Designer gowns and accessories displayed at a shop in Ranchi before the Christian wedding season kicks off. Pictures by Hardeep Singh

Ranchi, Aug. 1: Move over white. Pink, beige, olive and purple are here to replace the traditional bridal gown colour during Christian weddings in the state.

The choices have been limited for brides in the state as they had to choose between either white gown or cream sari with red border. The other option was to get the dress from other cities, which is a costly affair. Besides the dress, matching accessories such as the tiara, veil, gloves, purse and bouquets had to be brought from Mumbai, Singapore, Bangkok or the Far East.

And with the Christian wedding season due to start from September, the hunt for the dream dress, some of them costing between Rs 9,000 and Rs 15,000, has intensified.

But now, help has arrived. Renaissance, a shop opened by Anupama and Gerald D’Costa, promises to cater to the colourful taste of the soon-to-be-married.

After shifting to Ranchi from Mumbai, the duo decided to open a shop to exclusively for bridal gowns and wedding accessories. The shop is also a veritable storehouse of dresses for baptism, communion and confirmation- ceremonies. “When we came to city there was no proper boutique catering to bridal wear. Be it Christian or tribal wedding, the trend was to wear a single layer gown or sari. Even for occasions like communion we were unable to find the right dress for my daughter Rebecca,” said Anupama.

“But now we have in our store multi-layered designer gowns embellished with floral patterns. We also have designer wedding veils in white and cream,” she said.

The shop also offers tiaras, satin gloves, baskets for flower girls, pocket flowers, colourful candles and golden-coloured ring holders mainly brought from Singapore. “We also have bouquets with a colour combinations of cream and red, white with pink, white with green,” said Gerald.The duo also caters to clients from Simdega, Dumka and Rourkela.

Another shop that specialises in Christian dresses is Diana Bridal Shoppe. The proprietor owner of the outlet, E. Kujur, said his client list includes people from Bhopal, Calcutta, Patna, Gaya, Bokaro, Jamshedpur and Nepal. They come in search of dress materials and accessories to be worn during marriages.

The colours of gowns have shifted from white to beige and pink, said Kujur.

“We have realised that the taste of the people are changing every day and even the poor want their marriage to be solemnised in a fashionable way,” he added.