It’s Destination Jamnagar for VVIPs from across the world who will join in Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant’s pre-wedding festivities in Gujarat from March 1-3 which promise to be a cultural extravaganza.
Anant and Radhika got engaged in Mumbai on January 19, 2023. Their grand Gol Dhana ceremony took place at Antilia, the Ambani residence, in Mumbai. The couple’s Roka ceremony was performed at Shrinathji Temple in Rajasthan’s Nathdwara on December 29, 2022.
The two are known to be childhood friends and it was in 2018 that people came to know about their relationship. A photo of them lost in each other’s eyes surfaced online and went viral which brought their bond into the spotlight.
Although the couple had not shed light on their relationship at the time, Radhika would often attend the Ambani family’s intimate events. She was present at Isha Ambani’s wedding with Anand Piramal, which took place in 2018, and Akash Ambani’s wedding with Shloka Mehta in 2019.
Guest List
Among those expected to attend the function are Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Morgan Stanley CEO Ted Pick, Microsoft founder Bill Gates, Disney CEO Bob Iger, BlackRock CEO Larry Fink, Adnoc CEO Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, and EL Rothschild chair Lynn Forester de Rothschild.
Others include Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani, PM, Qatar; Murray Auchincloss, CEO, BP; Thomas Barrack, Chairman & Founder, Colony Capital; Carl Bildt, Former Prime Minister of Sweden; John Chambers, CEO, JC2 Ventures; John Elkann, Executive Chairman, Exor; Ari Emanuel, CEO, Endeavor; Bill Ford, Chairman & CEO, General Atlantic; Stephen Schwarzman, Founder, Blackstone Group; Brian Thomas Moynihan, Chairman, Bank of America; Carlos Slim, Investor; Jay Lee, Executive Chairman, Samsung Electronics; Raymond Dalio, Founder, Bridgewater Associates; Zhang Lei, Founder, Hillhouse Capital; Howard Marks, Co-founder, Oaktree Capital Management; James Dinan, Founder, York Capital Management; Bruce Flatt, CEO, Brookfield Asset Management; Michael Grimes, Managing Director, Morgan Stanley; Stephen Harper, Former Prime Minister of Canada; Donald Harrison, President, Google; and Richard Hilton, Chairman, Hilton & Hyland.
Also on the list are Ajit Jain, Vice Chairman, Berkshire Hathway; Archie Keswick, Board Member, Mandarin Oriental; Dr Richard Klausner, Scientist; Ivanka Trump, Former Advisor to the POTUS; Joshua Kushner, Founder, Thrive Capital; Terry McAuliffe, Former Governor, Businessman; Yuri Milner, Entrepreneur, Scientist; Ajit Mohan, President – Asia Pacific, Snap Inc; Shantanu Narayen, CEO, Adobe; HH King and Queen of Bhutan; Purna Saggurti, Vice Chairman, Bank of America; President Jorge Quiroga, Former President of Bolivia; Kevin Rudd, Former Prime Minister of Australia; Eric Schmidt, Founder, Schmidt Futures; Klaus Schwab, Chairperson, World Economic Forum; Ram Shriram, Founding & Managing Partner, Sherpalo; Jim Teague, CEO, Enterprise GP; Fareed Zakaria, Journalist; and Marcus Wallenberg, Ex-president & CEO, InvestorAB.
The VVIP guest list from India includes Kumar Mangalam Birla, Uday Kotak, Adar Poonawala, Sunil Mittal, spiritual leader Sadhguru, Sachin Tendulkar and family, MS Dhoni and family, Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Amitabh Bachchan and family, Rajnikanth and family, Shah Rukh Khan and family, Ranveer Singh and Deepika Padukone, Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt, Vicky Kaushal and Katrina Kaif, and Madhuri Dixit.
It’s the single-biggest gathering of VIPs in India outside the G20 meet and a testament to Mukesh Ambani’s global stature and influence. Insiders say the fact that so many VVIPs will spend three days in Jamnagar is a big deal.
Venue’s significance
Jamnagar holds a special significance for the Ambani family due to their deep-rooted familial ties with the city. Jamnagar airport, which is used to single-digit landings daily, will see around 50 landings on March 1. The entire airport is being spruced up by Reliance as is the route to the RIL refinery complex.
Star performers
Famous international artists including Rihanna and magician David Blaine are set to perform at the pre-wedding festivities. Top Indian musicians who’ll perform include Arijit Singh, Ajay-Atul and Diljit Dosanjh.
Three-Day Gala
All guests will travel to Jamnagar on chartered flights from Mumbai or Delhi between 8am and 1pm on March 1.
“In order to accommodate everyone’s luggage, we ask you to pack consciously, with one item of hand luggage and one piece of hold luggage per person, or three total suitcases per couple,” the guide says. “If you bring more luggage, we cannot guarantee it will arrive on the same flight as you, but we will do our best to bring it in at the earliest.”
All three nights of celebrations will be themed. Day 1 is called An Evening in Everland, with the dress code listed as “elegant cocktail”.
Day 2 will host A Walk on the Wildside with “jungle fever” the suggested dress code. It is set to be held outdoors in the Ambanis’ animal rescue centre in Jamnagar, and guests are advised to wear comfortable shoes and clothing for this event.
Invitees will then swap their safari-themed outfits for more elegant ones for Mela Rouge. The dress code for this is “dazzling desi romance”, suggesting glamorous traditional South Asian attires for all.
The final day will also comprise two events. The first one, Tusker Trails, suggests “casual chic” dressing, as guests are expected to further explore the green ambience of Jamnagar.
The final party, Hashtakshar, calls for an elegant evening with heritage Indianwear.
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