On a Thursday evening when half of India was watching a T20 World Cup semi-final at Wankhede, the other half had its eyes fixed on a wedding venue just a few kilometres away. Arjun Tendulkar, the 26-year-old left-arm pacer and son of India’s greatest cricketer, married Saaniya Chandhok in a star-studded ceremony in South Mumbai — and the cricket world turned up in spectacular fashion to celebrate with the Tendulkar family.

Sachin and Anjali Tendulkar were beaming throughout the ceremony, with Anjali and daughter Sara coordinating beautifully in pink sarees as the family watched Arjun take his vows. The venue, secured with NDAs and a QR code entry system to maintain privacy, sparkled with India’s finest — from cricket immortals to Bollywood royalty.

When India’s Legends Shared One Room

For Indian cricket fans, the guest list alone was enough to send nostalgia into overdrive. MS Dhoni and Sakshi, Rahul Dravid, Ravi Shastri and family, Irfan and Yusuf Pathan — the roll call of legends walking through one wedding venue in Mumbai felt like a World Cup reunion that nobody had formally organised but everyone deeply cherished.

Add ICC Chairman Jay Shah, BCCI Vice-President Rajiv Shukla, and a Bollywood contingent that included Amitabh Bachchan, Jaya Bachchan, Abhishek Bachchan, Aishwarya Rai, Aamir Khan and legendary singer Asha Bhosle, and this wasn’t just a wedding — it was the most high-profile gathering of cricket and Hindi cinema in recent memory. Even former South Africa opener Hashim Amla was spotted at the celebrations, adding an international flavour to the evening.

The Moment That Broke the Internet: MSD and His Phone

In a venue full of celebrities, it was MS Dhoni who generated the biggest social media moment — and he didn’t even need to say a word.

A viral video circulating on X (formerly Twitter) captured Dhoni walking into the wedding venue alongside Sakshi, holding a mobile phone in his hand. For most people, this is an entirely unremarkable sight. But for Dhoni fans, who have long subscribed to the playful theory that the former India captain is chronically averse to phones and social media, the moment was nothing short of historic.

“Breaking!!! MS Dhoni has a mobile phone. Or is he carrying Sakshi’s phone?” one user wrote. Another posted: “Rare video of MS Dhoni with mobile and Hashim Amla from Arjun Tendulkar’s wedding.”

The memes followed within minutes — speculation about whether the phone was his, Sakshi’s, or simply borrowed from a guest for a photograph — all delivered with the affectionate irreverence that India reserves exclusively for Thala.

Who Is Saaniya Chandhok?

Saaniya is the granddaughter of Ravi Ghai, the Chairman of the Graviss Group — a prominent Indian hospitality and business conglomerate whose properties include the InterContinental Hotels franchise in India. She co-founded a luxury pet grooming brand and has been a close friend of the Tendulkar family for years, particularly of Arjun’s sister Sara, which is how the relationship began and grew.

The couple got engaged privately in August 2025 and chose to celebrate their pre-wedding festivities across two grand locations — a puja and early celebrations at the Reliance Group estate in Jamnagar (the same venue that hosted Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant’s wedding), and the main ceremony in South Mumbai on Thursday.

Arjun Tendulkar: The Cricketer Finding His Feet

The groom himself has had a quiet but steady cricketing journey. Picked up by Mumbai Indians in the 2021 mini-auction, Arjun played his first IPL matches in 2023, claiming three wickets across five appearances — each cap earned entirely on merit, under the considerable weight of a surname that can be as daunting as it is inspiring.

He was traded to the Lucknow Super Giants ahead of IPL 2026 and will turn out for his new franchise in what could be his most important domestic season yet — a fresh start at a new franchise, a new city, and now a new chapter in his personal life as well.

For Sachin Tendulkar, Thursday evening at a South Mumbai venue was more than a wedding. It was one of those rare evenings when a life’s worth of friendships — forged on cricket fields from Cape Town to Lords — gathered under one roof to celebrate something that has nothing to do with runs or wickets, and everything to do with family.