Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant wedding

Big Asian weddings are big money ££ even on a 'normal' scale
I was a little surprised at all the non Indian guests wearing traditional Indian clothing. I have an Indian neighbour, I think they'd be horrified if i started wearing a sari, we were always taught cultural appropriation was wrong
I think this may be a cat amongst the pigeons comment but I'm genuinely interested in how others may view it

I don't know much about this wedding. We once accidentally witnessed an Indian wedding at a hotel we were staying in. It was huge! Hundreds of people obviously having a great time and the amazing colourful outfits were beautiful to see. We loved the music and dancing. I expect the Ambani wedding was an even bigger noisier more colourful and beautiful event than this.

They’ve been celebrating the wedding for the past 5 months posting photos from all over the world.

The traditional salwar attire was a requirement for all guests. That is why Tony Blair and his wife were dressed the way they were. I didn't see how Justin Bieber dressed except for the pink oversized t-shirt leaving the airport. Actually, I think the Indian styles look better than our western styles (more formal) but Europeans wearing that would be called Cultural Appropriation and unacceptable in most instances.

I have been to several Indian weddings and they are wonderful. One of them hired elephants for the Bride and Groom which looked a little weird coming down a side road in Leicester between parked cars.

I went to the wedding of an asian colleague and it was amazing. Several 100 guests, lovely food and when the meal finished everyone was immediately on the dance floor. No hanging back. Great fun.
But this one seems on a completely different level. Verging on the obscene when you consider how clean water, sanitation or sufficient food is not available to all. And of course there is always the old saying that the marriage lasts in inverse proportion to the amount it costs....or something along those lines.

If it was a requirement, that makes sense but yeah it would be really frowned upon under normal circumstances. Every Asian wedding we have been too, you are just required to cover as appropriate (depending on religion) which is generally made clear on invite.

Good luck to them anyway.

All the celebs were paid to go. So really it was just another job for them.

A new word for me: Bhandara. I just learned about all of the free meals given to the surrounding community for days: timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life-style/non-stop-bhandara-at-antilia-continues-large-hearted-anant-ambani-ensures-a-celebration-for-all/articleshow/111761125.cms

I like that tradition !

I’m finding it all tawdry to be frank. Indian weddings are traditionally ott and hugely expensive. I accept that is cultural. That doesn’t mean I’m comfortable with excessive displays of wealth.
I had a deliberately low key wedding, possibly as a statement about not being ‘given away’, wearing white etc. One of my daughters had the huge, expensive party wedding, including big beautiful white frock. They were traditional and wanted the wedding before children. Other daughter and partner have children aged 8 and 5. Any spare cash goes on refurb their home but a wedding is planned ‘when we can afford it’.

So I’m not suggesting our white British culture is right or written in stone - big weddings seem popular, often with children as page boys or flower girls. Live and let live
I expect I’m horribly English and don’t like ‘showing off’
Also good point JaneJudge about cultural appropriation

petra

All the celebs were paid to go. So really it was just another job for them.

Well they should be paid because that is what they do for a living - they are entertainers. But the presence of Bill Gates, Mark Zucherberg, Tony Blair would have just been a regular invitation I would think.

Is it any of our business?

The Blairs looked fine in their Indian dress, Carrie Johnson looked stunning, and Boris? Well, least said soonest mended.
There were several days of celebration and different dress codes for each one. Indian dress was required for one of the days. BJ looked much better than usual on the day it was western dress and he wore a suit that looked rather better fitting than his usual ones. The Johnson children were all there and looked gorgeous. I enjoyed looking at all the beautiful Indian dresses worn by the women.
On the whole though I think such ostentatious displays are a bit vulgar, especially when there are millions of people in India who only survive because they receive a weekly rice ration from the government. I think they could have had a beautiful wedding without spending 250 million on it, and perhaps donated the rest to a worthwhile charity, such as the one which treats the many children who need surgery for cleft palate in India.

We went to a Tamil/Hindu wedding last year. It's quite different from the set structure of a western wedding, It was held in a Hindu temple and during the service, participants seemed to wander in and out during what appeared to be an integral part of the ceremony, we all sat on the floor, I couldn't help thinking "I hope I can get up again" Some of the western women wore a sari and their male counterpart a dhoti, there weren't any murmurings about cultural appropriation, I think it was seen by the Indian contingent as a sign of deference, but equally many, like our party went in just ordinary "guest at a wedding attire" I did wear a Eastern style jacket over my outfit. The food, which was delicious and vegetarian was also served inside the temple. It was a great experience I really enjoyed it. A lot of the women had had their hands hennaed in intricate patterns.

I know Indian weddings can go on for days, but months really?What's the point of that, surely there comes a point in getting on with married life. I think the optics of the conspicuous expense involved with this particular couple's nuptials isn't good and do they really know the high profile names, or had they just been wheeled in for show? Bizarre!

I’ve been to a few Indian and Pakistani weddings in the UK and was never asked to turn up in Asian dress. But a European friend’s son has just married an Indian woman out in New Delhi and he and the rest of the groom’s family were taken to a tailor and kitted out in Indian clothes when they arrived out there. Perhaps it depends on where the wedding takes place?

The young couple getting married deliberately toned down the extravagance, going against what the bride’s parents wanted, and apparently this is a big trend amongst young Indians now.

Though not with the Ambani family apparently.

Macadia

A new word for me: Bhandara. I just learned about all of the free meals given to the surrounding community for days: timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life-style/non-stop-bhandara-at-antilia-continues-large-hearted-anant-ambani-ensures-a-celebration-for-all/articleshow/111761125.cms

I like that tradition !

How gracious of them.
With a fraction of their wealth they could feed and house every homeless and hungry person in India.
The grooms father is worth 221 billion dollars
Just in case some don’t understand how big one billion is this will explain.
One million seconds is 11 days.
One * billion* seconds is 31 years
The father has 221 billion
Obscene 😡

I don’t know who these people are and nothing about their wedding other than what I have just read, but if only a fraction of what was spent on this apparently unbelievably expensive wedding were spent instead on some of the poor of India….call me bah humbug by all means but when we spent time in India there was so much unmet need it made it difficult in some ways to enjoy the experience. The poor are everywhere as are the wealthy who seem not to notice what is around them.

X post Petra

and do they really know the high profile names, or had they just been wheeled in for show? Bizarre!
That’s exactly what I was wondering - a marriage is to be celebrated with family and friends. Why do these rich and famous faces attend ? Don’t they have enough news coverage anyway ?

Germanshepherdsmum

Is it any of our business?

I suppose if you seek publicity in the way this bride and groom have, I does become public business

👏 Iam

Two things I’d like to say…

The £250 million spent on this wedding represents 0.5% of the wealth of this Indian family. Just let that sink in for a moment.

Secondly, a good friend texted me over the weekend “a few months ago I donated money after a tv appeal to help repair a child’s cleft palate in India. I feel such a mug now.”

Wow urmstongran. That’s way outside my imaginings.
Your friend wasn’t a mug to donate to help a child in India. I loved my visits to India, I hope this extravaganza doesn’t stop us donating

Germanshepherdsmum

Is it any of our business?

I don't think this family wanted privacy.