Jennifer Lopez has once again taken what must be a big paycheck to do a private concert for people with a lot of money. This time, it was an opulent three-day wedding in India, hosted by an Indian American billionaire on behalf of his daughter and her groom, a San Francisco-based tech entrepreneur.
Several things have sparked controversy surrounding Lopez’s Friday concert for the wedding of Netra Mantena, daughter of pharmaceutical entrepreneur Rama Raju Mantena, and her groom, Vamsi Gadiraju, according to the Daily Mail.
The first is that one of the guests, for whom Lopez performed, was Donald Trump Jr. The socially and politically divisive son of President Donald Trump joined A-list Bollywood stars and other uber-wealthy people at the wedding spectacle, which showcased luxury and grandeur in iconic locations across the Taj Lake Palace in Udaipur in Western India, reports sid. The location, which was featured in the 1983 James Bond film “Octopussy,” incidentally gave the wedding its 007 theme, according to the Daily Mail. Trump Jr.’s date for the wedding was Bettina Anderson, the Palm Beach socialite he reportedly left fiancee Kimberly Guilfoyle to be with.
Lopez’s fans have taken issue with the gossip site TMZ blasting news about her performance at the wedding with a sub-headline that said she “performed for Trump Jr.” These fans seem to know it’s not a good look for Lopez to be seen socializing with a Trump family member, given that she endorsed the president’s three opponents, Hillary Clinton, Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, in their respective elections in 2016, 2020 and 2024. Lopez also performed “American the Beautiful” at Biden’s January 2021 inauguration — two weeks after Trump Jr. joined his father in denying the results of the 2020 election at a rally of supporters ahead of the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.
Multiple people on X admonished TMZ for its sub-headline, with one saying, “You mean (to say) Jennifer Lopez performed as a paid performer at the billionaire couple’s wedding, where Trump’s son happened to be one of the many guests. The insinuation that J.Lo has anything to do with any Trump family member is misleading.”
Several people also said, “Trump Jr. just happened to be there,” and “She is not responsible for who was invited.”
But others said people were offering “excuses” for Lopez, who suggested she said was doing the gig “for the money” she doesn’t said. One person said, “My question is, did she know he was going to be there ? If not, can’t blame her. If she did know, well (add) another name to my D.E.I. list ‘Don’t Engage Ignorance.’”
The Daily Mail’s report mentioned another potential controversy: Reports in the Indian media that the wedding spectacle, which reportedly cost $6.7 million, has come under fire for being “a sheer wastage of money.” In addition, the Daily Mail focused on Lopez performing some of her hit songs in a series of “skimpy” outfits, including a semi-sheer black bodysuit with a G-string backside.
Lopez previously faced backlash in 2013, after she traveled to Turkmenistan to perform for a private concert. Vanity Fair reported that Lopez was paid from $1 million to $1.5 million to sing three songs for guests who included Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow, the former president of Turkmenistan, whom the Wall Street Journal dubbed a “dictator.”
Critics accused Berdimuhamedow of human rights violations, prompting an outcry over Lopez’s decision to serenade him with “Happy Birthday” during the performance. Her representative later issued a statement, explaining that the event was not sponsored by Turkmenistan’s government and saying she would not have attended if she had known about the human rights issues, E! News said.
Whatever backlash that Lopez might face for performing at the wedding in India — while Trump Jr. “happened to be there” — the president’s oldest son appeared to have a wonderful time with Anderson. Trump Jr. and Anderson “looked more in love than ever as they laughed and smiled during the festivities,” the Daily Mail reported. “They couldn’t keep their hands off each other throughout most of the nuptials, with Bettina throwing her arms around a grinning Don Jr at one point.”
The Daily Mail said that MAGA insiders recently said that Trump Jr. and Anderson are considering marriage, with one saying: “Don is in love with Bettina. He is telling friends ‘This is the woman I love.’”
As for this week’s bridal couple, it wasn’t immediately known how they met. Mantena, the bride, is the daughter of Padmaja and Raju Mantena, a prominent Orlando-based entrepreneur and the CEO of Ingenus Pharmaceuticals, a company with research and development hubs across the United States, Switzerland, and India, India Today reported.
As for the groom, Gadiraju grew up in the Bay Area, where he attended the San Jose-based Harker School, a top private K-12 school that was founded in 1893, according to his LinkedIn page. After attending Columbia University, Vamsi co-founded Superorder, where he serves as chief technology Officer. The platform focuses on helping restaurants with multiple locations manage and optimize their delivery and takeout services.