Isha Ambani begins pre-wedding celebrations with 'Anna Seva' in Udaipur

Festivities have begun for yet another high-profile wedding of this season as Isha Ambani -- daughter of India's richest man Mukesh Ambani and Nita Ambani - is set to marry industrialist Anand Piramal on December 12. The Ambani family has, however, kicked off the celebrations in a unique way: by feeding 5,100 people, majority of them with special abilities, three times a day in Rajasthan's Udaipur.

According to a statement from the family, the function, called "Anna Seva", will continue for four days, from December 7-10.

Family members, including Mukesh and Nita Ambani, Ajay and Swati Piramal, Isha Ambani and Anand Piramal were present at the Anna Seva function, serving people and interacting with them. Here are a few pictures from the function.

The pre-wedding festivities also include setting up of a specially curated exhibit called the Swadesh Bazaar that will showcase 108 traditional Indian Crafts and art forms from different regions of the country.

Three days of song, dance and pre-wedding rituals like mehendi are also lined up over the weekend.

Celebrities started arriving in Udaipur today with Actor Anil Kapoor and his wife Sunita Kapoor, filmmaker David Dhawan and fashion designer Manish Malhotra in the lead.

Social media pictures showed the venues in Udaipur, the Oberoi Udai Vilas and City Palace, all decked up for the upcoming events.

More than 100 chartered flights are landing in Udaipur's sleepy airport, a source told Reuters.

"The event will have many visitors from abroad, so customs and immigration counters have been set up at the airport and will remain active for the next five days," the airport source said.

Isha Ambani got engaged to Anand Piramal in September at Lake Como in Italy. The couple had a lavish engagement ceremony. The three-day-long affair was attended by several Bollywood stars.

Popstar Beyonce is expected to perform at the wedding next week in Mumbai, along with Bollywood celebrities.

Guests also have access to an app mapping out the activities.

Last month, a dandiya fest was organized as part of wedding celebrations. Here is a picture from the event:

The wedding will bring together two of India's most influential families. Mr Ambani, the chairman of Reliance Industries, has a net worth of $47 billion, Forbes magazine says. The Piramals are into pharmaceuticals and real estate business, and according to a report, have given the couple a 50,000-sq-foot sea-facing house in Mumbai.

The event is the latest in a series of big fat Indian weddings in recent days. Last week, actress Priyanka Chopra and singer Nick Jonas had a two-day wedding in Jodhpur while Bollywood stars Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh tied the knot in Italy on November 14 and 15 and hosted three receptions in India.

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