Anant Ambani, son of Asia’s richest man, married in lavish wedding

The youngest son of Mukesh Ambani, Asia’s richest man, married his long-time girlfriend on Saturday in what many had dubbed the wedding of the year, attended by global celebrities, business tycoons and politicians. 

The wedding rituals, including exchanging garlands by the couple and walking around a sacred fire, began on Friday and were completed past midnight.

The wedding of Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant took place at the Ambani-owned Jio World Convention Centre in Mumbai and the family home.

The marriage was the culmination of months of wedding-related events that featured performances by pop stars including Rihanna and Justin Bieber.

India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi attended a reception organised by the Ambanis on Saturday evening.

The Ambanis hosted a ‘blessing ceremony’ for friends and family members to meet the couple and wish them a happy married life.

The four-day wedding celebrations began on Friday with the traditional Hindu wedding ceremony and will be followed by a grand reception that’s expected to run throughout the weekend. 

The guestlist for the lavish event includes former British Prime Ministers Tony Blair and Boris Johnson; John Kerry, the former US special envoy for climate, Saudi Aramco CEO Amin H. Nasser; and Adele, Lana Del Rey, Drake and David Beckham.

The Ambani family did not comment on or confirm the guest list.

Local television news channels showed the arrivals of celebrities like Kim Kardashian and professional wrestler and Hollywood actor John Cena.

Kardashian sisters Kim and Khloé took a ride in a motorised rickshaw through bustling Mumbai streets Friday before joining the wedding ceremonies, the Press Trust of India news agency said.

International guests wore traditional clothes by major Indian fashion designers. They put on embroidered sherwanis — long-sleeved outer coats worn by men in South Asia. Cena came in a sky-blue sherwani and white pants. Nick Jonas wore a pink sherwani and white pants.

Police imposed traffic diversions around the wedding venue from Friday to Monday to handle the influx of guests who flew to Mumbai, where heavy monsoon rains have caused flooding and flight disruptions for the past week.

The extravaganza and the display of opulence that comes with the wedding have led many to raise questions about rising inequality in India, where the gap between rich and poor is widening.

The event has also sparked anger among some Mumbai residents who say they have been stuck in lengthy traffic jams.

The father of the groom, Mukesh Ambani, is the world’s ninth-richest man, with a net worth of $116 billion, according to Forbes. He is the richest person in Asia.

His Reliance Industries is a conglomerate reporting over $100 billion in annual revenue, with interests that include petrochemicals, oil and gas, telecoms and retail.

The bride, Radhika Merchant, also 29, is the daughter of pharmaceutical tycoon Viren Merchant and is the marketing director for his company, Encore Healthcare, according to Vogue.