All About the Billionaire Ambani Family

Mukesh Ambani, India’s richest man, is no stranger to lavish celebrations.

The billionaire, his wife Nita, and their three children — Anant, Akash and Isha — have been in the public eye for decades. After taking over the family business Reliance Industries Limited, a multinational conglomerate, Mukesh has expanded the company into various sectors — with all the Ambanis on board. 

The Ambanis have long been public figures in India and around the globe, and while extravagant affairs aren’t anything new to the family, the world has been watching since January 2024, as the family has hosted celebration after celebration in anticipation of the wedding for their youngest son, Anant, and his fiancée, Radhika Merchant. The couple’s pre-wedding festivities have already made headlines, with appearances from celebrities like Rihanna to tech billionaires like Mark Zuckerberg.

Anant and Radhika are set to marry in Mumbai on July 12, with celebrity-filled festivities occurring throughout the weekend.

So, who are the Ambanis? Here’s everything to know about the billionaire family.

Mukesh is the world’s ninth richest person

Mukesh, the patriarch of the Ambani family, has been at the helm of Reliance Industries Limited since 2002 and currently serves as the multinational conglomerate’s chairman and managing director. He boasts a net worth of over $123 billion, according to Forbes, and is the richest person in India and ninth in the world.

His family business comes from humble beginnings

Reliance was founded by Mukesh’s father, Dhirubhai Ambani, in 1958 and began as a small firm trading commodities like spices and polyester yarn, per Britannica. It evolved into Reliance Textiles in 1966, focusing on the textile industry, and went public in 1977, pioneering widespread small investor participation in India’s stock market. By the 1980s, Reliance diversified into petrochemicals, plastics and petroleum refining, eventually becoming a global leader in the polyester market. 

After Dhirubhai died, Mukesh and his brother Anil took over the family business. Eventually, Mukesh emerged as the leader, transforming Reliance into a global powerhouse, and has since diversified into various sectors including telecommunications, retail and renewable energy.

Nita was a school teacher when she met Mukesh

Nita and Mukesh were introduced by Mukesh’s father, Dhirubhai, in 1984, per GQ India. At the time, she was a school teacher.

“My first impression was that she looked stunning,” Mukesh recalled of their first meeting during an appearance on the talk show Rendezvous with Simi Garewal, per GQ India. “I wanted to meet Nita and find out what she was as a person and can she and I really share a life together.”

The couple wed in 1985, and Nita has since gotten involved with her husband’s business. She is the founder and chairperson of the Reliance Foundation, which focuses on education, healthcare, disaster response and rural development in India. 

“I told Mukesh right from the start that I didn’t want to be just an ornament,” Nita told Forbes in April 2016.

Mukesh and Nita have three children, twins Akash and Isha, and son Anant

Mukesh and Nita became first-time parents with the arrival of twins Akash and Isha.

Akash, the couple’s older son, studied economics at Brown University and joined Reliance Industries in 2014. He has served as a chairman of Reliance’s telecommunications subsidiary, Jio Infocomm Limited, since 2022. At the IIT Bombay Techfest in December 2023, Akash mentioned that his career was strongly influenced by his father.

“My father is one of my biggest inspirations and heroes,” he said. “He always wanted me to be an engineer — full disclosure I’m not an engineer. I’ve been obsessed with technology since my father got his first phone in late 2003.”

Akash’s twin sister, Isha, graduated from Yale University with a degree in psychology and South Asian studies and later earned an MBA from Stanford University. Isha is a member of the board of Reliance’s various branches, including retail, telecommunications and financial services, as well as serving on the board for Reliance Foundation.

Anant, the youngest of the Ambani siblings, attended Brown University like his older brother. He now serves as a director on various boards within Reliance, with a particular focus on green initiatives and is “driving the expansion” of Reliance’s initiative towards renewable power.

Isha had a $100 million wedding in 2018

Isha married her husband Anand Piramal, son of billionaire Ajay Piramal, in 2018 — a wedding Mukesh reportedly spent $100 million on.

The pre-wedding celebration was attended by Bill and Hillary Clinton (who have known the Ambani’s for decades, according to Reuters), Nick Jonas and Priyanka Chopra and other high-profile celebrities and politicians.

In November 2022, Isha and Anand welcomed twin children, Krishna and Aadiya.

Anant and Radhika were friends before they were engaged

Anant’s wife-to-be, Radhika, is the daughter of Viren Merchant, CEO of Encore Healthcare, and shares a similar affluent background. The couple had actually known each other for years before getting engaged and were childhood friends. 

Anant and Radhika’s engagement in December 2023 was a private affair at a temple in Rajasthan, but their subsequent celebrations have been anything but low-key. From a pre-wedding bash in March that featured a performance by Rihanna to a four-day European cruise, the festivities have been nothing short of extravagant.

The Ambanis have a lot of celebrity friends

The Ambanis’ celebrity friends include a diverse array of global stars, including Bill Gates and Paula Herd, Jonas and Chopra. Jonas and Chopra have been to multiple Ambani events, with Chopra and Isha having a particularly close friendship. In 2018, Isha attended Chopra’s bachelorette in Amsterdam.

David Beckham and Victoria Beckham have also been close to the Ambanis, attending several events, including a visit to their Mumbai residence, Antilia, during Beckham’s 2023 UNICEF tour in India, per India Today.

The guest list for an Ambani affair likely won’t disappoint, and Anant’s July 2024 wedding has already included appearances from celebrities like Kim Kardashian and Khloé Kardashian, Mike Tyson and John Cena.

Anant’s 2024 nuptials have drawn global attention

The Ambani family’s pre-wedding celebrations for Anant and Radhika have drawn attention from around the world for the seemingly unending and increasingly opulent affairs. 

In March 2024, a three-day pre-wedding event at the luxurious Ambani Estate in Gujarat had a guest list of 1,200 people — with names including Zuckerberg and Gates, as well as several Bollywood stars and global celebrities. Guests were entertained by fireworks, choreographed Bollywood dancing and 500 dishes cooked by over 100 chefs, per CNN. 

Anant and Radhika’s wedding, set for July 12, 2024, is being held at the Jio World Convention Center in Mumbai — a venue with a capacity of 16,000. The wedding is anticipated to feature a red carpet showcasing A-list attendees in classical Indian attire. As for Saturday and Sunday’s festivities, those events are being held at the 27-story Ambani residence in Mumbai.