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Jyoti Mann
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- Mukesh Ambani is worth $121 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
- The world's 11th-richest person controls India's Reliance Industries.
- The Ambanis live in a 27-story skyscraper in Mumbai thought to have cost $1 billion.
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Mukesh Ambani, the richest person in India and 11th-richest person in the world, is kicking off pre-wedding celebrations for his son Anant this weekend.
Mukesh Ambani is worth $121 billion per the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
He's the owner and chairman of Reliance Industries, a massive conglomerate that includes telecom arm Jio Platforms, which has been thriving due to a "flurry" of investmentsin recent years, per Fortune.
The Ambanis made headlines in 2018 for throwing one of the most lavish wedding celebrations ever for Isha Ambani and Anand Piramal. It included a private Beyoncé concert and celebrity guests including Priyanka Chopra and Nick Jonas, Hillary Clinton, and Arianna Huffington.
In March the family is staging an extravagant three-day pre-wedding celebration for Anant, Mukesh Ambani's youngest son. Tech heavyweights such as Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg were among the 1,200 guests attending the festivities, The Guardian reported. Rihanna performed at one of the celebrations.
The Ambani family home in Mumbai is a 27-story skyscraper that cost an estimated $1 billion to build.
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Here's a look at the Ambani family's fortune, relationships, friends, and lavish lifestyles.
Katie Warren contributed to an earlier version of this story.
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The Ambanis are one of Asia's richest families.
The family patriarch, Mukesh Ambani, has an estimated net worth of $121 billion, making him the 11th-richest person in the world, according to Bloomberg.
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Dhirubhai died in 2002 at age 69 without a will, leaving his company to be run by his sons Mukesh and Anil.
Source: Bloomberg
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A bitter succession battle between the two brothers followed their father's death and resulted in a rivalrous relationship between Mukesh and Anil.
Ultimately, Mukesh was left in charge of the majority of Reliance.
In 2005, the brothers agreed to split control, with Mukesh overseeing oil and gas operations.
Anil took over construction, telecommunications, asset management, entertainment and power generation businesses.
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Anil Ambani is chairman of Reliance Group but has only a fraction of his older brother's wealth.
Bloomberg reported that 2018 saw Anil's businesses suffer from "legal and liquidity challenges."
Indian media reported in September 2018 that Anil's "cash-strapped" Reliance Communications will quit the telecom business and turn to real estate.
In early 2020, Anil told a UK court that his net worth was in fact "zero" and that he was bankrupt.
Mukesh Ambani is married to Nita Ambani.
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Nita is the chair of Reliance Foundation, the company's charitable organization.
She's also involved with the company's sports ventures as well as marketing and branding strategy for Reliance Jio Infocomm, Reliance's mobile network operator.
Nita and Mukesh have three children, with the youngest Anant, 29
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Then there are 32-year-old twins Isha and Akash Ambani.
Akash is a board member at Reliance Jio. Both he and his twin sister studied at Ivy League universities in the US, Akash at Brown University ...
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Akash is married to his high school sweetheart, Shloka Mehta, the daughter of a well-known diamond merchant. Mehta reportedly studied at Princeton University and the London School of Economics.
Source: Forbes, South China Morning Post
They were married in Mumbai in March 2019.
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Akash's twin sister, Isha, is on the board of Reliance Retail, and is a co-director for the telecoms arm Jio.
She previously worked at management consulting firm McKinsey in New York.
Source: Business Insider
Isha married Anand Piramal in December 2018.
Source:Business Insider
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The pre-wedding celebrations included a private concert by Beyoncé.
A post shared by Beyoncé (@beyonce)
Source: Business Insider
The wedding ceremony was held at the Ambani residence in Mumbai.
Source: Business Insider
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An estimated 600 guests attended the extravagant wedding, which some reports said cost about $100 million. A Reliance spokesman said it cost no more than $15 million.
Source: Forbes
Vintage cars carried guests during the wedding procession.
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Brothers Akash and Anant rode in on horseback.
The celebration included dance performances and sightings of many high-profile guests ...
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... including former Secretary of State and presidential candidate Hillary Clinton with her longtime aide, Huma Abedin
... actor Priyanka Chopra and her husband, Nick Jonas ...
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The Ambanis family live in a 27-story skyscraper in Mumbai that cost an estimated $1 billion called Antilia, named after a mythical Atlantic island.
Source: Business Insider
Antilia includes swimming pools, ballrooms, a garden that spans three floors, six floors of parking, and three helipads. A staff of 600 run the home.
Source:Business Insider
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Trees surrounding the skyscraper were decorated for Isha's wedding.
Source:Business Insider
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Mukesh Ambani's three children are all involved in the family business, but succession plans remain unclear.
Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant threw more glitzy pre-wedding parties in June.
The couple and a large group of their guests went on a luxury cruise that stopped over in Cannes, France and Portofino, Italy. They took over a plaza where Italian singer Andrea Bocelli performed, the Hindustan Times reported.
Pop star Katy Perry performed some of her hits, including "Firework," in Cannes. Other video clips shared online show the Backstreet Boys and Pitbull took to the stage as part of the pre-wedding festivities.
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The couple's wedding is expected to be held from July 12 to 14.
Last weekend the couple held a "sangeet" ceremony, which is usually a part of a wedding celebration and includes musical performances.
BBC News reported that Justin Bieber flew to Mumbai to perform for guests.
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