From entertainment to aviation, the journey of Kalanidhi Maran

When Kalanidhi Maran, who late Saturday sealed a multi-millio-dollar deal to buy majority stake in budget carrier SpieceJet was named among 40 richest Indians by Forbes last year, it was testimony to the mercurial rise of this first-generation entrepreneur at such a young age.

Being the scion of a family which wields huge political clout - his father Murasoli was a Union Commerce and Industry Minister, his grand uncle M Karunanidhi is Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and his younger brother Dayanidhi is Union Textiles Minister - business was not a natural choice for him.

Neither was he interested in what otherwise remains his extended family's passion.

"Politics was discussed over breakfast, lunch, dinner. I had absolutely no interest in it," the 45-year-old, whose Sanskrit first name translates to treasure-trove of art and skill, recollected in an interview to Forbes magazine.

Seeds of his business dreams were sown early.

During his student days in Pennsylvania in the mid-1980s where he got a master's in business administration from the University of Scranton, he was awed by the large number of television channels available in the US catering to every possible segment.

He was 25 and wanted to start his own bouquet of channels in India.

Text: IANS

Images courtesy: PTI / AFP / AP

Also see: Salary of the richest Indian