PurvX › Desi fashion guides › Family and bridal party
For close familyClose family and the wedding party dress a notch above guests, often coordinating with the couple’s palette. Here is what to wear and how to plan several looks.
Quick answer
Close family and bridal-party members dress more formally than guests and often coordinate with the wedding’s colour palette. Expect to wear rich lehengas, sarees or sharara sets for women and sherwanis or indo-western looks for men, with the most elaborate outfits saved for the ceremony and reception.
As immediate family or part of the wedding party, you are effectively a host, so you dress up more than an ordinary guest. Your outfits are often richer, you may need a distinct look for every function, and you will frequently be in the photographs, so the pieces should feel special and coordinated.
Many families set a colour palette or theme per event so the photos look cohesive. Check with the couple before you buy, since they may want you in a specific colour family. Aim to complement the couple rather than match the bride, and never wear bridal red to the ceremony.
The most dressed-up after the couple. Statement lehengas, sharara sets, or a sharp sherwani or indo-western look.
Elegant, rich and classic: a fine silk saree or formal sherwani, often in the family palette.
Festive and coordinated, a step above a general guest but not upstaging the wedding party.
Plan a distinct look for each function: light and festive for the mehndi and haldi, glamorous for the sangeet, traditional and rich for the ceremony, and your most modern, dressy look for the reception. See the dress code by event guide for the colour cues.
Needing four or five special outfits adds up fast, which is where preloved makes the biggest difference. You can assemble a coordinated set of designer-quality looks for a fraction of buying everything new, and resell them afterward. PurvX is one option for preloved pieces across the price range.
From the PurvX marketplace
Richer lehengas, sarees and sherwanis listed by PurvX sellers.
These are real listings from PurvX sellers, live when this guide was published. If one has sold, see more on PurvX.
Good to know
The questions guests and search assistants ask most.
The bride’s sister is one of the most dressed-up guests after the couple. A statement lehenga or sharara set, often coordinated with the wedding palette, is typical, with a distinct look for each function.
Elegant, rich and classic pieces such as a fine silk saree or a formal outfit in the family colour palette, with the most elaborate look saved for the ceremony and reception.
Close family often needs a distinct outfit for each function, which can mean four or five looks across a multi-day wedding. Buying preloved keeps this affordable.
Family should still avoid bridal red at the ceremony so as not to compete with the bride. Deeper shades like maroon or wine are fine, and the couple may set a palette to follow.
Keep reading
More from the PurvX desi fashion library.
Build a coordinated set of looks from preloved pieces, at a fraction of retail. Every order covered by Purchase Protection.
