The marriage of Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant into one big, fat, global extravaganza has been a confluence of opulence with stardom. From Bollywood legends like Priyanka Chopra Jonas and Alia Bhatt to international celebrities like Kim and Khloe Kardashian, this multiday event has played host to a worth-watching array of high-profile guests.
The most prominent of them are former UK Prime Ministers Boris Johnson and Tony Blair, besides celebrities John Cena, Nicky Hilton Rothschild, and ex-US Secretary of State John Kerry. According to experts, the cost of the wedding celebrations, worth roughly Rs 5000 crore ($600 million), has been organically released, with additional exclusive performances like a concert by Justin Bieber that really took the grandeur and media frenzy to another level.
Contributing to this cacophony are celebrities like Parul Gulati, Dolly Singh, Ranveer Allahbadia, Ahsaas Channa, Siddharth Batra, Komal Pandey, and Kusha Kapila, all social media influencers who are themselves in limelight by sharing real-time updates from the wedding, along with personal insights from the event. But not all has been smooth for this grand wedding with a super-glamorous guest list, as many have certainly had something to say against it.
Take social media influencer Aaliyah Kashyap, who trashed the PR approach and the problem of reconciling grandeur with authenticity. Amidst all the media buzz, the Ambani wedding remains a case study in public relations today—a manifestation of this tension between being visible and being scrutinized in times driven by social media and global celebrity.
The telling of stories from the wedding is still going on, and as a matter of fact, it raises some interesting questions about what it did for public relations. Its lavish nature and strategic media coverage are already under scrutiny by experts in the industry, and opinions about it vary.
We ask industry experts Bhaskar Majumdar, Sonam Shah, and Vikram Kharvi whether the wedding’s PR strategy has given a fillip to the Ambani family’s public image or it has opened the door to brickbats. Their insights delve into the broader implications of the wedding on the family’s reputation and the evolving dynamics of high-profile events.
From a PR perspective, Ambani wedding was very lavish with day-long functions, celebrity guests, and plush venues. It made much news. Like all other big business houses’ weddings, such as the Mittals, the Ambani weddings catch more eyeballs because of the stature that the family enjoys.
The lavishness and publicity of Ambani weddings reflect more general socio-economic changes in India: the growing wealth and influence of its business elite, increased consumerism, and the rise of luxury markets. Moreover, highly promoted and promoted Ambani weddings shifted the trend away from secrecy, as earlier maintained by the families like Tata, Hinduja, or Birla.
From Prince William to Kate Middleton, or Prince Harry to Meghan Markle, royal weddings command a worldwide audience and make history. What sets them apart is minute and intricate planning with a focus on age-old traditions. Extensive media coverage provides live telecasts across the world. It can learn to be more open and reachable to the public, like the British Royal Family, so the Ambani family is relatable in India’s dynamic and ever-changing social scene.
The family had really smartly handled the media narrative of their wedding with strategic planning and social media highlighting the grand event while controlling the flow of information. The PR strategy of the Ambani wedding walks a tightrope between exclusivity and accessibility. It continues to be aspirational while engaging the large masses, building admiration and relatability.
From a PR perspective, an Ambani wedding was bound to happen, given the quantum of their wealth. It helped underline Indian culture, changed perceptions about India, and showcased what the country can really do in terms of hosting big functions.
The wedding evoked mixed responses. On one hand, it added to the family’s public image through traditional customs merged with modern-day elegance, and on the other, it received much criticism for its pomp and display of wealth. However, the Ambani wedding has to be taken as per India’s democratic values, where people are free to spend their money at their will. And no such event created job opportunities and puts forth the use of homegrown brands in the local economy.
Now, had the Ambanis done this in secrecy or at a lower profile, that would have been more eyebrows and a lot of questions. Thus, it was good that they involved everybody and made it like a big wedding. It was the last wedding in their family. Indian families are bound to have a different set of feelings when it comes to the last wedding within the family.
This mega grand Ambani wedding went on for a few months, so it was bound to be a combination of business along with personal functions. Since they have come up with Vantara amidst the Jamnagar celebrations, here was an opportunity to show off the opulence to the global dignitaries who had come around. Also, not to forget what the Ambanis contributed back to society by way of conducting the mass wedding of under-privileged and feeding thousands of people. They totally maintained a balance between values and glamour.
The Ambani wedding taught all a lesson in strategic PR, as amidst the execution of ostentation, it reflected cultural pride, social responsibility, respect, and belief in Indian infrastructure and hospitality. It set an example for other affluent families to keep their celebrations within the country, while also displaying the craving of the Ambani family towards social welfare by arranging a mass marriage of underprivileged couples.
The pre-wedding celebrations pumped life into the local economy with over 100,000 jobs created within six months working in catering, transportation, event management, and decoration, and handicrafts, among other fields. This surge in employment pointed towards the bigger economic gains emanating from such events of repute.
This was coupled with a tourist rush, as over 200 hotels in Jamnagar, Rajkot, and other places were booked for three months continuously. This ensured packed rooms and brought international focus on Jamnagar, reiterating its position as a city of cultural and economic importance.
On the other hand, an estimated 5,000 rich couples have their weddings in foreign locations every year, depriving the local business of huge revenue and the Indian exchequer of heavy taxation, said Confederation of All India Traders. In this respect, the Ambani wedding session was a good example of a correct selection for the marriage venue in India, thus contributing to the exchequer.
The wedding epitomized an important social change—a willingness to celebrate conspicuous wealth openly. This was definitely a new benchmark for lavishness and openness, but family celebrations will depend on individual values. In that trend falls Prime Minister Modi’s call to “wed in India,” furthering the cause for domestic celebrations to substantially contribute to the local economy. Farther away from exercising this choice between privacy and grandeur, depending on family values and mores, it will go.
