A woman buys bridal jewellery from a shop in Patna. Picture by Nagendra Kumar Singh

Patna, Nov. 19: Preparing for one’s wedding is a time-consuming process, which never seems to end. One has to decide on bridal wear, footwear, accessories and others. Moreover, it gets more difficult when the capital offers different options on each and every wedding need.

Shweta Kumari, a homemaker in the Rajapul area, is preparing for her brother-in-law’s wedding. The marriage is only a few days away and she still has lots to take care of. She said: “Preparations for wedding continues till the day of the marriage. No matter how many times I go for shopping, the next day I again go back for the things I had forgotten.”

The city markets are overflowing with designer sherwanis and lehenga cholis. Most of the city’s brides and grooms have taken to the combination as they wish to look different from the rest on their special day. Anjay Kumar Prasad, owner of Aza — a fashion store for men, said: “Most of the grooms prefer sherwanis for their wedding as it gives them a regal look.”

In the market, sherwanis are available in vibrant colours with beautiful designs. The grooms even have different sherwanis to choose from. One kind is a full-length sherwani with a churidar and the other is the Indo-Western sherwani, which has a shorter kurta with matching dhoti.

Prasad said: “Grooms mostly go for the full-length sherwanis with a stole round the neck and a safa (turban). The fabric of the sherwani is a mix of silk and cotton. Embroidered sherwanis go up to Rs 25,000 depending on the design. The safas start from Rs 800 and goes up to Rs 5,099 while the stoles are priced between Rs 299 and Rs 999.

To compliment the sherwanis, shops offering traditional Rajasthani footwear are also available. The choice of footwear ranges from mojris, nagras to Lahori and Rajasthani juti. Rakesh Kumar, owner of Fashion Shoes on Boring Road, said: “The sherwani is incomplete without the traditional Rajasthani footwear. One cannot wear shoes with a sherwani. You can only match sherwanis with traditional footwear.”

“Embellished with brass nails, mirrors, bells and ceramic beads, this handmade footwear completes the regal look of the groom,” added Rakesh. He said the mojris, priced between Rs 280 and Rs 450, come in different colours like golden, cream, maroon and green to match the sherwanis. He said he goes personally to Rajasthan to choose the mojris to bring back to his shop. This season he had brought mojris for around Rs 1 lakh and has already sold almost 30 per cent of his collection.

Hanumant Kumar Jha, who had come to Rakesh’s shop to buy a mojri for his brother who is getting married soon, said: “Everybody wants their marriage to be memorable. So one ensures each and every detail and my brother is no different. He wanted to be different from the crowd and wished to have a nagra to match his sherwani.” On the other side, lehenga choli is believed to be the most glamorous outfit the bride prefers for her wedding day. Amit Kumar, manager of Roop Milan, said: “While the brides prefer lehenga cholis for their jaimala ceremony, for the reception they go for traditional Benarasi saris or designer saris.”

He added: “We are in this business for the past 15 years and we know about the changing tastes of our customers. While net and shimmer lehenga cholis are ranged between Rs 40,000 and Rs 60,000, the traditional Benarasi saris start from Rs 4,000. We also have sita hars from Rs 21,000 to match with the wedding outfits.” The shops are not the only one wooing the customers. The city’s boutiques are also vying for customers’ attention.

Sandhya and Manisha of Sanorita Boutique said: “Readymade garments do not give a perfect fit. We pay great attention to the design and fits of our garments. The intricate designs on our products take around three months to complete. We even suggest our customers to go for some specific colours and designs based on their requirements.”

Mangalsutra, the prized possession of a married woman, is also getting a lot of attention. Pradipto Roy, owner of Roy Jewellery Mart, said: “We believe in tradition. So we arrange to bring the mangalsutras from Coimbatore. In Bihar, the brides usually wear dholna instead of the mangalsutra. But now, because of the television soaps, the mangalsutras have gained popularity. Today, the entire community asks for mangalsutras depending on their budget. We have gold mangalsutra starting from Rs 10,000 and diamond ones from Rs 40,000.”