Inside Anant Ambani's big Indian wedding: Music by Rihanna and clothes by Manish Malhotra


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One year after pre-wedding ceremonies for the nuptials of Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant began, preparations have started for what will undoubtedly be India's wedding of the year.

Ambani, 28, is the youngest son of Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani, one of the world's richest men, while Merchant, 29, is the daughter of industrialist Viren Merchant.

The couple, who got engaged at a temple in Rajasthan in December 2022, held a star-studded engagement in January last year, attended by the who's who of Bollywood.

“Anant and Radhika have known each other for a few years and today’s ceremony commences the formal journey of their marriage in the coming months. Both families seek the blessings and good wishes of everyone for Radhika and Anant as they start their journey of togetherness,” the multinational conglomerate Reliance Industries Limited, owned by Mukesh Ambani, announced at the time.

The Ambanis are not ones to cut corners for their weddings. Anant's sister Isha Ambani's star-studded 7 billion rupee nuptials in 2018, is still the most expensive Indian wedding of all time and included a performance by Beyonce.

The invitation

While the exact dates and details of the wedding are yet to be revealed, an invitation for a three-day “pre-wedding” has gone viral.

Set for March 1 to 3, the pre-wedding celebrations have been announced via a handwritten card, signed by the groom-to-be's parents Mukesh and Nita Ambani, and invites guests to the Reliance Greens in Jamnagar on the west coast of Gujarat.

Adorned with lush greenery and animal motifs, the invitation is a nod to an ongoing project by Reliance, which is building what is set to be the largest zoo in the world. Reliance operates one of the world's largest oil refining complex in Jamnagar.

“Over the years, we planted more than 10 million trees in this arid region, transforming it into a bustling green community,” the invitation reads. “Taking the spirit of this initiative further, Anant has lovingly nurtured this complex into a haven of care and compassion for over thousands of rescued animals.

“Over the past 25 years, we've built our fondest memories in Jamnagar. And it is the place closest to our hearts. We look forward to having you as we celebrate the beginning of Radhika and Anant's wedding festivities.”

Celebrations begin

Bride-to-be Radhika Merchant in a custom lehenga by Anamika Khanna for her lagan lakhvanu ceremony. Photo: @anamikakhanna.in / Instagram
Bride-to-be Radhika Merchant in a custom lehenga by Anamika Khanna for her lagan lakhvanu ceremony. Photo: @anamikakhanna.in / Instagram

Pre-wedding celebrations have already begun in Jamnagar with the lagan lakhvanu ceremony held on Friday. During the traditional Gujarati ceremony, the official wedding invite is first offered to the gods to seek their blessing, before it is sent out to guests.

Bride-to-be Merchant wore a stunning custom lehenga by Indian designer Anamika Khanna featuring handwoven flowers as a nod to the venue. Khanna also designed the dresses for Isha and her mother Nita, as well as Shloka Mehta Ambani, the wife of Isha's twin Akash.

Who's performing?

According to Indian media, pop star Rihanna has been roped as one of the star performers for the pre-wedding celebrations in Jamnagar, along with global Punjabi music star Diljit Dosanjh.

If confirmed, this will mark Rihanna's first performance since she took the stage at the Super Bowl half-time show in February last year. The Barbadian star, who performed while heavily pregnant with her second child with rapper A$AP Rocky, gave birth to their son, Riot Rose Mayers, in August.

Dosanjh is a bona fide star, having also made inroads into films, including Bollywood, and won numerous awards. In 2016, he sold out the UK's Wembley Arena with his The Dosanjh Tour.

The fashion

The Ambanis are known for their love for everything Bollywood. And no one can translate that better into clothes than ace designer Manish Malhotra.

According to reports, Malhotra is not only designing the looks for the main pre-wedding event, but also crafting the entire three-day party in true Bollywood style.

Malhotra has enjoyed a diverse and wildly successful career spanning 30 years, which began by designing costumes for films. Last year, Mukesh’s Reliance Brands said it had acquired 40 per cent of MM Styles, which owns the Manish Malhotra brand, with the aim of turning it into “a global couture powerhouse”.

Malhotra opened his first flagship store in the Middle East in Dubai Mall in December.

The mehendi ceremony

Radhika Merchant wears an outfit by Indian designer duo Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla at her mehendi ceremony, ahead of her wedding to Anant Ambani. Photo: Instagram / abujanisandeepkhosla
Radhika Merchant wears an outfit by Indian designer duo Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla at her mehendi ceremony, ahead of her wedding to Anant Ambani. Photo: Instagram / abujanisandeepkhosla

A pre-wedding celebration, where henna is applied on the bride's hands and feet and on the hands of female members of the bride and groom's families, Anant and Merchant's mehendi ceremony in January last year in Mumbai was as glamorous as they come. The celebration, which usually features plenty of songs and dances, had the bride-to-be dancing to the Bollywood song Ghar More Pardesiya from the film Kalank.

