Hindu wedding - How much to give?

[the lynx]

I received an invitation to a Hindu wedding.

I'm aware that money gifts are also practised in Hindu weddings. How much should I give and is there a special Indian money envelope to put it in?

Note: It is a wedding ceremony with seven steps ritual (not sure if it is at town hall or temple). Not hotel reception. Bride is an old friend. Will be wearing a traditional dress in keeping with the tradition (and the fun).

Hope fellow Indian forum regulars can help with this.

[rajagainstthemachine]

monetary denominations for auspicious occasions are below
11
21
51
101
201
501
1001

A gift envelope usually works for most practical purposes, wear a lot of jewelery and look like a Christmas tree

[sundaymorningstaple]

^This. Been to a few of them. Bling City!

[the lynx]

monetary denominations for auspicious occasions are below
11
21
51
101
201
501
1001

A gift envelope usually works for most practical purposes, wear a lot of jewelery and look like a Christmas tree

Thanks for the figure.

Is it expensive to hold a wedding at a temple? I heard that Hindu weddings are a very lavish and elaborate affair and take several days.

[rajagainstthemachine]

monetary denominations for auspicious occasions are below
11
21
51
101
201
501
1001

A gift envelope usually works for most practical purposes, wear a lot of jewelery and look like a Christmas tree

Thanks for the figure.

Is it expensive to hold a wedding at a temple? I heard that Hindu weddings are a very lavish and elaborate affair and take several days.

In India:

Nobody usually marries in a temple unless
a.) the families are really poor
b.) the temple is really outstanding/historical/holy
The normal preference is to rent a marriage hall with a large kitchen and host the wedding there.
the marriage halls can range from budget to really lavish depending on how deep your pockets go.
Traditionally the marriages could upto 5 days but this is no longer practised
But of late nobody has the time a typical marriage lasts a day or two. The second day is party/dinner/lunch with some dancing.


In Singapore:

I haven't seen these marriage halls
booking out the whole temple for a day or two here is going to be a prohibitively costly affair and I haven't seen that much here as well.
on a side note I've also heard of stories where people go through all these lavish weddings and then get divorced in a week