Wedding party continues for Anant Ambani, son of Asia’s richest man

MUMBAI: Lavish wedding celebrations for the son of Asia’s richest man continued on Saturday with a star-studded guest list including Hollywood celebrities, global business leaders and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Billionaire tycoon Mukesh Ambani’s youngest son Anant and his fiancee Radhika Merchant, both 29, tied the knot earlier today in Mumbai after months of pre-wedding parties that set a new benchmark in marital extravagance.

Saturday’s itinerary included a blessing ceremony where the world’s rich and famous greeted the couple at the wedding venue, a 16,000-capacity convention center owned by the Ambani family conglomerate.

Footage from inside released by local broadcasters showed Modi, whose policies have been strongly supported by the groom’s father during his decade in power, was among those invited to pay their respects.

The event followed an official ceremony and party on Friday, attended by the likes of socialite Kim Kardashian, actor John Cena and former British prime ministers Tony Blair and Boris Johnson.

Fifa boss Gianni Infantino, Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan and Samsung chairman Jay Y Lee were among the hundreds of other famous figures in attendance.

“Best wishes to the new couple and double the happiness!” China’s ambassador to India Xu Feihong posted on social media platform X along with footage of the couple from inside the venue.

This weekend’s festivities end on Sunday with a reception party and cap months of extravagant pre-wedding celebrations.

Earlier events this year included a party at the Ambanis’ ancestral home where a purpose-built Hindu temple was unveiled and private appearances by R&B star Rihanna and Canadian Justin Bieber.

Guests at that gala included Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and former US President Donald Trump’s daughter Ivanka, as well as one of India’s sports and entertainment luminaries.

In June, the couple embarked on a four-day Mediterranean cruise with 1,200 guests, with singer Katy Perry performing at a masquerade ball at a French château in Cannes.

Mumbai this year overtook Beijing to become the Asian city with the most billionaires, according to a survey by a Chinese research institute.

However, despite India being the fastest growing economy in the world, the gap between rich and poor remains huge. More than half of the country’s 1.4 billion people live on less than four dollars a day, according to World Bank data from 2021.

While the wedding and its VIP attendees have been the subject of relentless and laudatory media coverage in India, public reaction has been mixed.

“They must have spent over $60 million, while I will struggle to earn just $400 this month,” said Mumbai general store worker Jitesh Ingle. AFP.

“But this is our life. What can we do? We can only watch their celebrations on YouTube.”

$123 billion worth

Anant’s father, Mukesh, is chairman of Reliance Industries, a family conglomerate that has grown into India’s largest company by market capitalization.

The patriarch is the 11th richest man in the world with a fortune of more than $123 billion, according to Forbesand is no stranger to making a statement when it comes to family weddings.

He threw the most expensive wedding in India to date for his daughter in 2018, which reportedly cost $100 million and saw American singer Beyonce perform.

The family’s lucrative interests include retail partnerships with Armani and other luxury brands, more than 40% of India’s mobile phone market and an Indian Premier League cricket team.

His 27-story family home, Antilia, is one of Mumbai’s most prominent landmarks, reportedly costing over $1 billion to build and with a permanent staff of 600 employees.

Merchant is the daughter of well-known pharmaceutical tycoons.