Billion Dollar Nuptials: Inside India’s 7 Most Lavish & Expensive Weddings
The most expensive Indian weddings -you’ve probably seen snippets of them on social media. The vibrant colors, intricate decorations, and lavish celebrations are truly a sight to behold. But for India’s ultra-wealthy, even the most opulent ‘Big Fat Indian Wedding’ you’ve witnessed is a small change. We’re Luxury Indian wedding planners, for more details contact us.
In a culture that places huge importance on family and societal ties, weddings are the perfect opportunity to flaunt your fortune and establish your place at the top of the social hierarchy. No expense is spared, no grand gesture is too excessive. From booking entire luxury hotels to chartering private jets to fly in international pop stars, these weddings make the Met Gala look like drinks at your local pub.
Curious to get a glimpse inside the most jaw-dropping expensive billionaire Indian weddings? From the lavish pre-wedding events to the glamorous guests and show-stopping venues, we take you behind the scenes of the most expensive nuptials in India where money is no object and more is always more. This is your all-access pass into a world of unparalleled extravagance, luxury, and decadence. The only question is: are you ready?
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1) Isha Ambani and Anand Piramal's Multi-Million Dollar-Most Expensive Indian Wedding
When your father is the richest man in India, your wedding is destined to make headlines around the world. Isha Ambani and Anand Piramal tied the knot in a lavish, multi-city celebration that cost over 7 billion rupees (\$100 million) and lasted nearly a week.
The festivities kicked off in Udaipur, known as the “City of Lakes,” with extravagant pre-wedding events at the Oberoi Udaivilas Hotel and City Palace. Guests were transported on chartered planes and treated to private concerts, costume parties, and dance performances. The celebrations took place across Udaipur, Lake Como in Italy, and Mumbai.
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For the main ceremony, the Ambanis built a massive mandap on a private island in the middle of Lake Pichola for the wedding in Udaipur. The bride’s wedding sari alone cost over 2 million rupees. They even had real elephants decorated in colorful garments!
A separate reception in Mumbai included a private show by pop icon Beyoncé, who was rumored to have earned $15 million for her 45-minute set. Almost every major Bollywood star attended, along with political bigwigs like Hillary Clinton.
The lavishness of Isha and Anand’s nuptials set a new bar for ostentatious Indian weddings. From the gold-plated invitations to the venue at an actual palace, no expense was spared to create an utterly unforgettable experience for guests. Love it or hate it, you have to admit – it was a spectacle like no other and one of the most expensive Indian weddings!
2) Gali Janardhana Reddy's Controversial 5 Billion Rupee Daughter's Wedding
If you thought Gali Janardhana Reddy’s daughter’s wedding was the most expensive Indian wedding, wait until you hear about the controversial former mining baron’s own nuptials. For his son’s wedding in 2004, Reddy spared absolutely no expense, throwing what was essentially a five-day party for over 50,000 guests at a cost of nearly 5 billion rupees ($70 million).
The festivities were held at the Sahara Stadium in Lucknow and featured everything from recreations of ancient Indian temples designed by Bollywood art directors to luxury bull-drawn carts for transporting guests. There were even huge helium balloons in the images of the Reddy family floating above the venue.
With 3,000 security guards on hand for the over-the-top celebration, guests were treated to performances from major Bollywood stars and cricketers.
Criticized for such an extravagant display of wealth during India’s cash crisis, Reddy’s lavish wedding brought him under major scrutiny. However, for a man known for his flashy lifestyle and socializing with celebrities, a multi-billion-rupee party for his only son may have just been par for the course. One thing’s for sure, when it comes to making a statement, no expense was spared for Reddy’s little prince.
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3) Vanisha Mittal and Amit Bhatia's Six Day, Multi-City Parisian Wedding
The most expensive Indian weddings of Vanisha Mittal, daughter of steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal, and Amit Bhatia was the stuff of fairy tales. Held in 2004, the six-day extravaganza spanned some of Paris’ most iconic landmarks and cost a jaw-dropping $60 million.
The festivities kicked off with an engagement party at the Palace of Versailles, a fitting start for a wedding fit for royalty. The main ceremony was held at the 17th-century Vaux le Vicomte palace, where craftsmen flew in from India to construct an elaborate mandap, a traditional Indian wedding stage, in the middle of the gardens.
No expense was spared on the decor. Life-size elephants made of fiberglass, minarets, and a massive reception hall draped in pink fabric transformed the estate into a vision of grandeur. The groom made his entrance on horseback, while the bride arrived in a horse-drawn carriage.
The wedding also featured star-studded entertainment, including performances by Kylie Minogue, and Bollywood stars Shah Rukh Khan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan. Renowned Bollywood poet and writer Javed Akhtar even penned a play performed by the Mittal family.
