Indian wedding glossary · Before the wedding
What is Save the date?
Also written: STD, save-the-date card
A save the date is an early message that tells guests the couple's names, the wedding date and the city, so they can plan travel and leave before the full invitation arrives.
- Who keeps it
- Couples across India, especially for destination weddings, peak-season dates and guests who must travel.
- When
- The first thing guests receive, months before the wedding and before the invitation.
About Save the date
What should you know about Save the date?
A save the date carries only the basics: names, date, city and a line saying the invitation will follow. Function timings, venues and dress codes belong on the invitation itself.
Couples usually send it three to six months ahead, and earlier for a destination wedding or a peak-season date. In India most are now sent on WhatsApp as an image, a short video or a link.
In the order of functions
Where does Save the date come in an Indian wedding?
The first thing guests receive, months before the wedding and before the invitation.
- Before the weddingFixing the match, the engagement, the date and the card.
- The functionsPujas, haldi, mehndi, sangeet and the family days before the wedding.
- Wedding day ritualsFrom the baraat to the pheras, nikah and anand karaj.
- After the weddingVidaai, the new home, the reception and the first visits.
Planning your own days? The free wedding function order planner puts your functions in a sensible order with dates.
On the card
What do families write on the invitation for Save the date?
Riya and Arjun are getting married! Save the date: 14 February 2026, Udaipur. Invitation to follow.
Related words
Words that go with Save the date
- Shadi card
A shadi card is the wedding invitation, and its card matter is the wording: the invocation, the hosts, the couple and their parents, each function with date, time and venue, and the family's welcome.
- Sagai
Sagai is the Hindi word for the engagement ceremony, where the bride and groom exchange rings in front of both families and the wedding is formally announced.
- Muhurat
A muhurat is the auspicious date and time chosen by a priest for the wedding, and often for each key ritual, based on the Hindu calendar and the couple's horoscopes.
- Roka
Roka is the small family ceremony where the bride's and groom's families formally agree to the match, bless the couple and exchange sweets, gifts and shagun.
- Reception
A reception is the party, usually hosted by the groom's family after the wedding, where the newly married couple meet guests, receive blessings and gifts, and everyone shares a meal.
Questions
Save the date, answered
What is Save the date?
A save the date is an early message that tells guests the couple's names, the wedding date and the city, so they can plan travel and leave before the full invitation arrives.
Which families celebrate Save the date?
Couples across India, especially for destination weddings, peak-season dates and guests who must travel.
When does Save the date happen in the order of wedding functions?
The first thing guests receive, months before the wedding and before the invitation.
What do families write on the invitation for Save the date?
Riya and Arjun are getting married! Save the date: 14 February 2026, Udaipur. Invitation to follow.
Put Save the date on your invitation with its date, time and venue, and send it on WhatsApp. Two invitation designs are free forever.
Make your invitation