What Does It Take To Be a Bridesmaid In Today’s World? 

Although Indian weddings are not designed to accommodate bridesmaids, for most girls growing up in the warmth of American rom-coms from the nineties, bridesmaids are a non-negotiable part of their wedding dreams.  The brides of today are going the extra mile to ensure that their bridesmaids are included in their nuptials, not as a mark of duty, but as an ode to the joy of their shared sisterhood.

In November, Shweta Kapur, founder of 431-88, threw a bachelorette in Goa with her squad of girlfriends. To everyone’s surprise, the bride presented her bridesmaids with customised, white frosted cakes with the message “Will you be my bridesmaid?”, written in elegant black icing.

“I devoured the cake — one of the sweetest gestures, literally and figuratively,” says Kanika Goyal, founder of Kanika Goyal Label, and Kapur’s maid-of-honour.

A bride's choice

For most women, choosing bridesmaids can seem daunting. But for Aavriti Jain, founder of jewellery brand Dhora India, the answer was a no-brainer. Having grown up in an all-girls school, Jain had 18 bridesmaids by her side on her special day. These girls, Jain adds, are her squad, who bring joy and eventually become the life of your wedding. “They stand next to you with a tissue when you are crying, give you a samosa when you are hungry, be your therapist when you are freaking out, and make it seem easy and fun even when things are all over the place,” says Jain.

‘Will you?'

Today brides are not the only ones getting asked the ‘will you’ question. When it comes to weddings there is another equally important ‘I do’, that brides look forward to. Speaking to this recent trend of brides proposing to their bridesmaids, Goyal says, “It’s a thoughtful way to make those closest to you feel appreciated." When it came to popping the special question, Jain left no stone unturned. She designed personalised hampers with flowers, jewellery from her brand that she wanted her bridesmaids to wear for her wedding and handwritten letters for each of them with nostalgic stories from their shared past. 

“I feel a hand-written note is the best way of expressing love, and it was a moment for me to express how much they all meant to me,” she says.

Dressing the part

Vanya Lochan, a communications professional, vehemently writes down how plain bridesmaids always looked in the Hollywood romantic comedies she grew up watching — a wrong she desperately wants to right with her wedding.  “I have given one instruction to my girls. You have to look smashing,” says Lochan firmly. To this end, for Kapur’s wedding, all her bridesmaids are set to lend their own unique touch to styling the signature draped saris from Kapur’s brand — adding an incredibly personal and meaningful touch to the nuptials. On the other hand, Jain insisted her bridesmaids come dressed in the colours of her brand Dhora. She went the extra mile of sending PDFs to her girlfriends with colour schemes, outfit suggestions, hair-style inspirations, dos and don’ts for makeup. “I just wanted everything to be perfect,” says Jain with a laugh.

D-Day essentials

Navigating your wedding day can be overwhelming. From pending logistics to getting ready on time, to going through your wedding rituals on a near-empty stomach — Having a bridesmaid by your side to bank on is more than essential today. According to Goyal, “It’s about being the bride’s emotional anchor, go-to problem solver, and biggest supporter. From managing pre-wedding jitters to helping with logistics, it’s about making the process joyful and stress-free.”

Whether it's turning up on time for appointments with aestheticians, keeping an emergency bridal kit nearby, assisting with her wedding trousseau, or acting as a channel of communication between the bride and groom — Lochan has duties cut out for all her girls. For Goyal, the key to nailing bridesmaid duties is focusing on staying calm and reminding the bride to enjoy her day. 

“Whether it is handling last-minute chaos or cracking a joke to lighten the atmosphere, I want to ensure she can soak in the joy without stress.”

This has been adapted for the web from an article published in Manifest’s December 2024-January 2025 issue that is now on stands. For more stories like this, subscribe here!