbol is popular among Sikhs, Christians like church or couple-themed designs,” Bhargava elaborated.
The trend of using Hindi fonts is fast catching up. “If someone is following a traditional theme, Hindi fonts are generally used. It’s no longer just on the basis of literacy levels,” Bhargava adds.
Bhargava also designs special cards for the in-laws on demand. “The ones that we make are either silver-coated that cost Rs.4,500 or real silver which is more expensive,” he says. “The latter ranges between Rs.15,000 and Rs.18,000.”
“Boxes are in. Along with the cards, we fit a silver or gold bowl in the box. The cost depends on the size of the bowl and rates of the metal,” he further adds. These boxes contain dry fruits or chocolates along with the card. It will cost around Rs.200 per card.
