After much anticipation, the pre-wedding festivities of Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant are hitting the Indian town of Jamnagar in full force. The three-day prelude from March 1 to 3 marks the union of India’s two billionaire families, Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani and CEO of Encore Healthcare, Viren Merchant.
As it nears conclusion, the Ambani extravaganza has unfolded with a level of opulence that has left netizens both amused and bewildered. A nine-page event dossier and a detailed wardrobe guide setting instructions for themed nights had already teased a meticulous gala. With international bigwigs like Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg and Rihanna gracing the ceremony, the crossover of B-Town celebs and global icons has set the internet ablaze with humourous takes.
In a picture circulating of the Facebook CEO Zuckerberg and his wife, Priscilla Chan, showing the couple clad in traditional Indian wear, one user jocularly took to X (formerly Twitter), saying, “Ambani managed to do what no one in the world could do yet. He got Zuckerberg out of his 20-year-old hoodie and jeans.”
One X user shared a hilariously-edited video clip of the Ambanis captioned “leaked footage of day 1 at Ambani wedding” depicting a scene from the 2009 romcom 3 Idiots. In the iconic wedding scene, Boman Irani and Kareena Kapoor’s characters are calling out the three wedding crashers but their faces have been replaced with Mukesh and Isha. Whereas Rihanna, Zuckerberg and Gates’ faces are cartoonishly placed on the uninvited guests crudely filling up their plates.
Another internet user comically pointed out about Zuckerberg’s presence at the gala, “People hire social media managers for weddings, Ambani called the manager of social media to their wedding.”
Ivanka Trump, American businesswoman and daughter of former President of the United States Donald Trump, was also seen in attendance and joyously participating in the wedding proceedings. Posting an IG Story, Ivanka offered a glimpse of a ‘dandiya garba’ dance rehearsal, clad in a white full-length dress, much to the fascination of social media users. “Only the Ambanis can make the Trumps do dandiya,” said an X user, remarking on the Indian family’s influence.
A bigger evidence of the Ambanis’ sway is the unprecedented sight of the three Khans of Bollywood busting a move together. Generating a crazy hype, Salman, Shah Rukh and Aamir danced to their iconic songs together alongside a popularly received performance on the 2023 Oscar-winning Indian song Naatu Naatu.
“Producers: we cannot get SRK, Salman, Aamir together because too expensive. Mukesh Ambani: hold my Dhokla,” quipped one post on X. As per another, the dance videos coming from the wedding bash were reminiscent of the iconic ‘GUJJU’ song from the Bollywood film Kal Ho Naa Ho, in which all extended family bursts into a camp ode to the engaged couple. “All this jamnagar chatter evokes the one and only…”
In another clip making rounds on the internet, many B-Town celebs could be seen boarding a bus arranged to transport them to the Ambani extravaganza, prompting one netizen to comment, “Only Ambanis can make all Bollywood celebs sit together in one bus like desi baaratis.”
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