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Asia richest man’s son is set to marry in the year’s most extravagant wedding

Global celebrities, business tycoons and politicians began arriving in India’s financial capital on Friday to attend the wedding of the youngest son of Mukesh Ambani, Asia’s richest man, highlighting the billionaire’s staggering wealth and rising clout. Anant Ambani, 29, is marrying his longtime girlfriend, Radhika Merchant, in what many have dubbed the wedding of the year. The celebrations are taking place at the Ambani-owned Jio World Convention Centre in Mumbai and their family home and are the culmination of months of wedding events that featured performances by pop stars including Rihanna and Justin Bieber. The four-day wedding celebrations begin with a traditional Hindu wedding ceremony on Friday, followed by a grand reception that will run through the weekend. The guest list includes former British Prime Ministers Tony Blair and Boris Johnson, Saudi Aramco CEO Amin H. Nasser, Adele, Lana Del Rey, Drake and David Beckham, according to local media. The Ambani family has not confirmed the guest list. Television news channels showed celebrities like Kim Kardashian and professional wrestler and Hollywood actor John Cena arriving.

Quick Read

  • The youngest son of Mukesh Ambani, Asia’s richest man, Anant Ambani, is set to marry Radhika Merchant in what is being dubbed the wedding of the year.
  • The celebrations are taking place at the Ambani-owned Jio World Convention Centre in Mumbai and their family home, with a four-day wedding event starting with a traditional Hindu ceremony on Friday.
  • The guest list includes global celebrities, business tycoons, and politicians, with names like Tony Blair, Boris Johnson, Amin H. Nasser, Adele, Lana Del Rey, Drake, David Beckham, Kim Kardashian, and John Cena mentioned in local media.
  • Police have imposed traffic diversions around the wedding venue to handle the influx of guests amid heavy monsoon rains causing flooding and flight disruptions in Mumbai.
  • The extravagant wedding has sparked discussions on rising inequality in India and caused traffic disruptions, impacting local residents and businesses.
  • Mukesh Ambani, the father of the groom, is the world’s ninth richest man with a net worth of $116 billion, owning a $1 billion family compound in Mumbai among other assets.
  • Anant Ambani oversees Reliance Industries’ renewable and green energy expansion and runs a 3,000-acre animal rescue center in Gujarat.
  • The bride, Radhika Merchant, is the daughter of pharmaceutical tycoon Viren Merchant and the marketing director for his company, Encore Healthcare.
  • The Ambani family’s pre-wedding celebrations have been lavish, featuring performances by international stars like Rihanna, Akon, Diljit Dosanjh, Katy Perry, and Pitbull.
  • Last week, Justin Bieber performed at a pre-wedding concert attended by Bollywood stars Alia Bhatt, Ranveer Singh, and Salman Khan.
  • In 2018, Beyoncé performed at pre-wedding festivities for Ambani’s daughter, with guests including Hillary Clinton and John Kerry.

The Associated Press has the story:

Asia richest man’s son is set to marry in the year’s most extravagant wedding

Newslooks- MUMBAI, India (AP) —

Global celebrities, business tycoons and politicians began arriving in India’s financial capital on Friday to attend the wedding of the youngest son of Mukesh Ambani, Asia’s richest man, highlighting the billionaire’s staggering wealth and rising clout.

Billionaire Mukesh Ambani poses for a photograph with his family members from L to R, son Akash, daughter-in-law Shloka, daughter Isha and son-in-law Anand Piramal at the wedding of his son Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant at Jio World Convention Centre in Mumbai, India, Friday, July 12, 2024. (AP Photo /Rajanish Kakade)

Anant Ambani, 29, is marrying his longtime girlfriend, Radhika Merchant, in what many have dubbed the wedding of the year. The celebrations are taking place at the Ambani-owned Jio World Convention Centre in Mumbai and their family home and are the culmination of months of wedding events that featured performances by pop stars including Rihanna and Justin Bieber.

FILE – Anant Ambani, left, and Radhika Merchant pose for photographers during their pre-wedding ceremony in Mumbai, India, Friday, July 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Rajanish Kakade, File)

The four-day wedding celebrations begin with a traditional Hindu wedding ceremony on Friday, followed by a grand reception that will run through the weekend. The guest list includes former British Prime Ministers Tony Blair and Boris Johnson, Saudi Aramco CEO Amin H. Nasser, Adele, Lana Del Rey, Drake and David Beckham, according to local media.

The Ambani family has not confirmed the guest list. Television news channels showed celebrities like Kim Kardashian and professional wrestler and Hollywood actor John Cena arriving.