Pink was the predominant colour of the night as Merchant was seen in a custom-made fuchsia lehenga by Indian designer duo Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla.

“Radhika Merchant is the picture of romantic bliss in this custom-made multicolour resham lehenga embroidered with floral booties and mirrors at her mehendi ceremony,” the designers shared on Instagram.

The groom's sister, Isha, was also in pink, in an outfit designed by celebrity favourite Anuradha Vakil.

Celebrity stylist Ami Patel, who styled Isha for the event, also shared photos on Instagram.

Isha, 31, who is married to businessman Anand Piramal, gave birth to their twins in December, 2022.

Star-studded engagement party

Anant Ambani, his fiancee Radhika Merchant and his mother Nita Ambani, left, outside their home in Mumbai. AP
Anant Ambani, his fiancee Radhika Merchant and his mother Nita Ambani, left, outside their home in Mumbai. AP

Celebrations continued that same week with an engagement party at Antilia, the Dh3.6bn Ambani home in Mumbai.

Anant and Radhika dressed in their traditional best and greeted and posed for photographers. They were soon joined by the rest of the Ambani family – Mukesh and his wife Nita; Isha Ambani and her husband Anand; and Akash and his wife Shloka.

The women all wore designs by Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla for the occasion, with bride Radhika choosing a gold lehenga adorned with intricate embroidery and sequins. She completed the look with a thin belt that cinched her waist.

Actor Ranveer Singh and his wife, actress Deepika Padukone, at the party. Reuters
Actor Ranveer Singh and his wife, actress Deepika Padukone, at the party. Reuters

A number of Bollywood stars were also in attendance, also dressed in traditional outfits. Ranveer Singh and Deepika Padukone added to the glamour while Shah Rukh Khan's wife Gauri Khan arrived with her son Aryan Khan as a date. Shah Rukh, who was then on a promotional tour for his film Pathaan, was also at the party but kept a low profile.

Other stars who attended include Akshay Kumar, Sara Ali Khan, John Abraham, Katrina Kaif and Karan Johar. Actor Arjun Kapoor arrived with his father, producer Boney Kapoor, while Aishwarya Rai Bachchan's date for the night was her daughter Aaradhya, 11.

Who is Anant Ambani?

Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant outside the Ambani home, Antilia. AFP
Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant outside the Ambani home, Antilia. AFP

One of the heirs of the Reliance Industries empire, Anant is the youngest of Mukesh and Nita Ambani's three children. A graduate of Brown University in Rhode Island, US, Anant has taken on various roles within his father's business, and is deeply involved with the Indian Premier League, in which Reliance Industries owns the Mumbai Indians team.

He leads Reliance Industries' energy business, is the director of Jio Platforms and was named director of Reliance Retail Ventures Ltd last year.

Anant and his fiancee Merchant have been friends for years, with the couple making a number of joint appearances together, including at Priyanka Chopra and Nick Jonas's wedding in 2018 as well as at Akash's nuptials in 2019.

Radhika Merchant, left, with the Ambani family: Anant; Nita; Akash; Isha; Anand Piramal, Isha's husband; and Mukesh, at Akash's wedding in Mumbai in 2019. Reuters
Radhika Merchant, left, with the Ambani family: Anant; Nita; Akash; Isha; Anand Piramal, Isha's husband; and Mukesh, at Akash's wedding in Mumbai in 2019. Reuters

Who is Radhika Merchant?

Merchant is the daughter of industrialist Viren Merchant. She is a graduate of politics and economics at New York University.

A member of the board of directors at Encore Healthcare, the company run by her father, she is also known to be an animal lover and is actively involved in animal welfare projects. Merchant is also trained in the South Indian classical dance form Bharatnatyam.

In 2022, the Ambanis hosted Merchant's lavish arangetram, the traditional stage debut of an Indian classical dance student. The event was attended by a number of Bollywood stars including Aamir Khan, Singh and Salman Khan.

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Most smart home devices are controlled via the owner's smartphone. Therefore, if you are using public wi-fi on your phone, always use a VPN (virtual private network) that offers strong security features and anonymises your internet connection.

Keep your smart home devices’ software up-to-date. Device makers often send regular updates - follow them without fail as they could provide protection from a new security risk.

Use two-factor authentication so that in addition to a password, your identity is authenticated by a second sign-in step like a code sent to your mobile number.

Set up a separate guest network for acquaintances and visitors to ensure the privacy of your IoT devices’ network.

Change the default privacy and security settings of your IoT devices to take extra steps to secure yourself and your home.

Always give your router a unique name, replacing the one generated by the manufacturer, to ensure a hacker cannot ascertain its make or model number.

