If you opened up TikTok this weekend to see a postpartum Rihanna performing on an actual stage, no need to rub your eyes or check your vision — you’re seeing perfectly fine. That’s right, the Rihanna, who hasn’t hit a stage to fully perform since 2016 (besides the literal Super Bowl, performed over 17 songs in India. Why? For the viewing pleasure of the world’s richest guest list at the pre-wedding event of Radhika Merchant and Anant Ambani. And if you’re not South Asian or someone who’s really in tune with the world’s billionaires, to put it in simple terms: Anant Ambani is the son of Mukesh Ambani — the richest person in all of Asia.
It’s no secret that no one’s doing weddings quite like South Asians. The phrase “big fat Indian wedding” is not just a nod to the amount of delicious food that’s served at these events. In the U.S. alone, these weddings on average can cost upwards of $200,000. So when the richest man on the entire continent has a son’s wedding to plan, you can imagine that he’s going to pull out all stops — even if it’s just for pre-wedding events. And bringing Rihanna out of her performance retirement is only one part of the matrimonial extravaganza now all over social media.
But if you’ve gone from rubbing your eyes to scratching your head, don’t worry. Here’s a full explainer on the billionaire Indian wedding.
Who Is The Billionaire Getting Married?
The groom, Anant, is the youngest son and heir to Mukesh, who is an Indian billionaire businessman. Mukesh is the chair and managing director of Reliance Industries, a company with a $110 billion revenue, involved in petrochemicals, oil and gas, telecommunications, retail, and financial services. Basically, he has his hands in a little bit of everything and makes a lot of money doing it. Anant, like his two other siblings, is in charge of part of the industry — for him, it’s the energy sector.
For most of the American public, the Ambanis might not be a household name. But for other billionaires and world-famous celebrities, the Ambanis are business partners and very good friends.
What Celebs Are On The Guest List
When one of the richest people on the planet gets married, the guest list is going to follow suit. Aside from Rihanna, of course, guests for the pre-wedding celebration included Mark Zuckerburg, Bill Gates, Ivanka Trump, Jared Kushner, Hilary Clinton, and Google CEO Sundar Pichai. As for Bollywood royalty, there was Shah Rukh Khan, Ranveer Singh and Deepika Padukone, Saif Ali Khan, Salman Khan, and Aamir Khan.
Did Rihanna Really Perform 17 Songs?!
Some sources say Rihanna performed 17 songs while others say she performed 19 songs. The point is that she basically had a whole concert, featuring some fan-favorites including “Bitch Better Have My Money,” “Rude Boy,” and “All of the Lights.” She was paid a little over $6 million for the performance.
Highlights From The Nine-Page Dress Code
When you’re having the most lavish pre-wedding celebrations of all time, you can expect that the dress code is anything but simple. Guests were given a nine-page dress code to follow for the different days of events. Some of the highlights include:
- Black tie and cocktail dresses
- Traditional Indian formalwear
- Comfortable clothing and shoes (to walk through an animal sanctuary!!!!)
- Casual chic to explore the city
- “Dazzling desi romance” attire
- “Jungle fever” theme (also for the animal sanctuary)
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