India, Dec. 14 -- Are you game to make your wedding an Instagram trend? Then you have a deal! Weddings are rapidly becoming less about following the traditional route and more about a trending battle. Case in point: billionaires Netra Mantena and Vamsi Gadiraju's wedding in Udaipur which broke the internet with star performances, A-list guests and a surprise appearance by American actor- singer Jennifer Lopez (right). Mumbai based choreographer-director, Sumit Khetan recounts a recent wedding where he ideated a completely out of the box entry. "For their haldi, a couple wanted something fancy that hits the charts. So, we gave them a non-traditional entry via the swimming pool. Its video hit 7 million views." "Everyone wants a social media manager as well as a PR manager for their wedding now. As a planner, I am requested to get them something that makes their wedding an internet sensation. Many come on board saying: 'We have seen your earlier Reels going viral, we want exactly that'," says Reetu Jain, founder of The Wedding Wale, Mumbai. Jain explains how the industry has adapted the new trend: "A social media management team has become a solo vertical." They dedicate an entire Instagram page to the couple. "Everything from the very beginning is captured to find the best moment. The cost of good PR and SM managers is Rs.3-3.5 lakh for a three-day wedding event," she adds. The pressure to go viral also impacts those who desire simplicity. Jyanta Sri Grover and Shalini Suri, college sweethearts and soon-to-be-married telecom professionals from Noida, explain: "We always wanted a simple wedding, but one of our friends got married, and we saw them meticulously planning it with a wedding PR. We realised that this can be done, too, so we met a few SM managers, but the cost is too high. We are looking for someone who can get us likes and is easy on the pocket." Raghuveer Singh of BMP Planners, Delhi, who has been planning weddings for over 35 years, says the real shift came post-pandemic. "Once people realised that viral moments could be crafted and executed with expert help, weddings became the playground. Today, social-media managers guide couples on everything, how to walk, talk, sit, pose, even how to experience the event itself." For academician Kalpana Vaish, who runs a kindergarten franchise in Gurugram, her elder sister's 2026 wedding is the most important thing on her list. "When we have caterers, photographers, and venue planners, what's the big deal in having an SM manager? With them on board, we will all be free from looking into things like creating posts and managing social media. They are as important as any other vendor for a perfect wedding in today's time."...