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See photos of stars at the mega wedding for the son of Asia’s richest man in Mumbai, India
The son of Asia’s richest man is getting married in the culmination of a monthslong, star-studded, multi-event mega wedding this weekend, with the main event kicking off Friday. Anant Ambani, the son of Resilience Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani, and longtime girlfriend Radhika Merchant have an epic guest list that includes John Cena, Kim Kardashian, Mark Zuckerberg, Bollywood stars, famous cricket players, politicians and a who’s who from around the globe.
The wedding festivities kicked off in March with events attended by Zuckerberg and his wife, Priscilla Chan, Ivanka Trump and her husband, Jared Kushner and Bill Gates.
Rihanna famously performed at the March party, a three-day event that included 1,200 guests, according to Reuters. The bride and groom also served dinner to 51,000 villagers in Jamnagar.
Raju Shinde/Hindustan Times via Getty Images
Another pre-wedding party — a cruise around the Mediterranean — featured performances by Katy Perry, Andrea Bocelli and the Backstreet Boys, BBC News reports.
Several other parties were held earlier this month – including a performance by Justin Bieber, according to BBC – but stars began pouring out of the Mumbai Airport this week for the main event. Here are some of the people who walked the red carpet – yes, they have a red carpet for photo ops – and who are expected to attend the nuptials.
Anant, Mukesh and Nita Ambani
Francis Mascarenhas / REUTERS
The groom, Anant Ambani, with his parents Mukesh Ambani and Nita Ambani. The elder Ambani is Asia’s richest man, with a fortune worth $123.7 billion, according to Forbes. He is the 11th richest person in the world, thanks mostly to his company which invests in petrochemicals, oil and gas, telecom, retail and financial services.
Resilience Industries also includes a successful broadband service called Jio and the Jio World Convention Centre will serve as the venue for the main wedding ceremony on Friday, according to Reuters.
Raju Shinde/Hindustan Times via Getty Images
Anant is the couple’s youngest son. Their daughter, Isha, got married in 2018 in a $83.8 million wedding, according to GQ India. Her wedding to Anand Piramal, the son of another billionaire, included a performance by Beyonce and is believed to have been the most expensive wedding in India.
Their other son, Isha’s twin brother Akash, married Shloka Mehta in 2019 in a wedding that included a performance by Coldplay, GQ India reports.
John Cena
Francis Mascarenhas / REUTERS
Wrestler and actor John Cena did his signature “you can’t see me” hand gesture on the red carpet.
Nick Jonas and Priyanka Chopra
Francis Mascarenhas / REUTERS
Bollywood actress Priyanka Chopra, who won the Miss World pageant in 2000 and has a successful acting career in the U.S., and singer Nick Jonas of the Jonas Brothers attended the main event, taking photos on the red carpet. The pair had their own wedding in India in 2018.
Kim and Khloe Kardashian
Reuters
Kim and Khloe Kardashian were filmed arriving in India to much fanfare. The pair also posted selfies on social media and showed off their fashions ahead of the event.
Kim Kardashian
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee
Satish Bate/Hindustan Times via Getty Images
Mamata Banerjee, the chief minister of the Indian state of West Bengal was seen arriving in Mumbai for the wedding earlier this week. She is the first woman to hold the office of chief minister, a role she took on in 2011.
Cricketers Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya, Krunal Pandya
Francis Mascarenhas / Reuters
Famous cricket players – including Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya and Krunal Pandya – were invited to the wedding. Cricket is the most popular sport in India and one of the most popular in the world.
Actor Varun Dhawan
Francis Mascarenhas / Reuters
Varun Dhawan, one of India’s highest-paid actors with a long slate of Hindi movies, arrives at the main event.
Bollywood actress Ananya Panday
PUNIT PARANJPEPUNIT PARANJPE/AFP via Getty Images
Bollywood actress Ananya Panday, the daughter of foreign film actor Chunky Panday, attended the main event. She wore a custom dress with “Anant’s Brigade” embroidered on the back to show support for the groom.
Raju Shinde/Hindustan Times via Getty Images
Indian film director Atlee Kumar’s wife also donned an “Anant’s Brigade” dress.
Actor Arjun Kapoor
Francis Mascarenhas / REUTERS
Arjun Kapoor, an actor who is the son of two film producers and part of a famous Bollywood film family, attended the main event.
Ivanka Trump
Ajit Solanki / AP
Ivanka and her daughter Arabella attended pre-wedding festivities in March. Trump was photographed with her husband, Jared Kushner, at the event.
Ranbir Kapoor, Alia Bhatt, Shaheen Bhatt and Aditya Roy Kapur
Raju Shinde/Hindustan Times via Getty Images
Some of India’s most famous actors, Ranbir Kapoor, Alia Bhatt, Shaheen Bhatt and Aditya Roy Kapur, attended pre-wedding festivities earlier this month.
