Photos and videos of the lavish $74 million wedding of Ex-State Minister Janardhana Reddy's daughter were just released, and many find the wedding an "insult" to India's current and on-going financial crisis.
Reddy has since become an owner of a mining company after leaving public office. It was said that he rented out the entire Bangalore Palace and has hired dancers from Brazil to perform during the festivity.
The wedding came as a shock for many Indians who are currently facing an economic crisis with the surprise pull out of many circulating notes. This move, according to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is to put a crackdown on the country's big problem on tax evasion.
The wedding is said to be costing a total of 5 billion rupees or $74 million. Some of the wedding's highlights include: wedding invitations set in a gold-plated box, with an interior monitor featuring the couple's music video; the bride's wedding sari costing $2.5 million; and the bride's jewelry amounting to $12.4 million. The gold-plated invitations are said to have cost $148,000.
Prior to the wedding, videos were also released showing Reddy, his wife and their son lip-syncing to a song, which was meant to be shown during the wedding program. The video also featured Reddy's Daughter Brahmani and her fiancé Rajeev walking amidst five white horses.
While it is not surprising for Indian weddings to be lavish, many believe this festivity is over the top and impossible to be afforded by an ex-government official. A netizen posts that the lavish ceremony was "insulting" to the Indian nation.
As to how Reddy could have afforded such a grand wedding, he explains that he had put on mortgage his properties in Bangalore and Singapore so he can fund for the celebration. He also says that he had already paid for the entire wedding six months before the date.
Reddy knew exactly what he wanted for his daughter's wedding, and has hired eight Bollywood directors to set the stage for the festivity. The Ex-State Minister wanted the venue to resemble a Hindu temple.
Indian weddings usually go for one week, with the highlight on the last day. The culmination of the festivity will be held today at southern India's Bangalore Palace.
Citizens did not take this lightly and have voiced out their sentiments on social media. One netizen even says in half jest, "How former BJP Minister Gali Janardhana Reddy had to stand in queue outside a bank to exchange Rs. 4,000 for his daughter's wedding."
