Vijay Mallya is a popular Indian businessman and a politician. Owing to his lavish lifestyle, he was once called the “King of Good Times”. He is the ex-chairman of United Spirits Ltd which is the largest spirit company of India. He also served as a member of Rajya Sabha twice. He received several awards in his career which include the 2010 “Entrepreneur of the Year” at the Asian Awards, “Global leader for tomorrow” by World economic forum,”Officier de la Légion d’Honneur” by Government of France.
Early Life and Background
Vijay Mallya was born on 18th December 1955 in Kolkata, West Bengal. His father, Vittal Mallya, was the chairman of United Breweries Group. His mother, Lalitha Ramaiah, was a home maker. Vijay attended the prestigious La Martinière Calcutta. After completing his school education he enrolled in St Xavier’s College, Calcutta and earned his graduation degree in commerce in the year 1976. Thereafter, he went to United States and joined an internship program in the American division of Hoechst AG. In 1997, the Southern California University for Professional Studies conferred upon an “Honorary degree of Doctorate of Philosophy” in Business Administration
Career
After the death of his father in the year 1983, Vijay became the chairman of United Breweries Group. He was only 28 years old then. With his able leadership, the company witnessed spectacular growth. It expanded to over 60 countries across the globe with a growth rate of 64%. In subsequent years, he acquired various brands like the Berger Paints, Best and Crompton, Mangalore Chemicals and Fertilizers, The Asian Age newspaper etc. He brought all these companies under one roof and renamed the brand as the “UB Group”.
Under the chairmanship of Vijay Mallya, the United spirit Ltd became the second largest spirit company in the world by selling 10 crore cases. The Kingfisher beer brand under the UB group became one of leading Indian beer brands in the global market and is sold over 52 counties in the world.
In March 2005, Vijay Mallya established the Kingfisher Airlines which was one of his most ambitious projects. But this airlines business did not run as per his expectations. It suffered huge losses and had to be closed down. The amount of money that he owed to banks became almost $1.35 billion by November 2015. Case was filed against Vijay Mallya and under Indian Law he was accused of being a “willful defaulter”.
A consortium of banks appealed to Supreme Court in March 2016 to stop Mallya from leaving the country. However, by that time he already left the country. On 18th April 2016, a non- bailable warrant was also issued by a special court of Mumbai against him. There were also allegations that he transferred Rs 4000 crores to tax haven. Apart from this, he was also the director of Royal Challengers Sports Pvt Ltd under which IPL team Royals Challengers Bangalore operates.
Vijay Mallya – Wife
Vijay was married Sameera Tyabjee in the year 1986. She was an airhostess of Air India. The couple has a son named Siddharth. But they got divorced in subsequent years.
Thereafter, in June 1993, he married his long time friend Rekha. They are blessed with two daughters namely Leanna and Tanya.
Vijay Mallya – Net Worth
Vijay Mallya has a net worth of $1.2 billion. He has 32 percent share in United Breweries (maker of Kingfisher) and holds Rs. 150 crores worth USL shares.He is the 84th richest person in India.
Vijay Mallya – House, Properties and Islands
One of the biggest properties of Vijay Mallya is the ‘White House in the Sky’. It is in the form of a tower that has 82 homes, of which 72 are given to billionaires and millionaires, with ten retained for family members. The penthouse on the 32 and 33rd floor is the pad of Vijay Mallya.
The other homes of Vijay Mallya include a sprawling mansion in Sausalito (France) which he bought for $1.2 million in 1984, huge penthouse in Trump Towers for $2.4 million, a beach face property in Nettleton Road (South Africa), a 90-crore worth vacation home in Goa known as ‘Kingfisher Villa’ , few castles in Scotlands and some farmhouses in London. He also has a palatial property called ‘Le Grande Jardin’ in France for $55 million.
Vijay Mallya owns Mabula Game Lodge in South Africa, which spans across 12,000 hectares of land. He also owns the island of Sainte- Marguerite in Lerin Islands, located near French Riveira (Cannes). He also owns a few islands properties in Monte Carlo, sprawling across 800 acres. Vijay Mally also owns few thousand acres of land in the Himalayan range.
Jet Planes
He uses Airbus 319 CJ, leased from Bank of London, and Hawker 700, owned by Shaw Wallace. Mallya holds 54 percent share in Shaw Wallace.
Vijay Mallya – Yacht
He makes use of the ‘Indian Empress’ a 95 m long yacht with a helipad. He sold it off in 2011 and is believed to be chartering it whenever he wants it. He owns a smaller yacht, a motor-based one, which dates back to 1906.