Step inside lavish mansion of Sunrisers Hyderabad’s 'real' owner, worth Rs 100 crore, closely related to Kavya Maran

Kalanithi Maran is a well-known Indian businessman and media tycoon. He is the founder and chairman of the Sun Group, which runs one of the largest media networks in India. His empire includes TV channels, newspapers, radio stations, a direct-to-home (DTH) service, a film production company, and even a cricket team – Sunrisers Hyderabad in the Indian Premier League (IPL).

Maran started his media journey in 1990 by launching a Tamil magazine called Poomaalai. Later, in 1993, he founded Sun TV, which became a huge success. In 2006, Sun TV was listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange, and Maran raised USD 133 million by selling just 10% of its shares. This pushed him into the billionaire club. He was also one of the select Indian businessmen to attend a roundtable with then-US President Bill Clinton.

As of 2023, Kalanithi Maran’s net worth is around USD 3 billion (Rs 24,900 crore approx.), making him the 77th richest person in India. He and his wife, Kavery Maran, are among the highest-paid business executives in the country, each earning around Rs 62 crore annually.

Family and Lifestyle
Kalanithi Maran is the son of former Union Minister Murasoli Maran and is the grandnephew of Tamil Nadu’s former Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi. His brother, Dayanidhi Maran, is also a former minister. He is married to Kavery Maran, and they have a daughter named Kavya Maran, born in 1991. Kavya is currently the CEO of Sunrisers Hyderabad.

The Maran family lives in a luxurious bungalow on Boat Club Road, one of the most expensive areas in Chennai. The house, worth nearly Rs 100 crore, was bought in 2001 from HSBC through an e-auction. Maran works from the 11th floor of Murasoli Maran Towers in MRC Nagar and often travels in a Bentley.

His office is filled with television screens that display the 21 TV channels he operates in Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, and Kannada. Besides television, his media empire also includes 69 FM radio stations like Red FM, a major DTH provider, and several newspapers and magazines.

IPL and the Sunrisers Hyderabad
The Indian Premier League is one of the world’s biggest cricket leagues, and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) is one of its popular teams. The team was founded in 2013 after the Deccan Chargers were removed from the league. Sun Group purchased the SRH franchise for Rs 85.05 crore per year. SRH became IPL champions in 2016 and runners-up in 2018.

Kavya Maran, daughter of Kalanithi Maran, has been the CEO of SRH since 2018. She studied commerce at Stella Maris College, Chennai, and later earned an MBA from Warwick Business School in the UK. According to reports, her net worth is estimated to be Rs 409 crore.

Sun Group continues to be a major player in Indian media and sports, with Kalanithi Maran at the centre of its success story.