“The haldi was washed off, but the yellow hues remained. Night fell, the lights came on, and the smell of mehendi wafted through the decorated doors.”
Introduction:-
Mehendi is the ancient art of henna body painting, and traditionally practiced in India, Africa, and the Middle East wherein the henna plant is believed to bring love, luck, protection, and good fortune. It is used for weddings, important rites of passage, and times of joyous celebration
This is a very formal definition of this art but, in reality we don’t really need any such definitions, because of the fact that its importance and relevance is engraved in our tradition from time immemorial.
We are well aware of the importance of Mehendi or more technically called “Henna” in our lives. But, when it comes to marriage, it is one of the most auspicious elements in a bride’s look.
Case:-
Although Mehendi is an integral part of every bride’s life and is extremely auspicious, but still when we talk about the main expenditure in a wedding, we’d think of attire, jewelry and venue but do we really think of mehendi as a costly affair?
No, we don’t but considering the market trends and boom in the wedding industry, it has become a costly and an exquisite affair.
I would like to quote a very important example to support my argument of increase in “High-end mehendi walas”
Mr. S (name not mentioned for privacy reasons) is a Mehendi Designer located in South Delhi. He has been in the field off and on for the last 20 years and he tops the search list when you search for “mehendiwalas in Delhi”.
His website also shows his pictures with celebrities like Sridevi.
Although, he has a website but he is scared of advertising and marketing his services on a large-scale because of the fear of his designs and art being stolen. Therefore, he has mostly build his reputation mostly on “word of mouth advertising”
After speaking to him and taking his valuable inputs about his business, I did a small calculation explaining about his approximate revenue.
Per wedding cost: Bridal Rs 11,000-15,000
Rs 8,000 more for guests which includes 2 artists for 20-25 guest list (Rs 4,000 for each artist)
On an average he is booked for 10-15 days a month for 6 mths and 20-25 days for another 6 mths
Per wedding = 15,000(bridal) + 8,000(guest) = Rs 23,000
Therefore, he is earning in off-season
23,000*12 marriages approx=2,76,000
2,76,000*6 months= Rs 16,56,000
Peak season
23,000*20=4,60,000
4,60,000*6 = Rs27,60,000
Total 27,60,000+16,56,000= 44,16,000 per annum
The above figure is not exact and is based on the following assumptions:-
1) For every marriage, he caters to both the bride and guests.
2) He sends minimum 2 artists for guests.
Note: Although, the above scenario is the most favorable one according to Mr. S, we can still consider scenarios where he either caters only to bride or only to guests or combination of both. Therefore, let’s have a look on other three scenarios as well.
Scenario 1: Few weddings catering only bride
If he is doing 192 weddings in an year (20 weddings for 6 mths in peak season and 12 weddings in another 6 months of off season)
20*6= 120
12*6=72
Total =192
Out of 192 weddings, he is doing 50 only for bride and rest 142 for guest and bride. (Assumption)
50*15,000(bridal cost) = 7,50,000
142*23,000(bride and guest) =32,66,000
Total=40,16,000 per year
Scenario 2: Few weddings catering only guests
If he is doing 192 weddings in an year (20 weddings for 6 mths in peak season and 12 weddings in another 6 months of off season)
Out of 192 weddings, he is doing 50 only for guest and rest 142 for guest and bride. (Assumption)
50*8,000(guest charges for 2 artists) =4,00,000
142*23,000=3266000
Total=36,66,000 per year
Scenario 3: Few weddings catering only guests,few catering only brides and rest for both
If he is doing 192 weddings in an year (20 weddings for 6 mths in peak season and 12 weddings in another 6 months of off season)
Out of 192 weddings, he is doing 50 only for guest, 50 only for brides and rest 92 for both.
50*15,000(bridal cost) = 7,50,000
50*8,000(guest charges for 2 artists) = 4,00,000
92*23,000 (bride and guest) =21,16,000
Total=32,66,000 per year
Therefore, we have seen all the scenarios to find out his approximate revenue every year.
And did we ever think a mehendi wala could earn this much?
It’s rightly said, the willpower of an artist takes him and his art ahead in the road of success.
– Tania Arora