How to book sannai melam for a Telugu wedding or gruhapravesam

The sannai, also called the nadaswaram, is a long double-reed wind instrument. It is played with the dolu, a two-sided drum, and the group is called a melam. Together they play mangala vadyam, the music for auspicious occasions.

• At a pelli: as the groom's party arrives and through the rituals, rising at the muhurtham. The loud burst of drumming as the mangalsutram is tied is called gatti melam.
• At a gruhapravesam (house-warming): as the family enters the new home at the muhurtham, and through the puja.
• Also at upanayanam, engagements, temple festivals and processions.

It depends on how many musicians come, how long they play and the date. As a guide, prices listed publicly by Hyderabad troupes in October 2026 started at about ₹5,000 to ₹10,000 for a small troupe, and three-hour packages were around ₹12,000 to ₹16,000. Expect to pay more on the busiest muhurtham dates and for travel outside the city.

On Booksyte, you set your budget when you post, and troupes apply with their own fee.

1. Fix the muhurtham date and time first. Everything else follows from it.
2. Decide how long you need them: only around the muhurtham, or through the whole function.
3. Book early. The busiest wedding months (in recent years, August, February and April to May) fill up first, and few weddings happen in Ashadham.
4. Ask each troupe how many musicians come, how long they play, and whether travel is included.
5. Agree the advance and when the rest is paid. On Booksyte you choose this when you post: after the function, or a 25% or 50% advance.
6. Share the venue address and a contact person for the day, and ask them to arrive well before the muhurtham.

• Arrival time, and where they will sit or stand
• Start and end time, and the moments that matter (the arrival, the muhurtham, the mangalsutram)
• Whether a microphone is needed in a large function hall
• Travel to the venue, if it's outside the city
• The final amount and when you pay it