Indian brides want sexy lingerie

No longer blushing brides, Delhi girls know exactly what they want when it comes to lingerie for their wedding night

Till some years back, honeymoon shopping for a Delhi girl meant picking skirts and dresses which, with her chooda and mangalsutra, would make for the perfect honeymoon Facebook album. The other kind of honeymoon wear, the to-be-worn in the bedroom kind, was an embarrassing secret and everyone preferred pretending that it didn’t exist. Cut to 2014, and we have lingerie stores across malls, markets and online spaces with screaming banners that promote their sexy bridal collections and honeymoon must-haves – and equally enthusiastic brides, for whom lingerie is as important as saris and suits for their bridal trousseau. Sexy costumes and dresses, better known as babydolls, do not intimidate the buyers anymore and instead, have become the ‘cool’ gift to give to girlfriends and even daughters! DT spoke to some brides-to-be and their bachelorette party-attending friends about the growing popularity of the wedding lingerie gift pack and to retailers who are, if possible, happier than the husbands of these bolder, experimental Delhi brides.

My mom convinced me to experiment with lingerie For Avantika Sharma*, lingerie shopping was never an event and she would just pick up products whenever she went to the mall. But before her wedding, she received lingerie shopping tips from everyone around her, including her mother. She tells us, “I was excited about my entire bridal trousseau, including my honeymoon outfits. But as D-Day approached, I even started receiving lingerie shopping tips from my mother. We were shopping one day, when she asked me if I had my honeymoon wardrobe ready and before I knew it, we were in the lingerie section with her convincing me to experiment with colours, fabrics, cuts and whatnot. I have to agree, it was scandalising at first to do this with my mother, but she very coolly said, ‘Sharam kya karni hai? Shaadi ke baad toh pehnoge hi,’ and we ended up buying some really interesting things.”

And it’s not just the mall-hopping mother who is cool with buying wedding lingerie for her daughter. A lingerie shopkeeper in Lajpat Nagar, tells us, “Inn dino toh aise stylish products ki sale bahut badh gayi hai. Glamorous night dresses, matching bold sets – sab bikte hain. Aur lete bhi har type ke log hai, sirf brides nahi. Mummy, behen, pati – sab khareedte hain gift karne ke liye. Tabhi yeh ek-do mahina bahut sale hoti hai.”

Aman Jain, founder, GoPaisa.com, tells us, “In the online space, around 35% of the sales come from men shopping for the women in their lives. There are many websites to choose from, all providing gift pack options which make it easier for men to pick products for special occasions. The privacy of shopping from home makes it convenient for men to shop online, which they couldn’t have done in a retail shop.”

Brides demand lingerie as gifts Unlikein the past, when no one would discuss anything remotely associated with their honeymoons, brides now are clear about their wardrobe for their after-wedding life and have no qualms demanding the right kind of products from their girlfriends. Akriti Sharma, a digital media professional, had to go to a variety of stores to find babydoll dresses, which her bridezilla friend wanted as a gift. Akriti tells us, “We asked her what she wanted for her wedding and she was very clear and demanded specific kinds of lingerie packs. She joked about the usability of that gift over any other decorative item and so was very clear about what she needed. I actually had to go to stores asking for lingerie that’s sexy enough but not slutty. It was quite a task, but in the end, we had one happy bride and we slyly teased her husband about it too.”

Mitali Taneja, an HR consultant, was surprised to see the amount of time and research her younger sister had put into her honeymoon wardrobe. She says, “At the time of my wedding, six years back, honeymoon shopping meant buying dresses from Sarojini Nagar that one could wear during those six-seven days and then never again. Lingerie shopping wasn’t done and I picked out a few colourful sets just days before the wedding from my neighbourhood hosiery store and that too, with my mother. But my younger sister, who’s getting married at the end of November, already has her honeymoon suitcase packed. There is so much variety in the market and unlike my hush-hush shopping, her friends were coolly discussing the gift packs they got for her bridal shower.”

Bachelorette party equals lingerie overdose Bachelorette parties have become a routine pre-wedding event among Delhi brides and so has the tradition of gifting the sexiest and kinkiest lingerie to the bride. Shivangi Dhamija*, a bride-to-be, tells us about her overflowing lingerie collection post her bachelorette party. She says, “While talking about my bachelorette party, I knew my friends were planning to get me some kind of lingerie products and so I had very conveniently told them about my size. But even then, I was very surprised to see the huge collection I was gifted. There are night dresses, pop colour sets and even sexy costumes which I didn’t know were available in India. Forget about the honeymoon, I think I have enough sexy lingerie to last a lifetime!”

This is because for friends of the bride, gifting lingerie has become a sure shot way of becoming the cool friend. Prakriti Saxena, a corporate communications professional, says, “I had been mulling over what to get my friend for her wedding, and I finally decided on lingerie. I didn’t want to get her a stupid decorative item, picture collage or sari – things she could have gotten from anyone. So before her bachelorette party, I took her shopping and we made an event out of it. We joked about the funny names like babydoll dress and peek-a-boo-briefs, etc., but at the end of the day, I think that was the perfect gift for my BFF.”

Brides are more bold: Lingerie brands and sales portals According to shopping portals, lingerie sales have doubled in the last month, with bridal products becoming the most researched items on their websites. For experimental brides, shopping online gives them the privacy they need to buy the more sensual, romantic lingerie, without any awkward moments.

Vinay Mangalgi, merchandising head at Zivame.com, says, “We have specific products under the bridal category and the collections have been receiving the maximum amount of attention in the last few weeks. Brides have become more bold and spend a lot of time exploring these products, which include more romantic, sensual and attractive items like lace and satin sets, babydolls and more. These days, brides know what they want and to fulfill this demand, many brands on our website have launched special collections for the wedding season. The clicks per page have gone up by 50%, resulting in sales like never before.”

Suchi Mukherjee, CEO and founder of LimeRoad.com, adds, “Our lingerie sales have risen by 75% in October, compared to those in September. The online shopping experience allows the buyer to enjoy the luxury of discretion, and so women now can venture out to a vast selection of kinkier and sexier items within the comfort zone of their homes. For our shoppers, lingerie has slowly evolved from just a necessity to fantasy. We have a large collection that comes under the category of bridal products and the buyers of this segment are getting more and more adventurous.”

Smita Murarka, spokesperson for Amante, says, “We’ve seen increased interest in occasion-wear lingerie, with sales going up by 40% in this season. Our special collection of premium lingerie sees a surge in this period and so do luxurious fabrics like silk, lace and microfiber in jewel tones. Newer products have been added and we make sure that the premium collection is available across stores and online domains.”

(*Names changed on request)

Share and Enjoy