The years Ramadan fell in May

1987

1954

1921

1888

UPI facts

More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
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Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions

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  • Make sure you are an exact fit for the job advertised. If you are an HR manager with five years’ experience in retail and the job requires a similar candidate with five years’ experience in consumer, you should apply. But if you have no experience in HR, do not apply for the job.

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JOURNALISM 

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Fiction
"The Nickel Boys" by Colson Whitehead (Doubleday)

Drama
"A Strange Loop" by Michael R. Jackson

History
"Sweet Taste of Liberty: A True Story of Slavery and Restitution in America" by W. Caleb McDaniel (Oxford University Press)

Biography
"Sontag: Her Life and Work" by Benjamin Moser (Ecco/HarperCollins)

Poetry
"The Tradition" by Jericho Brown (Copper Canyon Press)

General Nonfiction
"The Undying: Pain, Vulnerability, Mortality, Medicine, Art, Time, Dreams, Data, Exhaustion, Cancer, and Care" by Anne Boyer (Farrar, Straus and Giroux)

and

"The End of the Myth: From the Frontier to the Border Wall in the Mind of America" by Greg Grandin (Metropolitan Books)

Music
"The Central Park Five" by Anthony Davis, premiered by Long Beach Opera on June 15, 2019

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Ida B. Wells

 

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The EU imports 90 per cent  of the natural gas used to generate electricity, heat homes and supply industry, with Russia supplying almost 40 per cent of EU gas and a quarter of its oil. 

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Countdown to Zero exhibition will show how disease can be beaten

Countdown to Zero: Defeating Disease, an international multimedia exhibition created by the American Museum of National History in collaboration with The Carter Center, will open in Abu Dhabi a  month before Reaching the Last Mile.

Opening on October 15 and running until November 15, the free exhibition opens at The Galleria mall on Al Maryah Island, and has already been seen at the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum in Atlanta, the American Museum of Natural History in New York, and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

 

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UK-EU trade at a glance

EU fishing vessels guaranteed access to UK waters for 12 years

Co-operation on security initiatives and procurement of defence products

Youth experience scheme to work, study or volunteer in UK and EU countries

Smoother border management with use of e-gates

Cutting red tape on import and export of food

BMW M5 specs

Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor

Power: 727hp

Torque: 1,000Nm

Transmission: 8-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km

On sale: Now

Price: From Dh650,000

The years Ramadan fell in May

1987

1954

1921

1888

The five pillars of Islam

1. Fasting 

2. Prayer 

3. Hajj 

4. Shahada 

5. Zakat 

The burning issue

The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.

Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins

Read part two: how climate change drove the race for an alternative 

Read part one: how cars came to the UAE

Key figures in the life of the fort

Sheikh Dhiyab bin Isa (ruled 1761-1793) Built Qasr Al Hosn as a watchtower to guard over the only freshwater well on Abu Dhabi island.

Sheikh Shakhbut bin Dhiyab (ruled 1793-1816) Expanded the tower into a small fort and transferred his ruling place of residence from Liwa Oasis to the fort on the island.

Sheikh Tahnoon bin Shakhbut (ruled 1818-1833) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further as Abu Dhabi grew from a small village of palm huts to a town of more than 5,000 inhabitants.

Sheikh Khalifa bin Shakhbut (ruled 1833-1845) Repaired and fortified the fort.

Sheikh Saeed bin Tahnoon (ruled 1845-1855) Turned Qasr Al Hosn into a strong two-storied structure.

Sheikh Zayed bin Khalifa (ruled 1855-1909) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further to reflect the emirate's increasing prominence.

Sheikh Shakhbut bin Sultan (ruled 1928-1966) Renovated and enlarged Qasr Al Hosn, adding a decorative arch and two new villas.

Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan (ruled 1966-2004) Moved the royal residence to Al Manhal palace and kept his diwan at Qasr Al Hosn.

Sources: Jayanti Maitra, www.adach.ae

The burning issue

The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE. 

Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on

Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins

Read part one: how cars came to the UAE

 

Sunday's games

Liverpool v West Ham United, 4.30pm (UAE)
Southampton v Burnley, 4.30pm
Arsenal v Manchester City, 7pm

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if you go

The flights 

Etihad and Emirates fly direct to Kolkata from Dh1,504 and Dh1,450 return including taxes, respectively. The flight takes four hours 30 minutes outbound and 5 hours 30 minute returning. 

The trains

Numerous trains link Kolkata and Murshidabad but the daily early morning Hazarduari Express (3’ 52”) is the fastest and most convenient; this service also stops in Plassey. The return train departs Murshidabad late afternoon. Though just about feasible as a day trip, staying overnight is recommended.

