Billionaire heir Anant Ambani married Radhika Merchant in Mumbai this past weekend, in an opulent ceremony attended by politicians and celebrities, from India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi and former UK prime ministers Boris Johnson and Tony Blair to Kim and Khloé Kardashian. The Ambanis, India’s wealthiest family and owners of the country’s largest private company, Reliance Industries, footed the bill for the extravagant three-day event, speculated to cost hundreds of millions of dollars.
Weddings look very different around the world, from the size of the guest list to how long festivities go on for, and of course, the cost. According to data from the online wedding publication The Knot, an average wedding in the United States cost $35,000 in 2023, or around $300 per guest, when not accounting for jewelry, engagement rings or a honeymoon. It was followed by the United Kingdom at $28,500 or $320 per head, Spain at $25,700 or $210 per head, Italy at $23,900 or $220 per head and France at $21,800 or $220 per head.
The average wedding cost in India last year, according to the source, was closer to $25,000 for middle class couples; although around 15 percent were found to spend more than $45,000 on a wedding that year. The Knot analysts add that the average middle class household makes $7,000 to $40,000 annually.
In terms of the average guest list size, then India comes first out of the 15 surveyed countries with 326 guests on average in 2023, followed by the U.S. with 146, Uruguay with 129, Brazil with 124 and Spain with 121.
