8 celebrities and fashion moments you might have missed at the $600 million Ambani wedding
If there’s one thing India has perfected over the years, it’s the art of throwing extravagant weddings. In every part of the country, be it North or South, the country celebrates the institution of marriage by inviting every single soul the lucky couple has ever met to ceremonies spanning weeks. But there’s typical Indian weddings and then there’s the Ambani wedding.
Unless you’ve been living under a social media-proof rock, you would have heard of Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant’s star-studded wedding festivities. The marriage between the youngest son of tech mogul Mukesh Ambani and the youngest daughter of pharmaceutical billionaire Viren Merchant started with an ‘intimate’ engagement in December 2023. Since then, most of our FYPs haven’t known peace.
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While a series of pre-wedding events featured live performances by Rihanna, Katy Perry, Pitbull, Akon, Diljit Dosanjh, Pritam, David Guetta, Backstreet Boys and Andrea Bocelli, the high-profile guest list included Mark Zuckerburg, Bill Gates, Hillary Clinton, Sundar Pichai and Ivanka Trump. If that wasn’t bizarre enough, Justin Bieber recently performed at a surprise gig in Mumbai—for which he was reportedly paid £7.7 million ($10 million).
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Just when we thought the Ambaniverse couldn’t expand any further, the power couple pulled an ‘Om Shanti Om’ end credit scene on their wedding weekend starting 12 July 2024. Inviting several politicians, tech tycoons, celebrities and global leaders, the event prominently witnessed Kim and Khloe Kardashian, Priyanka Chopra, Nick Jonas, Shah Rukh Khan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan in attendance. But the full invite list was indeed stranger than fiction.
Here are all of the A-listers and their fashion moments you might have missed from what is being dubbed as the £463 million ($600 million) worth “wedding of the century”:
1. Tony Blair
Former British prime minister Tony Blair was decked in a navy blue Bandhgala suit while his wife, Cherie Blair, donned a red anarkali with gold trims. Having seen my parents struggle to match the colour combinations of their saree and kurta before a ceremony, I give the Blairs a solid 8.5/10.
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2. Boris Johnson
The Ambanis also invited resident clown turned former British prime minister Boris Johnson to what now seems like a mini G20 Summit. Attending the wedding with his wife Carrie and three children, Johnson was spotted wearing a rather ill-fitting black kurta on the second day of festivities. It is hence no surprise to witness the internet likening him to a dishevelled Shrek.
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3. John Cena
Wrestler-turned-actor John Cena made an appearance at the wedding in a sky-blue Manish Malhotra sherwani. Having recently announced his retirement from wrestling, Cena was also seen pulling his iconic ‘You Can’t See Me’ ring move during the Baraat procession. What in the Multiverse Of Madness, indeed.
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4. Gianni Infantino
Italian-Swiss football administrator and FIFA president Giovanni Vincenzo Infantino appeared in a black gold-trimmed sherwani—later taking to the dance floor with Bollywood actor Ranveer Singh and Indian cricket star Hardik Pandya. A networking event in disguise, folks?
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5. Nicky Rothschild
American socialite Nicholai “Nicky” Rothschild wore a sheer Leepakshi Ellawadi lehenga to the Hindu wedding.
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6. Tamannaah Bhatia
This one’s for my South Indian girlies. Actress Tamannaah Bhatia walked the pink carpet in a black and golden lehenga designed by Karan Torani.
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7. Luis Fonsi
‘Despacito’ singer Luis Fonsi performed at the wedding in a black Manish Malhotra ensemble sprinkled with golden embroidery. Back in 2018, the Ambanis held a private performance by Beyoncé and John Legend as part of the wedding festivities for their older daughter Isha Ambani. A year later, her twin, Akash Ambani, married Shloka Mehta. The event went on to record exclusive performances by Coldplay, The Chainsmokers and Maroon 5.
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8. Sania Mirza
Former tennis player Sania Mirza attended the event in a vermilion lehenga-choli detailed with gold embroidery.
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Although it seems like the Ambanis have finally wrapped up their eight-month-long ‘celebration of love’, there are reports surfacing of a post-wedding bash being planned in London between 16 and 20 July. So, don’t be surprised if you wake up and see Harry Styles in a Manish Malhotra double-breasted sherwani on your FYP one fine morning.
