The ‘owner cannot live in’ villa at the top of the Indian skyscraper

In 2010, “Indian playboy king” Vijay Mallya spent 19.5 million USD to build a villa atop Kingfisher Towers in UB City district, Bengaluru city, southern India.

The villa is located on the top floor of the tower with a height of 122 m, with an area of ​​more than 3,700 m2, separate from the apartments below. At Mr. Mallya’s request, the architects modeled the villa after the American White House architecture, with an infinity swimming pool, helipad and garden.

“Building a villa on the roof of a building at this height is a big challenge,” said Irfan Razack, president of the Prestige group that built the tower. But the owner may never get to live in this mansion.

In 2016, Mr. Mallya defaulted on more than a billion USD in debt and faced charges of fraud and money laundering. Mr. Mallya, who now lives in England, denies the allegations.

Responding to a question about Mr. Mallya’s extradition, Security Minister Tom Tugendhat said “the British government has no intention of turning the country into a place where foreigners seek refuge and escape justice.”

British news site Ladbible wrote that the villa is currently unoccupied and Mr. Mallya may have “never stepped foot inside the house”.

Many people praised this project. “This is one of the best real estate properties in the country, with luxury hotels, the most luxurious shopping malls and the most luxurious apartments in Bengaluru,” a social media user commented.

“What a beautiful mansion, reflecting the luxurious life in India’s bustling city of Bengaluru,” another wrote.

Vijay Mallya, 68 years old, inherited his father’s alcoholic beverage empire. Mallya was the former chairman of India’s largest alcoholic beverage company and later served as chairman of United Breweries Group, a group operating in the fields of alcoholic beverages, aviation infrastructure, real estate and fertilizer.

Mallya was known as the “playboy king” when he dated many A-list actresses. He once founded Kingfisher Airlines but it ceased operations. Mallya also once owned an F1 racing team and a cricket team.