India, Nov. 23 -- India is heading into its busiest wedding spell yet, with an estimated 46 lakh weddings scheduled between November 1 and December 14, as per the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT). The compressed 45-day season has pushed demand for venues, caterers, decor teams and music vendors to new highs. Event planners say enquiries began pouring in long before the festive window, with families who moved early now seeing the benefits. "We have been getting queries for quite a few months now," says Sanjana Gupta, marketing professional at Treat And Greet Planners. "Halat yeh hai ki banquet halls kam padh rahe hain. People who booked in advance are secured in terms of getting apt services. There are those who planned and have already started to book for March next year. The numbers for short-time planning or instant deciders are surely up since last year's season. It's difficult to fit them in," she adds. For couples like Noida-based HR professional Vandana R Trivedi, early preparation has been key: "My family began planning in March. That's why we were able to have our venue and catering sorted. Many cautioned us against paying in advance, but this worked for us because costs have suddenly gone up." The demand is even sharper in the destination wedding segment, where properties report being sold out for weeks. "Destination booking is a different ball game. Planning has to happen much earlier; instant arrangements is quite difficult," says Rahul Sharma, director for sales at Destination Wedding Bharat, Delhi, adding, "We've been booked in advance at our two main properties - Jim Corbett and Manali - for a minimum of 200 guests much earlier in the year. We are sold out for November and December." He further says that the rush escalates as auspicious (heavy saaya) dates approach: "From Delhi alone, I start getting about 50-60 queries every day from August-September onwards." The surge has put pressure on both capacity and pricing, especially with the variables when it comes to catering. Rajesh Aswal, owner of Get Your Menu, explains, "Gathering size is typically 400 to 500. Prices have gone up as raw material costs have increased." Current menu rates are Rs.2,500 per plate for a mixed menu and Rs.2,300 for a pure-veg spread. "Bookings are mainly for mixed gatherings, but venues are all booked well in advance, it's chaotic for the instant arrivals," he adds. Mumbai-based entrepreneur Rudra Singh, who is preparing weddings for both his children on the same day, says that vendors are absolutely stretched: "Banquet vendors sometimes host two weddings a day on auspicious dates. Unlike earlier when people would rather cut budgets, now they are ready to spend more. My daughter's wedding was planned last year, but my son's date was fixed in October." As trends change, couples are increasingly opting out of DJs, instead going for live pop bands, creating additional booking pressure. "People are embracing pop live bands, like in the West, and we get playlists in advance," says Abhishek Varadarajan, lead vocalist-guitarist of Chennai-based band Vihara. Traditional large bands continue to be in demand but face limitations. "With 40-50 members, we can usually take only one wedding a day, on auspicious mahurats," says Ram Naval Chaurasia of Rajdhani Band....