A moment for the details
A custom mural, strings of lights covering the Ambani residence and fun fashions on the red carpet make up some of the lavish details of the event.
NARINDER NANU/AFP via Getty Images
Bhushan Koyande/Hindustan Times via Getty Images
Bhushan Koyande/Hindustan Times via Getty Images
On Dec. 15, 2022, Matthew Ecker was headed to work when he said he got a frantic call from his former co-worker and friend Alex Pennig. He said Pennig told him she got in a fight with her boyfriend Shane Anderson and was scared of what he might do. So, Ecker took his gun, which he owned legally, and drove to Pennig’s St. Paul, Minnesota, apartment.
Terri Randall/Mary Jo Pennig
Ecker arrived around 2 p.m. He would later say his only reason for going to Pennig’s was to protect her.
Early the next morning, Pennig was shot dead in her apartment. Detectives used surveillance footage to piece together her final moments.
The altercation
Ramsey County District Court
Pennig and Ecker went out to a few bars that evening and ended up at Camp Bar at 12:30 a.m. on Dec. 16, 2022. Anderson was at the bar. Surveillance video shows he walked over to Pennig and began talking to her. Ecker walked over to the two of them. Things got heated, and when Ecker stepped in between Pennig and Anderson, Anderson punched him. Anderson was kicked out of the bar and Pennig and Ecker stayed for about an hour drinking and chatting.
Matthew Ecker and Alex Pennig arrive home for the night
Ramsey County District Court
At 2:05 a.m., Pennig and Ecker arrive at her apartment building after walking there from Camp Bar.
A return to the lobby
Ramsey County District Court
At 2:24 a.m., Pennig and Ecker are seen back in the lobby as they walk out of the building. Ecker would later say he was going to his car to get his headphones. Pennig (pictured) returned first and waited in the vestibule for Ecker. She paces around looking at her phone.
Alex Pennig last seen alive
Ramsey County District Court
Ecker returns two minutes after Pennig at 2:30 a.m. The two then walk through the lobby and go back up to Pennig’s apartment. This is the last time Pennig was seen alive.
St. Paul police officers arrive on scene
Ramsey County District Court
At 2:50 a.m., Ecker called 911 and reported that Pennig shot herself in the head. St. Paul police officers raced to the apartment building and Ecker let them inside at 2:56 a.m.
Matthew Ecker’s story
Ramsey County District Court
After leading police officers to Pennig’s apartment, Ecker sat in the hallway, appearing distressed and emotional. Officer Justina Hser approached him and began asking him what happened. Their conversation, which lasted nearly an hour, was captured on her body camera. Ecker told her everything was fine between him and Pennig and that they did not have an argument. He said she grabbed his gun out of his backpack, backed into the bathroom and locked the door. Moments later, Ecker said he heard a shot, so he broke open the bathroom door to find Pennig laying on the floor with a gunshot wound to her left temple.
The weapon
Ramsey County District Court
Responding officers located the gun. It was on Pennig’s chest with her left hand resting on top. They noted that this seemed odd. One officer then moved the gun to the sink (pictured) to place it in a safe position.
Notable evidence
Ramsey County District Court
Ecker had told officers he washed his hands after trying to help Pennig, which is why his hands were clean. But the officers noticed that the bathroom sink was dry when they arrived. If Ecker had just washed his hands, detectives believed the sink probably would have still been wet.
A lack of evidence on Matthew Ecker
Ramsey County District Court
Ecker was interviewed by detectives around 6:30 a.m. on Dec. 16, 2022. He had no visible blood on his body or his clothes. It was later discovered that Ecker also had no gunshot residue on him.
The defining evidence
Ramsey County District Court
While Ecker was being interviewed at the police station, the forensic unit processing the scene notified detectives that they had found a new piece of evidence once Pennig’s body was moved. It was a metal piece of the bathroom door lock, and it was discovered on the floor where Pennig’s head was. The detectives suspected that when Ecker broke open the door, that small metal piece landed on the bathroom floor. According to the detectives’ theory, Ecker broke open the bathroom door, then Pennig was shot and fell on top of the piece. They say this proves the bathroom door was forced open before Pennig was shot, and that Ecker had lied to them.
The accused: Matthew Ecker
Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office
On Dec. 19, 2022, Matthew Ecker is formally charged with second-degree murder. Ecker denies killing Alex Pennig.
The trial of Matthew Ecker
CBS News
On Feb. 8, 2024, Ecker’s trial begins. Eight days later, on Feb. 16, 2024, he is found guilty of second-degree murder.
Matthew Ecker sentencing
CBS News
On April 3, 2024, Ecker is sentenced to 30 years in prison. He is appealing his conviction.
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