The Wedding Collective was the place to be this weekend

If The Wedding Collective’s Season 1 was the introduction, The Wedding Collective’s Season 2 was the glow-up! Playing out across the Jio World Convention Centre, between the 22nd and 24th of August, it aimed to set a new benchmark for the big fat Indian wedding showcase.

With a record-breaking number of visitors across three days, it was clear the event has become a permanent fixture on every bride- and groom-to-be’s calendar, and equally on their best friends, mother, sister, aunts, uncles, and next-door-neighbours. Everything was dialled up this season: the square footage, the fashion, the size of the diamonds, the conversations, the shopping bags, even the flower arrangements. Here’s what went down:

Designer bucket-list: Check!

The fashion lineup was the definition of a couture dream sequence. Gaurav Gupta’s sculptural yet bridal-ready silhouettes came straight off the runway. Manish Malhotra brought his trademark sequins and sweeping trails. Rahul Mishra charmed with his signature flora and fauna. Shantnu & Nikhil’s Shantnu Mehra reimagined the bridal wardrobe for both the brides and grooms. Then there was Payal Singhal with her boho-meets-bridal signature, Kresha Bajaj with embroidery that often includes the couple’s love story, and Monisha Jaising with her resort-meets-red-carpet energy. Rimple & Harpreet brought rich Mughal-inspired craftsmanship. Shantanu Goenka swept up the heirloom heritage bride, and Gopu Vaid offered pops of beautifully embroidered colour. Adding to this chorus were stellar names like Sangeeta Kilachand, Ritu Kumar, Surily G, Lajjoo C, Isha Jajodia, Rohit Gandhi and Rahul Khanna, Sonia K Mahajan, Palak Shah of Ekaya, Arjan Dugal, Delhi Vintage Co., Sarah & Sandeep and a host of India’s leading designers.

And not only did you get to view their most recent (and some never-seen-before) collections, but also engage one-on-one with the designers themselves! Brides, grooms, bridesmaids and wedding guests got everything from sketches and styling advice to selfies with their bucket-list designers. 

Big diamond energy

If there’s one thing going big this wedding season, it’s diamonds. From the cut of the season (hello, pear-shaped beauties) to having fun with colour (we see you yellow diamonds, and raise you blue) to XXXL-sized pendants and ‘casual diamonds (the sort you stack for your wedding, and wear every day after).

From massive statement one-of-its-kind pieces at your favourite Indian jewellers to the Only Natural Diamonds booth, where we got our share of ‘casual diamonds’. Diamonds are now as wedding-ready as they're ready to be worn with your Dhruv Kapoor shirt or your Verandah kaftan. And as one to-be-groom put it, "It's gonna be a real marriage, so get a real diamond."

Masterclasses worth skipping brunch for

Between shopping and sipping, the masterclass sessions proved to be unmissable. Leeza Mangaldas, intimacy educator, drew a packed room with The Love Playbook, reminding couples that intimacy isn’t a background hum but it deserves calendar space, prep, and intention, just like any other priority. Mira Kapoor, in her Rhythm of Modern Wellness session, added her own mix of science-backed insights, from calling out bloating as a red flag to stressing that beauty rituals only work when the root causes are addressed.

Dolly Jain, better known as the Guinness World Record-holding drapentrepreneur, hypnotised audiences at The Draper’s Edit by turning six yards into sorcery, blinks became pleats, and safety pins suddenly felt obsolete in front of scrunchies. Across three days, the masterclasses hit every register—from practical hacks to thought-provoking reframes—cementing themselves as integral as the couture.

High-key obsessed with the curated edits

Curation was the beating heart of TWC Season 2. Jaina Lalbhai’s Artisans Audit featured homegrown designers, a mix of established names and fresh talent working across crafts from Banarasi weaves to block printing, with menswear making its debut. Naheed Driver’s Honeymoon Edit was a masterclass in packing smart, offering everything from flirty minis for vineyards to breezy kaftans for sunset dinners by the shore.

Interiors got their moment thanks to Janavi Javeri’s Home Edit, which handpicked accents, carpets, planters, and sculptures to turn a house into a loved and lived-in home. And Farah Siddiqui Khan’s Art Edit reframed art as the ultimate wedding gift, balancing emerging Indian artists with heritage-rich Pichwai pieces. Seen together, the edits spoke to how weddings aren’t just about one day, they’re about how you live, travel, decorate, and collect.

If you’re not shopping, you’re people-watching

The crowd was almost as satisfying as retail therapy. Shibani Akhtar brought her signature effortless chic, turning heads with minimal effort. Aparshakti Khurana was spotted moving through the stalls with easy charm, while Anaita Shroff Adajania reminded everyone why her bridal styling approval matters. Integrative lifestyle expert, Luke Coutinho added a wellness edge to the mix, we also spotted Instagram Creator Kusha Kapila, proving that the guest list at TWC is never one-dimensional.

Accessory trends ran loud: Chanel and Goyard totes were everywhere, Hermès Oran sandals and Alaïa flats made repeat appearances, and Loewe Puzzle bags proved to be the quiet flex of choice. Cult “it” pieces flooded the aisles as much as it did the shop shelves.

All about the vibes

Luxury set the tone! The food spread kept shoppers fuelled between designer stalls, with enough variety to satisfy both grazing and feasting. A live saxophone soundtrack lent the evening a Bridgerton-like air, elegant without being over-the-top. Interflora’s floral installations perfumed the venue and framed every photo in soft focus, giving quick, candid perfection. Between the music, the flowers, and the food, the atmosphere balanced a spectacle with ease—an environment designed to keep you shopping, lingering, and Instagramming way longer than planned.