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Anant Ambani And Radhika Merchant’s Pre-Wedding Celebrations Continue With A Multi-Day Mediterranean Cruise
Radhika Merchant and Anant Ambani’s wedding isn’t until July – but the celebrations are already very much underway.
It began with the couple’s grand hastakshar in March, which was held at Ambanis’ home in Jamnagar, Gujarat. And in May, it continued with a four-day cruise that made multiple stops throughout the Mediterranean.
“It was a retreat for the people that have contributed to our life in different ways,” Radhika Merchant says of the event. The 1,200-person guest list included their friends and family, as well as employees at the Ambani family company Reliance Industries, the Merchant family company of Encore Healthcare, and Anant’s animal sanctuary Vantara. Even the family’s doctors were on board. “We had people from the ages of six months going up to 90 years,” Radhika says.
When it came to deciding on a location for the event, the couple quickly settled on Europe, as many of their guests – including Radhika’s family and many of their close friends from studying in America – were unable to make it to their hastakshar in India, due to the distance. Meanwhile, they chose a cruise ship as the venue after struggling to find a destination that could accommodate such a large group.
The cruise’s events began in Palermo, Sicily, with a welcome lunch. At night, as they sailed up the Italian coast, the Ambanis held a starry-night-themed formal party.
For the first event, Radhika wore a gown designed by Robert Wun. Printed on the chiffon was a love letter that Anant wrote to her when she was 22. “He wrote me this long letter for my birthday about what I mean to him,” Radhika says. “I wanted it for posterity – I want to be able to show it to my kids and grandkids, and say that ‘this is what our love was’.” As the night grew later, the Backstreet Boys did a surprise concert.
After spending the next day in Rome, the Ambanis held a toga party back on deck. Radhika and Anant, who met during their college years, wanted a throwback to that time in their life; banners from their respective universities of NYU and Brown hung from the ceiling and David Guetta played a DJ set.
Radhika wore a custom “toga” designed by emerging New York–based designer Grace Ling, who attended Parsons School of Design around the same time Radhika attended NYU – which the bride-to-be saw as a fitting nod to her downtown Manhattan days. It featured an aerospace-aluminium breastplate, made to mimic drapery, that the designer 3D-carved, sculpted and then 3D-printed. It took more than 30 artisans to complete. “I want people to see couture coming from America, not just from Europe,” the designer tells Vogue. “She is an amazing, amazing person at her craft,” Radhika adds of Ling. Meanwhile, the groom’s mother, Nita Ambani, opted for a design by Schiaparelli.
On the third day of the cruise, they docked in Cannes for a masquerade ball at Château de la Croix des Gardes, planned by event producer The Isle of You. (The grand home was famously featured in Alfred Hitchcock’s 1955 film To Catch a Thief.) For the formal affair, Radhika chose a custom Versace dress with blue shades to match the colour of the Côte d’Azur water, with help from her stylist Shaleena Nathani. She and the Versace atelier worked for a year to complete the dress. “I wanted it to just be romantic and young,” she says.
On her neck was a rare blue opal surrounded by diamonds by Lorraine Schwartz. The necklace is a symbolic one: Opal is her birthstone and diamonds are his. She put on a bridal fascinator to serve as her “mask”, while Anant joined her in custom Dolce & Gabbana.
The pinnacle of the evening? A performance by Katy Perry. As she sang “Firework”, real-life fireworks went off in the sky above the château. The night was far from over: as guests reboarded, a second concert by Pitbull began.
The final night of celebrations took place in Portofino. The Ambanis took over the main square and transformed it into an open-air market complete with food stalls. Event planner Vincenzo Dascanio oversaw the design and florals, where tomatoes and Vespas served as la dolce vita decor.
Radhika wore a rare piece of fashion history for the occasion. An archival Yves Saint Laurent for Dior dress, sourced by stylist Mimi Cuttrell. “It seems like a simple dress, but if you look at the seams and the construction, you’ll see how detailed it really is,” she says.
As the sun set, legendary Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli performed. He sang “Can't Help Falling in Love” as well as “I Found My Love in Portofino.” At one point, his son Matteo joined him on stage. “It was just the most magical evening,” Radhika says. “I had goosebumps.”
And there are several more high-profile happenings to come. There will be multiple pujas (a prayer ritual for good luck) as well as a traditional sangeet ceremony over the next few weeks. Then, there are all the events surrounding the wedding itself. Radhika says the planning is “going great.”
“I’m very excited to be married,” she concludes.
Photo: German Larkin1/51“Before our first event aboard the cruise. My Robert Wun dress had a love letter Anant wrote to me when we first started dating printed on chiffon.”
Photo: German Larkin2/51“Sharing a moment together before receiving guests for the first event.”
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Photo: Joseph Radhik3/51“The Backstreet Boys performing.”
Photo: Joseph Radhik4/51“Our siblings and their friends just went wild.”
Photo: Joseph Radhik5/51“Bollywood actor Ananya Pandey posing with AJ McLean from the Backstreet Boys.”
Photo: Joseph Radhik6/51“Exiting the Backstreet Boys concert and making an entrance to the after-party.”
Photo: German Larkin7/51“Alongside my soon-to-be mother-in-law, Nita Ambani, at the after-party.”
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Photo: Joseph Radhik8/51“Laughing on the first night of our pre-wedding.”