Suits & Sayings: Mukesh Ambani’s niece to wed in UK’s Stoke Park; another unicorn in panic mode; a super boss gets a Netflix documentary

ET’s weekly roundup of the wackiest whispers and murmurs in corporate corridors & policy parlours:

For Whom the Bell Tolls
If you are someone who matters, then by now you would be booked on the charter for this week’s mega shaadi of Isheta and Atulya at Stoke Park in the UK. Daughter of Dipti and Raj Salgaocar and niece of Mukesh Ambani, the bride is tying the knot with the son of Vinod Mittal and nephew of LN Mittal. A summer soiree, the celebrations kick off with a black-tie dinner and dance event on day one followed by the grand wedding with all the bells and whistles — baraat swagat, jaimala, hasta melap — and some more dinner and dancing by the Stoke Park lakeside. Dress code, however, for this is pastel traditional. One thing is for sure, 007 or Goldfinger won’t be invited.

Seat for the Lieutenant
Loyalty pays if you are a lifelong confidante in a Marwari business family. And history is repeating itself. Some months back we reported a personal investment in a digital bank in the UAE by this soft-spoken billionaire industrialist. Fresh from the oven, the board of this institution has been put in place. It includes top Emirati officials, a former Franklin Templeton CEO, Yusuffali MA of the Lulu Group, and an Indian CFO representing his boss. If you can manage the finances of a $45-billion global Indian conglomerate, a digibank shouldn’t be much of a bother.


Waah Netflix!
Ever since his second stint began, the super boss of our largest conglomerate is truly over the moon — a much-awaited digital launch, a new pad, praise and prizes. The cherry on top must be his recent rendezvous with former US President Barack Obama, who, we hear, spent a day shooting at its Big Apple luxury property for a Netflix documentary on the iconic hotel brand. Oldtimers like us recall Obama’s solemn speech and laying of a wreath at the Mumbai flagship in memory of those who fell during the Mumbai terror attack. This should be a must-watch.

A New Beginning?
Will this maverick, larger-than-life tech investor hang up his boots following his milestone birthday? If the chatterati in Europe and Delhi is to be believed, he is seriously toying with the idea. Launching a fund of his own after managing more money than the gods for his boss is the simplest option, but knowing him and his tobacco-chewing habit, maybe a vineyard or a cigar gig would be more up his alley.

Good to Bad to …
In this season of tech and startup meltdowns, we hear one more hotshot, consumer-facing unicorn could be biting the dust very soon. ET recently reported existing investors giving the thumbs down to its largest buyout but now a little birdie tells us two of its last deals are yet to get consummated due to lack of funds. What’s worse, the plan of raising half-a-billion dollars at close to $1.8 billion pre-money valuation has gone down the tube as well with the withdrawal of a blue-blooded US investor who surely knows a thing or two about Indian D2C brands, having backed most of the success stories. This after submitting a term sheet. Last heard, the current backers, an equally prestigious bunch, are ready to bankroll the venture but at a valuation equal to the total sum that was to be raised this round.