The son of Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani is getting married on Friday in a lavish ceremony that has been a hot topic of conversation at home and abroad, with his father's $260 billion conglomerate Reliance taking to social media to heavily publicize the event.
Reliance’s efforts, along with posts from a host of Bollywood stars and media coverage, have helped generate public interest in the wedding, overshadowing some critical social media posts that have questioned the opulence at a time of rising inequality in India.
Ambani's youngest son Anant, 29, will marry his long-time girlfriend Radhika Merchant, 29, in a star-studded ceremony in Mumbai attended by celebrities and politicians including Kim Kardashian, Mike Tyson, Tony Blair and Boris Johnson. Three days of receptions will follow to celebrate.
An unnamed Reliance executive called the event a “powerful symbol of India's growing stature on the global stage.”
“The presence of distinguished individuals highlights India’s economic, political, intellectual and scientific prowess,” the note shared with journalists said.
Ambani, Asia's richest person, is known for throwing lavish parties, especially for his three children Akash, Isha and Anant. The gatherings are often attended by international entertainers and a host of Bollywood stars, whose worths run into millions.
This promises to be Ambani's most extravagant gala yet, although it is not known how much he spent.
'Ostentatious spending'
Some, such as opposition politician Thomas Isaac, have called the spending “obscene.”
“Legally it may be your money, but such ostentatious spending is a sin against Mother Earth and [the] poor,” he said in a post on X.
The wedding functions have been deemed a public event, leading to traffic restrictions in a key business district of Mumbai for four days, which has also sparked public anger.
As access is limited and details are kept strictly confidential, information provided to the eager public has been done in part through Reliance's official Facebook page, which has 2.3 million followers.
The account shared video clips of dance performances and photographs to offer a glimpse into the private celebrations.
A post on Reliance's Facebook account this week, which received 54,000 likes, showed the Ambani family at a private musical function, dancing to a Bollywood song, a common practice at Indian weddings. The post was promoted with hashtags such as #ARWeddingCelebrations.
Media access to the wedding venue was restricted on Friday evening, with only a limited number of photographers and television crews able to capture arriving guests.
Spectators stood with umbrellas in the rain outside the venue, some taking photographs, as the sound of Bollywood could be heard from inside.
An executive at a foreign company in India, who will attend Ambani's wedding this weekend, told Reuters that wedding organisers would likely tape the camera phones of guests entering to ensure they do not take photos.
Most of Ambani's celebrations are closely guarded.
Wedding events began in March with a three-day pre-wedding party with 1,200 guests and a performance by superstar Rihanna, followed by a luxury European cruise with 800 guests in May.
Days later, several Bollywood actresses posted photos on Instagram wearing luxury designer brands for their millions of followers, without any details of the Ambani cruise celebrations.
Such is the interest that Indian television news channels are following the wedding minute by minute.
“The world is collapsing… From the guest list to what's for dinner. Every detail, down to the minute, on Times Now,” the tickers of the television news channel announced on Friday evening.
