Radhika Merchant and Anant Ambani’s extravagant pre-wedding festivities at the Reliance Greens in Jamnagar have been the talk of the town this weekend. While the first day saw the arrival of some of the world’s biggest names ranging from Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg and Ivanka Trump, to the who’s who of the country from politicians to Bollywood stars marking their presence and Rihanna performing in India for the first time, the first day of the pre-wedding festivities had the world glued to pictures and videos from inside the venue.
The second day’s schedule included ‘A Walk on the Wildside’, which was a tour of the large wildlife sanctuary that Anant Ambani has painstakingly built and maintained. For this jungle soiree, Radhika wore a blue cheetah-print dress and matching hat, while Nita Ambani was dressed in a a metallic green co-ord set accessorised with a pair of sunglasses.
Isha Ambani wore a stunning black number by Chanel and Shloka Ambani was dressed in a grey crop top and Miu Miu khakhi pants.
Celebrities, politicians and business tycoons also brought out their chicest ‘safari couture’. Bollywood’s newest to-be parents, Ranveer Singh and Deepika Padukone also embraced the theme with wild prints and linen fabrics, while Meta creator Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan sported ace Indian designer Rahul Mishra’s creations. However, it was baby Raha that stole the show, twinning with mum Alia Bhatt in a printed red number.
This nature-fueled event was then followed by an opulent ‘Mela Rouge’, Garba night and sangeet, which had the star-studded guest-list bring out their finest Indian revelry, deliver performances that would go down as pop culture moments as well as a high-octane performance by Punjabi powerhouse, Diljit Dosanjh.
The bride was glowing in a gold sequinned corset blouse and lehenga by Manish Malhotra, while the groom wore a black kurta and jacket.
Nita Ambani looked stunning in a shimmer sequinned sari, while Shloka Ambani brought on the glamour in her bespoke golden lehenga from Manish Malhotra and highlighted her status as the daughter of a diamantaire’s daughter.
Isha Ambani, however, stayed true to her status as a fashion maven and business woman in a deep red custom lehenga by Manish Malhotra. Styled by Anaita Adajania Shroff, Isha complimented the heavily-embellished lehenga with emerald jewellery fit for a queen, a sleek ponytail and high glam make-up complete with red lips.
As for the guests, Alia Bhatt was shining bright, being styled by Rhea Kapoor in a golden lehenga by Abu Jani And Sandeep Khosla, while Ranbir Kapoor wore a navy blue sherwani.
Sonam Kapoor proved that diamonds and emeralds are the it-thing this season and was dressed in a pristine white lehenga from Anamika Khanna.
Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh radiated glamour in their ensembles. DP wore a golden lehenga by Sabyasachi, while Ranveer looked dapper in a deep blue sherwani by Gaurav Gupta. The two also delivered a high-energy performance on “Galla Goodiyan” later at the Sangeet.
Kareena Kapoor and Saif Ali Khan also showcased royalty, with Bebo dressed in a sequinned Manish Malhotra sari and Saif twinning with Taimur in a black and white kurta pajama set.
Janhvi Kapoor wore a shimmering plum-toned sari-lehenga and was in attendance with rumoured boyfriend, Shikhar Pahariya, while Arjun Kapoor looked rugged in his embroidered black sherwani. Vicky Kaushal and Katrina Kaif also contrasted each other’s look in black and white ensembles. And while Kiara Advani also opted for a feathered white lehenga, Sidharth Malhotra looked handsome in his red open sherwani. Karisma Kapoor, Suhana Khan and Navya Naveli also upped the glamour quotient with their fashion-foward traditional ensembles.
From the business world, Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan once again opted for a lehenga and nehru jacket kurta set by Rahul Mishra, while Bill and Melinda Gates also complimented each other’s black and golden Indian attires.
Tycoons of the business and political world like Gautam Adani, Union Minister Smriti Irani, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Qatar Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani, Queen of Bhutan Jetsun Pema Wangchuck, Ivanka Trump and husband Jared Kushner, CEO of Serum Institute of India Aadar Poonawalla and wife Natasha Poonawalla were also in attendance.
From the sports world, we saw many stalwarts in attendance with their families like Sachin Tendulkar, MS Dhoni, Dwayne Bravo, Kieron Pollard, Ishan Kishan, Saina Nehwal and more.
And if you thought this has been OTT enough, we are nowhere close to the end, because soon after, it was time for the performances! Nita Ambani and Mukesh Ambani performed to a heartwarming rendition of “Pyaar Hua, Ikraar Hua”.
Soon after, Bollywood celebrities took over the stage to deliver some iconic performances. The designer of the day, Manish Malhotra danced to “Bole Chudiyan”, with his Gen-Z muses, Janhvi Kapoor, Sara Ali Khan, Ananya Panday and Khushi Kapoor. And then, the three Khans of Bollywood, Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan and Aamir Khan danced to not only “Jeene Ke Hai Chaar Din”, but also to the Oscar-winning song, “Naatu Naatu”, with none other than Ram Charan.
It was then time for Diljit Dosanjh to set the stage on fire and give Jamnagar it’s very own Coachella moment. Dressed from head-to-toe in white, the popstar had everyone on their feet as soon as he began belting out his tracks, ranging from “Do You Know” and “Vibe”. And soon after, he was serenading stars like Kareena and Karisma and dancing along with Shah Rukh and Suhana on stage. Here are some of our favourite moments from his “concert”:
