MensXpert.com - Lifestyles Of India's Rich And Famous

For mere mortals like us, the lifestyles of the rich and famous have always been the stuff of jaw-dropping wonder and killer curiosity. To those of us not privy to that world, their wealth, excess and everything that goes with it have inspired daydreams, fantasies and even rebellion (remember the good ol’ gory French Revolution?)

But besides all the clichés, what happens in the upper echelons of society? Are they ‘normal’ like us, or do the women really bathe in full-fat cream milk with rose petals everyday? Do the men have different coloured cars to match their finely tailored business suits? Let’s be honest…who doesn’t want a slice of the good life? The endless rounds of champagne, the latest luxury cars, wardrobes full of Valentino and Armani, and kitchens stocked with Beluga caviar and Knipschildt chocolate. Not to mention the women – the hot, hot women who are attracted to the money.

Well, that might be the stuff of cheap paperback romances, but the rich and famous are actually more down to earth than we give them credit for! They live, laugh, love and lose, just like us. They cry, they curse. In fact, and this might sound hard to believe, some of them actually have boring lifestyles! Then again, you have some really debonair, flamboyant celebs too, who live hard, work hard and party hardest!!

Keep Your Eyes on the Road, Hands upon the Wheel
No, they don’t all drive a Rolls or a Merc. They may own one, or maybe even two, but you’ll find that they sometimes shy away from using it, thinking it ostentatious!!

Yes it’s true that the demand for phenomenally expensive, luxury cars like BMWs and Ferraris is on the rise, and yes, you do have a Reliance giant, Mukesh Ambani who uses a helicopter to get to his meetings on time. It’s also true that some of our barons and bigwigs prefer less eyeball-grabbing sets of wheels. Eye surgeon extraordinaire, Dr. Burjor Banaji, drives a Skoda Octavia, having sold his Mercedes Benz C-class because he was embarrassed by the attention that it was attracting. But then again there’s the likes of the chairman of the UB Group, Vijay Mallya whose garage is proud shelter to a Maserati, a Ferrari and a Porsche! For a stylish, flashy man like him though, that comes as no surprise! Vroom baby, vroom!

Yummy in my Tummy!

Samir Jain of Beckett, Coleman

Mealtimes behind those closed doors must be a gastronomic paradise, every single day. The table spread with every kind of mouth-watering delicacy imaginable - from Nigerian Peanut Soup to Waldorf Salad, from Oysters on the Half Shell to Truffle Roasted Chicken, all washed down by sparkling red or white wine and finished off with a sinfully delicious Crème Brulee or Shahi Pista Phirni. It’s often rumoured that rich households have more than one cook; someone who specializes in Continental, someone in Mughlai and Tandoori, someone in Chinese, someone in South Indian…you get the picture.

It might be slightly true in some cases, but you’d be surprised by the food habits of the rich and famous. Vegetarianism is a big ‘yes’ for many and food preferences could be simple rajmah-chawal-dahi, or roti-sabzi-daal.

Mukesh Ambani loves street style food like chaat and bhel puri. He’s also quite the idli-sambhar man. Bennett-Coleman’s Samir Jain never eats out at restaurants and even when he’s dining at a friend’s house, he normally prefers his home-cooked Jain meal, which he actually takes along with him! Bharti’s Sunil Mittal turns veggie every time there’s a large project on the horizon. In fact, for Zee baron Subhash Chandra, more often than not, it’s the hot rotis with daal, veggies and curds that get his juices flowing. His one indulgence is a good smoke and no, not on a Havana cigar, but rather the lowly bidi! Yes, the man favours Bidi No. 502!

Bend and Stretch, Bend and Stretch…

If you happen to be a name and face that the paparazzi adore, and if you often make appearances in public, then you need to look good. Now, we’re not just taking about those Rohit Bal outfits, Brooks Brothers shoes, Gucci fragrances and solitaire tie-pins. No, we’re talking healthy body, here. New age exercise like Tai Chi, shadow boxing, water aerobics and pilates might have caught the fancy of some, for most you’ll find that they still prefer our very own, desi brand of fitness…yoga!

Bollywood starlet and winner of UK’s Big Brother, Shilpa Shetty is a long time fan of yoga, and she has even released a DVD called “Shilpa’s Yoga”. Yesteryear star, the still gorgeous and glowing Rekha, is also an ardent follower.

Samir Jain loves walking and is hardly ever seen without his jogging keds, regardless of whether they match or not with his finely tailored, expensive suit! The younger Reliance scion, Anil Ambani, is a keen athlete, well known for running in the annual Mumbai marathon.

Hobby Horse

UB Group chairman, Vijay Mallya

You would expect the richie riches to flaunt really expensive hobbies, wouldn’t you? Well, some do. Whether it’s cultivating race horses or collecting vintage cars, patroning polo matches or relaxing with golf, the cream of society do it with panache.

But for every UB Group tycoon Vijay Mallya and his pack of prizewinning steeds, you also have a Bajaj Auto chairman, like Rahul Bajaj, whose passions mirror the common man’s…cricket and the latest offering form Bollywood. Other well-known cricket enthusiasts are Bombay Dyeing’s Nusli Wadia and Bollywood superstar, Shah Rukh Khan. Considering the recently concluded bidding war on the cricket’s various Indian Premier Leagues, we now know just how enthusiastic our celebrities really are!

Music, a source of calm, enjoyment and delight for most of the country’s population, is also big with our more well to do brethren. Just like the rich zamindars of our country’s past used to patron musical soirees, you have a latter-day version in the form of real estate tycoon, Harsh Neotia, who organizes evenings of classical music during Holi. You have a rock enthusiast like Bollywood star Saif Ali Khan, who plays a mean electric guitar and enjoys playing at gigs.

Of course, collecting woks of art is something that unites many of the famous; Sunil Jain, Vijay Mallya (rumoured to have an original Picasso and Dali) and that charming host of the ever-popular Bournvita Quiz Contest, Derek O‘Brien, are all keen art collectors.

Ready, Jet Set, Go!!

Mukesh Ambani

Now you can’t expect our friendly, neighbourhood billionaire to go holidaying by train, can you? Unless ofcourse it’s the Orient Express, but even that might seem ho-hum. No, when you have the money, you obviously go to exotic locations, traveling in luxury. Industrialist Karan Paul’s latest toy is his yacht on which he enjoys his little cruises. Samir Jain loves his trips to Italy and Spain. Closer home, Goa seems to be quite the favourite destination of the jet-setting party people, Vijay Mallya and Nusli Wadia, being two such. Mukesh Ambani has a huge fondness for our country’s national parks and is known to frequent Bandhavgarh and Kanha tiger resorts along with his family. Roar, tiger!

…And Say ‘Om Shanti Om’
You just can’t get anywhere without thanking the One above for His blessings. Chanting the Gayatri Mantra, performing Sathya Narayan Puja and organizing bhajan sessions as well as Gita-paath are not just for the meek. Oh no! The powered classes know where the real Power lies.

Everybody in India is aware of the special relationship that Hindi filmdom’s Jaya Bachchan and TV serial baroness Ekta Kapoor share with Shree Siddhi Vinayak. Samir Jain regularly holds satsangs in his home. Lata Mangeshkar, India’s nightingale may have a penchant for diamond jewelry, but she is also well known for her frequent and elaborate pujas at her house. Even our flamboyant and flashy UB friend, Vijay Mallya, has a spiritual side. He is an ardent follower of Sri Sri Ravi Shankar and openly advocates his guru’s Art of Living philosophy.

So yes, while they do have the money to enjoy life, it’s important to remember how they managed to amass that kind of wealth in the first place…by working hard, really hard. The unifying factor of all our celebrity industrialists, film stars and media tycoons is that they all live by one common mantra…work is worship!