The most extravagant, costly wedding of 2024

Anant Ambani is set to marry Radhika Merchant in July 2024. They have attracted the attention of the world's press as well as the general public for their extravagant and, some might say, over-the-top spending for the many events they have held to celebrate the momentous occasion.

Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant had their traditional 'roka' ceremony at the Shrinathji Temple in Nathdwara, Rajasthan on December 30, 2022, marking the official announcement of their relationship.

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The Hindustan Times quotes the family as saying "their 'roka' ceremony marked the beginning of their formal journey towards marriage after knowing each other for several years."

Reports suggest that Radhika Merchant and Anant Ambani, who are said to be childhood friends, have been in a relationship since 2018. They come from similar walks of life and statements released by the family say they have known each other for years as Merchant’s family are also billionaires.

Radhika, a 29-year-old graduate in Politics and Economics from New York University, is the daughter of Viren Merchant, who serves as the CEO and Vice Chairman of Encore Healthcare. She is a trained Indian classical dancer who now sits on the board of Encore.

The couple's relationship seemed to advance when they visited the performance at her soon-to-be sister-in-law Isha Ambani's engagement ceremony, where Radhika performed alongside the bride. Since that moment, she has been a frequent presence at Ambani family gatherings.

Anant's father is India's richest man, Mukesh Ambani. According to the Forbes Rich List, Ambani, chairman of Reliance Industries has a net worth of $112 billion.

His 27-story home in Mumbai, Antilla, which cost over $1 billion to build, is considered the most expensive property in the world and garnered global attention. His son, Anant, now sits on the board and heads the energy businesses of Reliance Industries and its global operations in renewable and green energy.

Anant Ambani got engaged to Radhika Merchant on January 16, 2023 at the Shrinathji Temple in Nathdwara, Rajasthan, a holy Hindu site on the banks of the Banas River.

The bride-to-be looked a vision in a stunning gold lehenga by Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla, adorned with intricate embroidery. She accessorised with a diamond necklace, maang tikka, earrings, and bangles.

The couple and their family were joined by the biggest names in the film industry who turned up to the event in their best finery such as Deepika Padukone, Ranveer Singh, Gauri Khan, Aishwarya Rai, Janhvi Kapoor, Khushi Kapoor, and Sara Ali Khan.

After their engagement ceremony, they had a dinner with parents, grandparents, and siblings. This was the first of many celebrations. Upon returning to Antilla, the Ambani family home in Mumbai, they were greeted with a surprise engagement party by extended family and friends. "It was, unquestionably, the best night of my life," Radhika said, according to Vogue.

At the beginning of March 2024, Mukesh Ambani and his family helped plan a three-day pre-wedding celebration. According to the Daily Mail, this came at a cost of 120 million pounds (approximately US$151.9 million) to allow his son Anant and fiancée Radhika Merchant to celebrate in style.

In attendance were Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, Ivanka Trump, and many other notable individuals who all enjoyed lavish meals and stayed in luxury accommodations created specifically for the event.

Photo: Ivanka Trump / Instagram

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The BBC added that Bollywood stars including Shah Rukh Khan and Amitabh Bachchan were also at the three-day event in Jamnagar City. The kick-off to the festivities was held in a 3,000-acre garden, set on the grounds of an oil refinery in the Ambani’s home state of Gujarat.

The soon-to-be newlyweds wanted to make sure that everything was perfect. The guests even had a nine-page booklet (or short novel, rather) that instructed them on the correct attire and dress code for each part of the three-day event.

Of course, what went most viral on X, was Rihanna’s return to the stage. According to many reports, the superstar singer was paid an estimated £5 million for a two-hour set. When you know you’ve made it big…

NME confirmed that she performed 19 songs in the set, including hits such as ‘Umbrella,’ ‘Diamonds,’ and ‘Work’. The artist seemed pleased with her performance and said afterwards: "The show was the best. I haven't done a real show in eight years."

But the Ambani's wealth was shared in the festivities, as The Hindu reports. According to the publication, Ambani and his bride-to-be hosted a 'communal dinner for 51,000 local residents'. The Hindu goes on to say that the Ambanis have a tradition of serving food to the community during special family occasions.

So what will the wedding in July be like? Well, back in 2018 the father of the groom (India's richest man) threw his daughter, Isha, the most expensive wedding the country had ever seen. Believe it or not, almost $100m (£80m) was spent on the nuptials, according to GQ India.

If we think that was lavish, we can expect more from the business mogul as he splashes out on his 28-year-old son in July. We have already had Rihanna come out of her partial retirement for the pre-wedding!

At Anant’s sister’s wedding (in the photo two brothers Anant Ambani and Akash Ambani on horses at the event), Beyonce performed at the sangeet event the night before the wedding, and names such as Hillary Clinton and John Kerry were in attendance.

The receptions of that previous wedding spread across Italy’s Lake Como, as well as Mumbai and Rajasthan. A wedding certainly no one who was there will ever forget. And then, Anant’s wedding will probably be even more opulent, receive more press, and, likely, cost more money.

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