The hotels

Mursidabad’s hotels are less than modest but Berhampore, 11km south, offers more accommodation and facilities (and the Hazarduari Express also pauses here). Try Hotel The Fame, with an array of rooms from doubles at Rs1,596/Dh90 to a ‘grand presidential suite’ at Rs7,854/Dh443.

Zakat definitions

Zakat: an Arabic word meaning ‘to cleanse’ or ‘purification’.

Nisab: the minimum amount that a Muslim must have before being obliged to pay zakat. Traditionally, the nisab threshold was 87.48 grams of gold, or 612.36 grams of silver. The monetary value of the nisab therefore varies by current prices and currencies.

Zakat Al Mal: the ‘cleansing’ of wealth, as one of the five pillars of Islam; a spiritual duty for all Muslims meeting the ‘nisab’ wealth criteria in a lunar year, to pay 2.5 per cent of their wealth in alms to the deserving and needy.

Zakat Al Fitr: a donation to charity given during Ramadan, before Eid Al Fitr, in the form of food. Every adult Muslim who possesses food in excess of the needs of themselves and their family must pay two qadahs (an old measure just over 2 kilograms) of flour, wheat, barley or rice from each person in a household, as a minimum.

THE LOWDOWN

Photograph

Rating: 4/5

Produced by: Poetic License Motion Pictures; RSVP Movies

Director: Ritesh Batra

Cast: Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Sanya Malhotra, Farrukh Jaffar, Deepak Chauhan, Vijay Raaz

'Outclassed in Kuwait'
Taleb Alrefai, 
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TUESDAY'S ORDER OF PLAY

Centre Court

Starting at 2pm:

Elina Svitolina (UKR) [3] v Jennifer Brady (USA)

Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (RUS) v Belinda Bencic (SUI [4]

Not before 7pm:

Sofia Kenin (USA) [5] v Elena Rybakina (KAZ)

Maria Sakkari (GRE) v Aryna Sabalenka (BLR) [7]

 

Court One

Starting at midday:

Karolina Muchova (CZE) v Katerina Siniakova (CZE)

Kristina Mladenovic (FRA) v Aliaksandra Sasnovich (BLR)

Veronika Kudermetova (RUS) v Dayana Yastermska (UKR)

Petra Martic (CRO) [8] v Su-Wei Hsieh (TPE)

Sorana Cirstea (ROU) v Anett Kontaveit (EST)

Six large-scale objects on show
  • Concrete wall and windows from the now demolished Robin Hood Gardens housing estate in Poplar
  • The 17th Century Agra Colonnade, from the bathhouse of the fort of Agra in India
  • A stagecloth for The Ballet Russes that is 10m high – the largest Picasso in the world
  • Frank Lloyd Wright’s 1930s Kaufmann Office
  • A full-scale Frankfurt Kitchen designed by Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky, which transformed kitchen design in the 20th century
  • Torrijos Palace dome
Key products and UAE prices

iPhone XS
With a 5.8-inch screen, it will be an advance version of the iPhone X. It will be dual sim and comes with better battery life, a faster processor and better camera. A new gold colour will be available.
Price: Dh4,229

iPhone XS Max
It is expected to be a grander version of the iPhone X with a 6.5-inch screen; an inch bigger than the screen of the iPhone 8 Plus.
Price: Dh4,649

iPhone XR
A low-cost version of the iPhone X with a 6.1-inch screen, it is expected to attract mass attention. According to industry experts, it is likely to have aluminium edges instead of stainless steel.
Price: Dh3,179

Apple Watch Series 4
More comprehensive health device with edge-to-edge displays that are more than 30 per cent bigger than displays on current models.

The burning issue

The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.

Part three: an affection for classic cars lives on

Read part two: how climate change drove the race for an alternative 

Read part one: how cars came to the UAE

Key facilities
  • Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
  • Premier League-standard football pitch
  • 400m Olympic running track
  • NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
  • 600-seat auditorium
  • Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
  • An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
  • Specialist robotics and science laboratories
  • AR and VR-enabled learning centres
  • Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Batti Gul Meter Chalu

Producers: KRTI Productions, T-Series
Director: Sree Narayan Singh
Cast: Shahid Kapoor, Shraddha Kapoor, Divyenndu Sharma, Yami Gautam
Rating: 2/5

NEW ARRIVALS

Benjamin Mendy (Monaco) - £51.75m (Dh247.94m)
Kyle Walker (Tottenham Hotspur) - £45.9m
Bernardo Silva (Monaco) - £45m
Ederson Moraes (Benfica) - £36m
Danilo (Real Madrid) - £27m
Douglas Luiz (Vasco de Gama) - £10.8m 

WandaVision

Starring: Elizabeth Olsen, Paul Bettany

Directed by: Matt Shakman

Rating: Four stars

Updated: February 19, 2024, 2:19 PM`