After the ceremony, guests were treated to a lavish banquet and a dazzling fireworks display launched from the Eiffel Tower. This wedding in France epitomized opulence and set the standard for ostentatious Indian weddings to come.
For Vanisha’s parents, no amount of money or effort was too great for their only daughter’s special day. The Mittal wedding demonstrated that for India’s ultra-wealthy, the sky is the limit when it comes to celebrating life’s grandest moments in style. The nuptials of Vanisha and Amit will live on forever as an iconic example of extravagance and one of the most expensive weddings the world has ever seen.
4) Subrata Roy's Double Wedding for Sons Attended by 11,000 Guests
When it comes to lavish weddings, Subrata Roy knew how to throw a party. Before legal troubles and bankruptcy, the Sahara India Pariwar chairman went all out for his son’s nuptials. Sushanto married Richa Ahuja on February 10, 2004, while Seemanto wed Chandini Toor just four days later on Valentine’s Day.
The week-long double wedding extravaganza for 11,000 guests was held at the Sahara Stadium in Lucknow. Bollywood A-listers and cricket stars rubbed shoulders, celebrating alongside the happy couples. As if that wasn’t enough, Roy also hosted simultaneous wedding ceremonies for 110 less fortunate brides at the same venue.
Decor fit for royalty adorned the stadium, with details resembling an ancient Indian palace. Guests arrived in ornate horse-drawn carriages, greeted by a sea of giant helium balloons in the newlyweds’ likeness.
When money is no object, three days of non-stop revelry is par for the course. With a private helicopter filming from all angles, not a single extravagant moment was left uncaptured.
Roy’s double wedding set the benchmark for all high-society Indian weddings to follow. Where Bollywood royalty and business moguls lead, others aspire to. For a few short days, the Sahara Stadium was transformed into a real-life fairy tale to celebrate the most expensive Indian weddings, with eternal love and limitless luxury. Every detail announced to the world that when it comes to pomp and pageantry, no one throws a party quite like the House of Roy.
5) Shristi Mittal and Gulraj Behl's 3 Day Barcelona Destination Wedding
The lavish destination wedding of Shristi Mittal, daughter of steel tycoon Pramod Mittal, to investment banker Gulraj Behl in 2013 raised the bar for opulence. The three-day wedding in Barcelona, Spain had 500 guests and cost over 5 billion rupees.
No expense was spared for the Mittal heiress’ nuptials. The venue was the National Museum of Catalan Art, requiring helicopters to capture the festivities from all angles. The reception featured a six-tier wedding cake weighing 60kg and a menu created by renowned Spanish chef Sergi Arola. Over 200 butlers and cooks were flown in from India and Thailand to cater to guests’ every need.
On the final evening, a spectacular fireworks display launched from Barcelona’s iconic Sagrada Família church signaled the end of the celebrations. This extravagant and most expensive Indian wedding set a precedent for destination weddings and spending vast sums on nuptial festivities.
Guests at this fantastical, fairytale wedding in Spain were transported to another world of unbridled opulence and excess, if only for one long, luxurious weekend.
6) Adel Sajan And Sana Khan
The CEO of Danube Homes, Adel Sajan, married while on a trip. Mr. Sajan and his partner, Ms. Sana Khan, held their wedding ceremony aboard the Concordia-class cruise ship Costa Fascinosa as it sailed between Barcelona, Spain, Marseilles and Cannes, France, concluding in Savona, Italy.
It is reported that over 100 crore rupees were spent on the wedding festivities and it is one of the most expensive Indian weddings, which included personalized gift baskets from Harrods for guests, a musical performance by Badshah and Vishal, and Shekhar for the sangeet ceremony, speeches given by Gauhar Khan and Sushmita Sen, and the cutting of a 10-tiered wedding cake by the bride and groom during the reception.
7) Sonam Vaswani And Navin Fabiani - One Of The most expensive Indian weddings
Sonam Vaswani, daughter of Sunil Vaswani, founder of Stallion Group and a prominent businessman in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), wed Navin Fabiana, son of Kamal Fabiana, in an elegant ceremony at a historic estate in Vienna, Austria.
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We understand how important Indian weddings are for bringing families and communities together. Our services are tailored to honor Indian traditions while incorporating modern touches to create a wedding that is a true reflection of our clients. From intimate celebrations to grand events with hundreds of guests, we have the expertise and resources to make our client’s wedding dreams come to life.
If you are planning an Indian wedding and want it to be truly spectacular, please contact us. We would love to speak with you about your vision and discuss how we can help you create an extraordinary wedding experience that your guests will remember for years to come.
