QR codes, colour wristbands and standby medical teams: Ambani's wedding had it all!

Mumbai: Entry via QR codes sent to personal mobile phones, colour-coded wristbands for different zones, and a medical response team on standby, typically reserved for heads of state, ensured the year's most extravagant wedding was executed flawlessly.

Mukesh Ambani, Asia's richest man, married off his youngest son, Anant, to pharmaceutical heiress Radhika Merchant at the Ambani family-owned Jio World Centre in Mumbai's BKC on Friday. A 'blessing ceremony' for friends and family, titled 'Shubh Ashirwad,' followed the next day.

Global celebrities, business tycoons, cricketers, film stars, and politicians attended the grand event. A separate reception, named 'Mangal Utsav,' for employees and business associates, took place on Sunday at the same venue.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi blessed the couple with a visit on Saturday.

Three distinct invitations were issued for the wedding and receptions. The top-tier guests received a large red box containing an intricate chest with a mini silver temple featuring gold idols of Hindu deities, including Lord Ganesh, Radha-Krishna, and Goddess Durga. Each invitation included different cards for each function, with one card crafted from silver, resembling an ancient temple gate. Keepsakes such as an embroidered cloth with the initials 'AR' for Anant and Radhika, a blue shawl, and a silver box filled with more gifts were also included. The simplest invitation came in a laptop-sized box with silver statues of three gods and invitation cards.

Guests confirmed their attendance via email or Google Form and received a message stating: "We have received your RSVP and look forward to welcoming you... the QR codes will be shared 6 hours prior to the event." QR codes were then sent to mobile phones and emails, allowing entry to the venue where guests were given colour-coded wristbands corresponding to different access zones.

Prominent attendees included Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong and his wife, who wore pink wristbands on the wedding day and red on Saturday. Employees, security, and service staff had different coloured wristbands. A multi-layer security cover and ushers secured the sprawling venue, according to sources.

Detailed fire and emergency plans were established, and an elaborate medical response team, typically reserved for heads of state, was on standby. The team included doctors, paramedical staff, and all necessary emergency equipment. Ambulances had pre-arranged routes to nearby hospitals, primed in advance for any medical emergencies. "The Ambanis did not want to leave anything to chance," a source revealed.

Another source mentioned that the time between sending the QR codes and the event was reduced due to previous incidents of unauthorised access.

The dress code for all events was Indian traditional attire, with international guests donning designer traditional clothes. John Cena wore a powder-blue sherwani with white pants, and Nick Jonas wore a pink sherwani with white pants. Samsung's head also wore a sherwani.

Most guests wore different outfits for the 'baraat' or wedding procession and the wedding itself on Friday. The Saturday event included all wedding guests and additional important attendees.

The guest list boasted former British Prime Ministers Tony Blair and Boris Johnson, Saudi Aramco CEO Amin H. Nasser, reality TV star Kim Kardashian and her sister Khloe, Nigerian rapper Rema, and footballer David Beckham. Business tycoon Gautam Adani arrived with his granddaughter, son Karan, and wife Preeti. Kumar Mangalam Birla also attended with his family.

Bollywood's top actors, including Amitabh Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan, Ajay Devgn, Ranbir Kapoor, Alia Bhatt, Tiger Shroff, and Varun Dhawan, were present with their families. Southern superstars Rajinikanth, Ram Charan, and Mahesh Babu led the delegation from the South.

Indian cricket icons Sachin Tendulkar, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Jasprit Bumrah, Hardik Pandya, and Suryakumar Yadav also attended. Notable absentees included T20 World Cup-winning captain Rohit Sharma, who was watching the Wimbledon semi-final in London, and Virat Kohli.

Politicians attending the wedding included Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, his deputies Devendra Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar, RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, Samajwadi Party President Akhilesh Yadav and his wife Dimple, and Shiv Sena (UBT) head Uddhav Thackeray. NCP (SP) supremo Sharad Pawar, Congress leaders Kamal Nath and Sachin Pilot, and Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar were also present. Shankaracharya of Dwarka Peeth Swami Sadananda Saraswati, Shankaracharya of Jyotirmath Swami Avimukteshwaranand, and yoga guru Ramdev attended the event, along with FIFA President Gianni Infantino and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu and his deputy Pawan Kalyan.

The groom, Anant, 29, oversees Reliance Industries Ltd's renewable and green energy expansion. The bride, Radhika Merchant, also 29, is the daughter of pharmaceutical tycoon Viren and Shaila Merchant and serves as the marketing director for his company, Encore Healthcare.

This three-day wedding extravaganza marked the culmination of a series of lavish parties hosted by the Ambani family since March. The couple got engaged in January 2023, and the family has hosted three grand pre-wedding parties.

In March, a three-day celebration in the group's refinery township in Jamnagar, Gujarat, included tech billionaires Mark Zuckerberg and Bill Gates, Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner among the 1,200 guests, and featured a performance by Rihanna. David Blaine performed magic tricks, and the festivities included a visit to Ambani's 'animal rescue centre' housing exotic animals.

In May, the Ambanis embarked on a four-day Mediterranean cruise starting in Palermo, Italy. The cruise featured on-deck concerts by the Backstreet Boys, Pitbull, and David Guetta, and a masquerade ball performance by Katy Perry at Château de la Croix des Gardes in France. DJ David Guetta performed at a toga party at sea. The cruise concluded in Portofino, Italy, with tenor Andrea Bocelli serenading the party in the town square.

Last week, Justin Bieber performed at the 'Sangeet' or musical night.

The Ambanis have not disclosed the wedding cost. However, the grand scale included Rs 5-6 lakh per piece select invitation boxes and three Falcon-2000 jets rented to ferry guests. Anant Ambani gifted friends Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar limited edition watches.

Rumours suggest Rihanna was paid USD 7 million for her performance and Bieber USD 10 million (close to Rs 84 crore). An email sent to Reliance remained unanswered.

Mukesh and Nita Ambani have hosted lavish weddings for their other children as well. Beyonce performed at daughter Isha Ambani's 2018 wedding, which included guests like Hillary Clinton and John Kerry. A year later, Coldplay's Chris Martin performed at Akash Ambani's pre-wedding bash in St Moritz, Switzerland, and Maroon 5 performed at his wedding in Mumbai.

Isha's 2018 wedding was billed as India's most expensive, with costs estimated up to USD 100 million.

Mukesh Ambani, 67, is currently the world's 11th richest man, with a net worth of USD 119 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaire Index. Over the past two decades, he has transformed Reliance Industries, founded by his father in 1966 as an oil and petrochemicals giant, into a global empire spanning telecoms, retail, financial services, cricket, and luxury fashion.

Anant Ambani is the youngest of Mukesh's three children, all of whom are on the board of Reliance Industries. 

(with inputs from agency)