Prom in India is still a relatively new concept. But education is increasingly getting westernized. And so are the events in schools and colleges.
But since prom is not an age-old practice for us. One may feel confused as to how to go about it.
It can definitely be challenging for those doing it for the first time. It is even more difficult if your school is not sponsoring it.
But, nothing’s impossible when you have EventTube by your side. We have curated a step-by-step guide with additional ideas for you.
This guide will definitely help you execute the prom party of your dreams.
A. Put Together A Prom Committee
Ideally, it will be the immediate juniors who will be responsible for organizing the event.
If your institution wants to include the faculty, then welcome some adult hands on deck. Their experience and accountability will go a long way.
However, we feel that prom planning is best done by young minds with little supervision from faculty members.
Either way, just having people to help you is not enough. You will need dedicated teams to take care of each aspect of your prom in India.
Here’s a checklist for the same:
1. Budget and Fundraising
This team will take care of the cash flow for conducting the event. We’ll discuss the action items for this team later in the article.
2. Poll Managers
If your prom allows for a king and queen to be crowned, you’ll need this team. They’ll be in charge of collecting and calculating votes for the nominees. Allow people to self-nominate while signing up for the event.
3. Publicity
This will be your marketing team who will attract attendees to the event.
4. Ticketing Team
If your event is not open to all, you’ll need this team to make actual ticket sales. This can be done through online ticket generators or physically printed tickets.
5. Decoration Team
You’ll need a team to decorate the venue or coordinate with hired decorators.
6. Entertainment Managers
You can’t have a prom without good music. So, you’ll need a DJ. It can be a talented student or, if your budget permits, an artist as well.
This team will also be responsible for other forms of entertainment that you may have. These can include comedians, dancers, talent shows, and an emcee.
7. Catering Incharge
You can’t let your guests go hungry. We will discuss the various catering options for a prom in India later in the article.
8. Security Team
This team will ensure that nothing illicit takes place during the event. They’ll ensure discipline within the scope of the rules.
9. Photographers
This team will help capture the memorable moments at the event. You can let enthusiastic students take over or hire a professional photographer.
10. Volunteers
This team will do miscellaneous tasks such as looking after inventory. They’ll ensure everything runs according to the schedule.
On the day of the event, they’ll also have to chaperone the attendees and be available for their needs.
B. Time and date
You should select a date and time that fulfills the following requirements:
- It doesn’t clash with any exams
- There are no other college/school events during that week or day
- The time is something the school admin and most parents would agree to. For example, some schools prefer such events to be before 8 PM
C. Size of your Prom in India
Decide your target audience. In most cases, it will be the students of the school or college.
But, be more particular if you want it to be for tenth-grade, twelfth-grade, or final-year college students.
Often people wish to bring their dates from outside the school. Keeping the admin’s views in mind, also take a call on whether you’ll allow external guests.
Once this is done, you’ll need to create an RSVP form. And finally, you’ll have the exact number of people you’ll be expecting. To this, add all the volunteers and faculty who will be present.
Round off the number and use it with the vendors later.
D. Finalize The Budget
Well, money is needed to get all things going at any kind of event.
There are multiple ways to get your funds in order. You can do any of the following to sponsor your prom’s attractions:
- Get your school/college administration to sponsor the event
- Try to get sponsorship from student-friendly brands (you can even go creative with brands like Tinder or Bumble)
- You can get your attendees to pay. Sell tickets and use the money raised to pay vendors
You can choose one or a combination of these methods. Then, you’ll need to allocate the budget between different vendors going forward.
To save some bucks, try to go for in-house facilities at your institution. For example, use your school grounds/amphitheater as the venue. You can contact the school/college caterers for your event’s catering needs.
You can even reach out to the parents of the students to check if they have any services to offer. For example, see if any student’s parent runs a hotel, banquet, or has a home bakery. You can consider getting their help. This is the power of having student organizers for an event.
E. Secure The Perfect Prom Venue in India
Most schools have auditoriums and grounds. With due permission and student support, you can conduct the event at the school premises.
If your budget permits or if you don’t want to involve the school administration, you can look at other venues too.
