At R1.4bn, the world’s most expensive marriage bash?
SEVERAL high-profile guests shared a glimpse inside the lavish pre-wedding celebrations of the daughter of India’s richest man before yesterday’s nuptials, the subject of intense public fascination.
The wedding is said to have cost $100 million (R1.4 billion), according to Bloomberg.
Prince Harry’s wedding to Meghan Markle pales in comparison at $40m.
Business mogul Mukesh Ambani, 61, who has an estimated fortune of $41.5bn, decorated his towering 27-storey Mumbai, India, home as he prepared to host hundreds of guests at the marriage of his daughter Isha Ambani, 27.
Elaborate fairy lights lit up the street outside on Tuesday as an array of Bollywood stars and guests shared snaps from inside the elaborate pre-wedding events, which included a private concert by Beyoncé.
Yale graduate Isha is tying the knot with 33-year-old property mogul Anand Piramal, a childhood friend and the son of another uber-wealthy businessman.
The two days of pre-wedding events were held in the northwestern city of Udaipur, Rajasthan, where VIPs such as Hillary Clinton, Priyanka Chopra and Nick Jonas gathered at a historic palace and five-star resorts for brunches, concerts and discos. Some social media users questioned who Mukesh, the chairperson of Reliance Industries, had hired to perform on the wedding day itself, with one joking that only a “resurrected John Lennon” would be able to top Beyoncé.
The first hint of the nuptials’ lavishness was the elaborate embroidered and gold-plated Dolce & Gabbana box guests received as invitations.
Each package contained a series of luxury cards that folded out to reveal details of the events that would be held across the five-day affair.
As per Indian tradition, the party began with the sangeet, which typically sees the bride, groom and their families come together to sing and dance in stage performances celebrating their unions.
But Mukesh, whose business interests cover oil, telecoms, chemicals, textiles, technology and food, did not hold back when it came to the entertainment for his little girl.
Beyoncé was flown in especially for a 45-minute private concert, which saw her make several costume changes and sing the hit songs Perfect and Crazy In Love. The pop star pocketed $6m for her last private gig, in 2014.
Bollywood superstars including Aishwarya Rai partied the night away as laser lights criss-crossed the sky, along with newly weds Deepika Padukone, 32, and Ranveer Singh, 33, who married at Lake Como, Italy, last month. | Daily Mail