2 Islands, 71-Room Palace, $4 Billion Net Worth: How It All Came Crashing Down For Aircel's Siva
In 1999, Chinnakannan Sivasankaran, also knows as 'Siva', founded Aircel, a mobile services company that became a game-changer in the telecom industry.
Once the proud owner of two private islands, a 71-room mansion in Chennai, and real estate across continents, Chinnakannan Sivasankaran – better known in business circles as “Siva" – now calls himself a broke man living a humble life. Yet he insists: he is not poor.
The story of Sivasankaran reads like the script of a gripping biopic. Born into a modest Tamil Nadu household, he charted an extraordinary journey through India’s corporate landscape, building and losing a billion-dollar empire. Speaking recently on The Ranveer Show, the former telecom tycoon reflected on his spectacular rise and humbling setbacks. “I am not poor, I am just broke for the time being," he said, with a calm that belied the turbulence he has endured.
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Siva’s entrepreneurial journey began in the 1980s with a modest foray into computer hardware. His company, Sterling Computers Limited (STC), became one of the leading names in the Indian IT sector during the 1990s. But it was in telecom where he truly made his mark.
In 1999, he founded Aircel, a mobile services company that became a game-changer in the telecom industry. Aircel rapidly scaled, attracting lakhs of subscribers and emerging as a formidable brand. In 2006, Siva sold a 74% stake in Aircel to Malaysia-based Maxis Communications in a deal that would later haunt him.
The transaction became entangled in the infamous 2G spectrum scandal, which rocked the telecom sector and political corridors alike. While others faced criminal prosecution, Siva too found himself mired in legal troubles and debt. In 2018, Aircel declared bankruptcy, and Siva claimed he personally suffered a loss of Rs 7,000 crore.
“I had everything – wealth, properties, recognition – and then I watched it all vanish," he said. His net worth, once pegged at over $4 billion, evaporated with the downfall of Aircel and the domino effect it triggered on his other ventures.
Yet, the man who once dined with billionaires and entertained dignitaries in his palatial homes says his story is far from over. Drawing inspiration from an unlikely source, he recounted reading a book by Donald Trump on the same day he decided to declare bankruptcy. It gave him the motivation to plot his comeback.
“I decided what I had to do next. My story is not over yet," he declared, exuding a quiet determination.
His former life was the stuff of modern-day royalty. He had real estate in London, the US, and Canada, and owned not one, but two islands in the Seychelles. His sprawling Chennai estate, valued at Rs 524 crore, boasted 71 rooms and a level of opulence rare even among the country’s wealthiest. The estate is now gone – demolished in the wake of his financial crisis. Today, Siva retains a two-acre plot on the same land but says he has no immediate plans to rebuild. “First I will solve all my issues. Then, maybe, I’ll think about it," he said.
He continues to fight a legal battle in the Supreme Court, holding on to the belief that a favourable verdict could restore much of what he lost. It’s that mix of faith and resilience that now defines Siva more than the wealth he once commanded.
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