For a more formal and traditional prom in India, you should ideally book a banquet hall or ground. Else, you can even conduct the event at a lounge or outdoor cafe. You’ll need to book a table.
Smaller wedding venues actually make for perfect venues for such events. You can check affordable and fancy options on our blog.
F. Catering
Not all attendees will come for the dresses and the dances. Some honestly just care about the food. And why shouldn’t they? It’s one of the best parts of any event!
You should include good fried items, a main course, dessert, and lots of drinks. Often, your caterer will customize the package for you based on your budget.
But if you’re looking for a cost-effective method, you can even contact the in-house caterer. All colleges and schools have canteens. You can get in touch with the caterers there and get a discounted deal!
G. Can’t have Prom in India Without Rules
Even proms in the Western world come with plenty of rules and regulations. So, you can naturally expect your Indian porn to be a little more strict.
If your event is in the school itself then you’ll need to go over the details with the administration. Some of the factors you will need to look at are:
- Can people come to the event as pairs/couples?
- Will alcoholic drinks be served? (for college proms)
- Are outside guests allowed?
- What measures will be taken to ensure the safety of all students?
- Will there be any dress code for the event?
- Is parental consent required for the event?
- Are there any restrictions on the theme for the event?
H. Themes for Prom in India
Your theme will guide your event decorators a lot. They’ll also help the attendees narrow down outfit options.
You can consider an array of themes like Bollywood, fashion week, Disney, neon, masquerade, and beachy vibes. These are the most common ones. To find more prom themes and how to execute them, you can read our blog.
I. Marketing and Ticket Sales
If you’re charging an entry fee (most proms do), this step is a make-or-break deal.
While setting a ticket price, ensure that you keep a good enough profit margin. Don’t sell the tickets to break even. This is not so you can make money, but so that you don’t go to a loss.
In events like these, you can expect the most unexpected expenses to arise from nowhere. So, this should act as a contingency.
It is a safe practice to save 10% of your budget for contingencies. You may need it for situations like vendors backing out or last-minute grocery runs.
Now, ticket sales will come later. You first need to see how you’re going to get people to buy the tickets. You will need lots of posters across your school premises. If your school allows, ask them if they can post the event details on their website or social media.
You can even ask the interested attendees to share the event poster on their social media so their friends come too. Social media will come in really handy.
J. Prom Activities
You can expect your guests to dance the entire time. You’ll need some icebreakers in between to engage them. Give them an unforgettable night so they get their money’s worth.
You can consider the following activities:
1. Talent Show
Get your student volunteers to perform their best skills in front of the attendees. At the end of the event, you can even leave the floor open for the attendees to perform.
2. Photo Booth
You must help your attendees take the best pictures. For this, you can have dedicated spots just to click cute pictures.
3. Ramp Walk
It is likely that your attendees have spent a lot on their outfits. So, give them an opportunity to strut in it. You can either do this setup on the stage or in the form of a red carpet at the entrance.
4. Slow Dance
Any prom will be incomplete without this. While the rest of your event will be a lively affair, switch it up a little in between.
Set the tone with slow romantic songs and let things get wholesome for the audience.
5. Lucky Draw
You can keep randomized games to add an element of surprise. This can include games such as:
- Spin the wheel
- Raffle tickets
- Bingo
- Tambola
6. Prize Ceremony
You can also give out prizes for the following categories:
- Best dressed man
- Best dressed woman
- Gentleman of the evening
- Cinderella of the evening
- Best talent
- Social bee, and many more!
These prizes will help attract a crowd too as there’s a sense of pride attached to them.
K. Permission Slips
You need to take special precautions if your crowd is underage. Proms in India could get a bit tricky. But, to avoid conflicts, you can ask your attendees to get a signed consent form from their parents.
Now, with everyone happy, you’re all set to plan a prom in India. Go, get started with forming your prom committee and see how things go from there. Have a reasonable timeline for all of the above steps with plenty of extra time in case things go south.
Best of luck with prom planning! Don’t forget to leave feedback below so we can come up with even better guides in the future.