People walk past the venue decorated with lights ahead of billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s son Anant Ambani’s wedding to Radhika Merchant at Jio World Convention Centre in Mumbai, India, Thursday, July 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)

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

American actor and professional wrestler John Cena arrives at the wedding of billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s son Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant at Jio World Convention Centre in Mumbai, India, Friday, July 12, 2024. (AP Photo /Rajanish Kakade)

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

Bollywood actor couple Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt pose for a photograph at the wedding of Billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s son Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant at Jio World Convention Centre in Mumbai, India, Friday, July 12, 2024. (AP Photo /Rajanish Kakade)

The event has also sparked anger among some Mumbai residents who say they were struggling with snarled traffic. “It affects our earnings. I don’t care much about the wedding,” said Vikram, a taxi driver who only uses his first name.

FILE – Chairman of Reliance Industries Limited Mukesh Ambani, third left, poses with his family members and underprivileged couples during a mass wedding organized by him as the part of pre-wedding celebrations of his youngest son, Anant Ambani, in Mumbai, India, Tuesday, July 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool, File)

The father of the groom, Mukesh Ambani, 66, is the world’s ninth richest man with a net worth of $116 billion, according to Forbes. He is also the richest person in Asia. His Reliance Industries is a massive conglomerate, reporting over $100 billion in annual revenue, with interests ranging from petrochemicals, and oil and gas to telecoms and retail.

People walk past the venue decorated with lights ahead of billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s son Anant Ambani’s wedding to Radhika Merchant at Jio World Convention Centre in Mumbai, India, Thursday, July 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)

The Ambani family owns, among other assets, a 27-story family compound in Mumbai worth $1 billion. The building contains three helipads, a 160-car garage and a private movie theater. Ambani’s son, Anant, oversees the conglomerate’s renewable and green energy expansion. He also runs a 3,000-acre (about 1,200-hectare) animal rescue center in Gujarat state’s Jamnagar, the family’s hometown.

Indian actor Aishwarya Rai Bachchan poses for a photograph with her daughter Aaradhya as she arrives at the wedding of Billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s son Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant at Jio World Convention Centre in Mumbai, India, Friday, July 12, 2024. (AP Photo /Rajanish Kakade)

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

Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair poses for a photograph with his wife Cherie Blair at the wedding of Billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s son Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant at Jio World Convention Centre in Mumbai, India, Friday, July 12, 2024. (AP Photo /Rajanish Kakade)

Ambani’s critics say his company has relied on political connections during Congress party-led governments in the 1970s and ’80s and under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s rule after 2014. The Ambani family’s pre-wedding celebrations have been lavish and star-studded.

Former Indian cricketer MS Dhoni poses for a photograph with his wife Sakshi and daughter Ziva Singh as they arrive at the wedding of Billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s son Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant at Jio World Convention Centre in Mumbai, India, Friday, July 12, 2024. (AP Photo /Rajanish Kakade)

In March, they threw a three-day prenuptial bash for his son with 1,200 guests including former world leaders, tech tycoons and Bollywood megastars, and performances by Rihanna, Akon and Diljit Dosanjh, a Punjabi singer who shot to international fame when he performed at Coachella. The event was also attended by tech billionaires Mark Zuckerberg and Bill Gates.

Indian cricketer Jasprit Bumrah poses for a photograph with his wife Sanjana Ganesan at the wedding of Billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s son Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant at Jio World Convention Centre in Mumbai, India, Friday, July 12, 2024. (AP Photo /Rajanish Kakade)

It was the start of lavish monthslong pre-wedding celebrations that have grabbed headlines and set off a social media frenzy. In May, the family took guests on a three-day cruise from Italy to France which included Katy Perry singing her hit song “Firework” and a performance by Pitbull, according to media reports.

Indian former cricketer Gautam Gambhir poses for a photograph with his wife Natasha Jain at the wedding of Billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s son Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant at Jio World Convention Centre in Mumbai, India, Friday, July 12, 2024. (AP Photo /Rajanish Kakade)

The family also organized a mass wedding for more than 50 underprivileged couples on July 2 as part of the celebrations. Last week, Justin Bieber performed for hundreds of guests at a pre-wedding concert which included performances by Bollywood stars Alia Bhatt, Ranveer Singh and Salman Khan.

Indian actor Amitabh Bachchan arrives at the wedding of Billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s son Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant at Jio World Convention Centre in Mumbai, India, Friday, July 12, 2024. (AP Photo /Rajanish Kakade)

Ambani also made headlines in 2018 when Beyoncé performed at pre-wedding festivities for his daughter. Former U.S. Secretaries of State Hillary Clinton and John Kerry were among those who rubbed shoulders with Indian celebrities and Bollywood stars in the western Indian city of Udaipur.

People walk past the Antilia mansion, house of billionaire Mukesh Ambani, while it is lit up ahead of his son Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant’s wedding in Mumbai, India, Wednesday, July 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Rajanish Kakade)

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