LOOK: Inside India's Extravagant Three-Day 'Royal' Wedding
- Akash Ambani, son of Mukesh and Nita Ambani, wed Shloka Mehta in an elaborate three-day wedding in Mumbai, India on March 9 to 11.
- Pre-wedding celebrations kicked off in St. Moritz, Switzerland and in the Ambani home, Antilia.
- Notable guests included former U.K. Prime Minister Tony Blair, former U.N. Secretary Ban Ki-moon, Google CEO Sundar Pichai, and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella
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The groom is Akash Ambani, the 27-year-old son of Mukesh Ambani, Reliance Industries' chairman and managing director better known as Asia’s richest man. Ambani's blushing bride is Shloka Mehta, the daughter of diamond mogul Russell Mehta. As they are darlings of Indian high society, the Ambani-Mehta wedding was one of the country’s highly anticipated social events of the year.
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The couple started off as friends at the
Akash's twin sister, Isha, recently married Anand Piramal at the family home in December.
The celebration was stretched over number of days. There was the pre-wedding dandiya raas night on February 19. During this occasion, the couple invited their families and friends and together they performed traditional folk dances.
Their Dandiya Raas night was hosted at the Ambani residence, a 27-story structure in Antilia, Mumbai.
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It's said to have cost $1 billion to build. Mukesh himself is estimated to be worth $52 billion as of writing, according to Forbes, making him the 13th richest man in the world.
From February 23 to 25, a small portion of the wedding party flew to luxury ski resort town St. Moritz in Switzerland.
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During the three-day affair, the bride and groom’s closest friends partied away to special live performances by Coldplay’s Chris Martin and the Chainsmokers.
The couple arrived at their outdoor celebration in a white horse-driven carriage straight out of a fairy tale.
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As if the exclusive concert wasn't enough, the venue was equipped with carnival rides to entertain the guests.
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Business Today India reported that the couple had invited over 850 guests to the Winter Wonderland carnival-themed party and the guest list included some stars from Bollywood royalty.
Formal invites to the wedding weekend were sent out a month prior to the festivities.
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Esquire Middle East reports that the elaborate invites cost $2,000 each.
While both the dandiya raas night and the sangeet or musical party were held at the Ambani home, the wedding ceremony on March 9 took place at the newly-opened Jio World Center.
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The wedding weekend kicked off with a ceremony on March 9, post-wedding party on March 10, and reception on March 11, which means we have yet to see the rest of the festivities.
The venue was filled with ornate floral arrangements.
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For both the ceremony day and the reception party on March 9 and 10 respectively, two different floral backdrops graced the entrance.
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The groom and his family arrive at the venue on the first day.
In a touching moment, the groom walked down the aisle with his parents on each side.
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During the bridal entry, Shloka walked down a long and winding aisle first underneath a red canopy.
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She marched down a surreal pathway made to simulate brightly colored hills.
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When the bride reached the groom, they exchanged vows underneath a giant floral chandelier.
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The newlyweds
The guest list was a diverse mix of politicians, business tycoons, and Bollywood’s biggest names.
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Spotted at the festivities were former United Nations Secretary Ban Ki-moon and former U.K. prime minister Tony Blair with his wife Cherie.
Representing the tech industries were Google CEO Sundar Pichai and Microsoft head Satya Nadella, no doubt good friends of the family.
Actresses Priyanka Chopra and Aishwarya Rai, who came with their families, were spotted dancing together.
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Celebrated director Karan Johar was seen dancing alongside both the mother of the groom, Nita Ambani, and cricketer Hardik Pandya.
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And what’s an Ambani wedding without some over-the-top entertainment?
View this post on InstagramI can’t believe this actually happened ?????????? #maroon5 #akashloka #ambaniwedding #cocktailparty
Maroon 5 performed at the post-wedding party on Sunday evening.
Nita Ambani, dubbed by Forbes as India’s "first lady of business," had graced the wedding party with a special number the night before.
