Kalanidhi Maran is an Indian business tycoon. He is best known for being the founder and chairman of The Sun Group, one of Asia’s most profitable media companies.
Wiki/Biography
Kalanithi Maran was born on Saturday, July 24, 1965 in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India (58 years old as of 2023). His zodiac sign is Leo. He went to school at Don Bosco, Egmore, Chennai. Later, Kalanithi pursued a bachelor’s degree in commerce from Loyola College in Chennai. He later pursued an MBA at the University of Pennsylvania in Scranton.
appearance
Height (approximately): 5′8″
Hair color: black
Eye color: black
family
Kalanithi Maran belongs to a politically influential family.
Parents and siblings
His father’s name is Murasoli Maran and his mother’s name is Mallika Maran (late). Murasoli, who was a former Union Minister of India, died on November 23, 2023, at Apollo Hospital in Chennai due to heart and kidney problems.
Kalanidhi Maran’s father Murasoli Maran
Kalanidhi has a sister, Anbukarasi Maran, a cardiologist, and a brother, Dayanidhi Maran, a politician.
Kalanidhi Maran’s sister Ambkarasee Maran
Dayanidhi Maran and his wife Priya Maran
wife and children
Kalanithi is married to Kaveri Maran (also known as Kavery Maran), who serves as joint managing director of Sun Group. They married in 1991. The couple has a daughter named Kavya Maran (also spelled Kaviya Maran), who is a businesswoman.
Kalanidhi Maran with wife and daughter
other relatives
His great-uncle M. Karunanidhi served as Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu for nearly two decades. He passed away on August 7, 2018, at Cauvery Hospital in Chennai due to age-related illnesses.
M.Karunanidhi
religion
Kalanidhi follows Hinduism.
sign
Profession
Kalanithi started her career in 1990 with the launch of a monthly Tamil video news magazine (VHS) titled “Poomaalai”. He founded media company Sun Group in 1992.
Kalanidhi Maran in his office
On April 14, 1993, he founded Sun TV, the first and flagship channel of the group, which later became available in Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Bengali, Marathi and Malayalam and other six languages; he invested US$86,000 in Sun TV with a bank loan guaranteed by his father and his own savings. In 2007, the group established the DTH company “Sun Direct”.
Kalanithi Maran at Sun Group office
Over the years, Sun Group has been involved in various fields such as broadcasting (Suryan FM, Red FM, Magic FM), publishing (magazines and newspapers such as Dinakaran, Tamil Murasu, Malai Murasu, etc.), film production (Sun Pictures), sports, etc. (IPL franchise of Sunrisers Hyderabad) and digital streaming service (OTT platform Sun NXT).
dispute
Telephone switch case
Kalanithi and Dayanidhi Maran had been accused of installing a private telephone exchange at their home in Chennai, allegedly for business transactions related to Sun Network without billing, which allegedly resulted in a loss of Rs 178 crore to BSNL and MTNL. loss. On March 18, 2018, a special CBI court dropped the charges against Kalanithi and Dayanidhi. The judge found no evidence to support the charges against them.
criminal case
In 2010, Jak Communications, a cable television distribution company owned by Azhagri (Karunanidhi’s son), filed a criminal complaint against Kalanithi.
Awards
- Indian Television Academy Award for Best Television Channel (2001)
- CNBC Young Businessman Award (2006)
- TiECON Chennai Entrepreneur of the Year Award (2009)
- Hurun India Most Respected Entrepreneur of the Year Award (2024)
Kalanithi Maran wins Hurun India’s “Most Respected Entrepreneur of the Year” award
car collection
His collection of luxury cars includes a Rolls-Royce Phantom, an armored BMW 760Li, a Bentley Bentayga and a Mercedes-Maybach S660 Guard.
net worth
Kalanithi Maran’s net worth in 2024 is estimated to be $3.1 billion.
Favorites
- Food: Uttapam, Sambar, Dosa
- Actor: Samantha Ruth Prabhu
- Hollywood Movie: The Dark Knight (2008)
- Telugu movie: Agnyaathavaasi (2018)
Facts/Trivia
- Kalanithi follows a vegetarian diet.
- His hobbies include watching television and listening to music.
- During President Clinton’s visit to India in March 2000, Kalanithi was selected as one of the few delegates to participate in a round table discussion with him.
Kalanithi Maran joins Bill Clinton and others in roundtable discussion
- In 2010, his net worth reached US$4 billion, making him the 17th richest person in India. That same year he also became the country’s highest-paid businessman.
- From 2010 to 2015, Kalanithi held a large stake in SpiceJet India.
- In 2010, he was appointed as the Promoter Director and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the company “SpiceJet”.
Kalanithi Maran appointed SpiceJet promoter director
- From 2011 to 2012, he and his wife Kaveri became India’s second-highest paid executives, earning Rs. 62 Crores.
- Kalanithi co-owns the professional cricket team Sunrisers Hyderabad.
- In September 2023, Kalanithi Maran gifted a BMW X7 to actor Rajinikanth to celebrate the success of the Tamil film Jailer (2023). He was shown a BMW X7 and a BMW i7 EV at Rajinikanth’s residence and was allowed to choose between the two.
Kalanithi Maran gifts a BMW X7 to Rajinikanth
- On September 10, 2023, he presented gold coins to more than 300 people in recognition of their contribution to the success of the movie “The Jailer.”
Breaking News: Kalanithi Maran congratulates over 300 employees who work for them #jailer There are gold coins today.
𝗕𝗼𝘅𝗼𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝗗𝗶𝗻𝗼𝘀𝗮𝘂𝗿 𝗥𝗔𝗝𝗜𝗡𝗜pic.twitter.com/6efmA5tkTo
— Manobala Vijayabalan (@ManobalaV) September 10, 2023
Categories: Biography
Source: HIS Education