Couples have been celebrating “massive” weddings in the metaverse, their dead relatives being included in the guest list.
Capacity restrictions for large gatherings have been in place since the pandemic began in December 2019. But not on the metaverse. Since weddings in Tamil Nadu (India) are limited to just a hundred people, Dinesh Padmavathi and Janaganandhini Ramaswamy celebrated theirs in the metaverse, the virtual and augmented reality world in which people can play virtual games, attend virtual concerts, go shopping for virtual goods, collect virtual art, hang out with each other’s virtual avatars and attend virtual work meetings.
Three thousand guests attended Padmavathi’s and Ramaswamy’s Harry-Potter-themed ceremony, including the avatar of the already deceased father of the bride, who “blessed” the couple’s union. However, before the meta ceremony, the couple got legally married in a small reception with a few family members and friends: weddings celebrated in the metaverse are not legally binding. At least, not yet.