In the past few years a new word has appeared in India to describe the new mega-rich — "Bollygarchs".
These Indian business-owners have become a new, distinct class of the international elite. But can they keep hold of their wealth?
The Indian stock market tanked in 2011, dropping 40% amidst poor performances by the manufacturing and farming sectors. The booming Indian economic growth slowed, fourth quarter figures dropping to their lowest numbers in nine years (5.3%), and 2012 isn't looking much better either.
As if that weren't bad enough, India's mega-rich have found themselves ensnarled in scandals, two of last years billionaires even finding themselves behind bars on charges connected to the 2G spectrum scandal.
We've taken a look at the 15 richest Indians here, and had a look at their chances for the future.
NOTE: All figures are accurate as of March 2012, sourced from Forbes. The previous years reported worth are from Forbes' March 2011 list
#14 Micky Jagtiani
Estimated Net Worth: $3.8 billion ($3 billion in 2011)
Residence: Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Source of Wealth: Owner and founder of Landmark Group, one of the largest retail companies in India and the Middle East with 1,088 outlets worldwide.
A good year? Bucking the trend of many of the others on this list, Jagtiani's wealth increased from last year as Landmark's revenue continued its steady rise.
Source: Forbes
#13 Uday Kotak
Estimated Net Worth: $4.1 billion ($3.2 billion in 2011)
Residence: Mumbai, India
Source of Wealth: Kotak holds the title as India's first billionaire banker, starting out with a small firm in 1985 to create Kotak Mahindra Bank, with 335 branches and 2.7 million customers.
A good year? Kotak owns 46 percent of the financial service firm, whose net income, dividends, and earnings per share continue to grow.
Source: Forbes
#12 Shiv Nadar
Estimated Net Worth: $5 billion ($5.6 billion in 2011)
Residence: New Delhi, India
Source of Wealth: Cofounder of HCL Group and majority shareholder of HCL Technologies, a global technology and IT enterprise.
A good year? Nadar's wealth fell off a bit from last year, mostly due to a moderate drop in the shares of HCL Technologies (they have rebounded quite a bit since shares bottomed out late last summer).
Source: Forbes
#10 Kushal Pal Singh
Estimated Net Worth: $6.4 billion ($7.3 billion in 2011, $30 billion in 2008)
Residence: New Delhi, India
Source of Wealth: Chairman of DLF Limited, the largest commercial real estate developer in India.
A good year? Once worth $30 billion when DLF was first publically listed (the largest IPO in India's history), Singh has seen his fortune steadily decline as shares of DLF rise and fall in line with the unpredictable real estate market.
Source: Forbes
#7 Anil Ambani
Estimated Net Worth: $7.8 billion ($8.8 billion in 2011, $42 billion in 2008)
Residence: Mumbai, India
Source of Wealth: Heir to Dhirubhai Ambani's fortune and chairman of Reliance Group, a conglomerate dealing in communications, financial services, infrastructure, entertainment, and power generation, transmission, and distribution.
A good year? Since 2008, when Ambani was one of the richest men in the world, he has been involved in the 2G spectrum scandal and shares of his communications and power companies have crumbled.
Source: Forbes
#6 Kumar Birla
Estimated Net Worth: $8 billion ($9.2 billion in 2011)
Residence: Mumbai, India
Source of Wealth: Chairman of Aditya Birla Group, a conglomerate producing aluminum (#1 producer in Asia), copper, carbon black, cement, and fertilizer, among other things.
A good year? While his net worth has fallen slightly, Birla has been a stalwart on the "Richest of India" list, dating back to 1995 when he took over the company after the sudden passing of his father.
Source: Forbes
#5 Sunil Mittal & family
Estimated Net Worth: $8.1 billion ($8.3 billion in 2011)
Residence: New Delhi, India
Source of Wealth: Chairman and CEO of Bharti Airtel, the fifth largest telecom operator in the world.
A good year? Mittal is another regular on the list, hovering near or at $8 billion for four years. Mittal was one of the few telecom giants who wasn't caught up in the 2G spectrum scandal.
Source: Forbes
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