Liquor tycoon and former Kingfisher Airlines CEO Vijay Mallya has broken his media silence in a rare and illuminating interview on Raj Shamani's well-liked podcast Figuring Out, following over a decade of silence. In this week's four-hour episode, Mallya defends his legacy, attacks the media, shares that he intended to clear the loan, and says he would be willing to go back to India as long as he is given a fair trial. Vijay Mallya said, “I have been abused, called names, and used as a lightning rod for public anger.” He further mentioned that the media trial against him has been relentless. But now there is a platform for him to tell his side of the story without spin.
He cited a recent Finance Ministry announcement asserting that Rs 14,100 crore had been recovered from him, more than twice the Rs 6,203 crore Debt Recovery Tribunal ruling, and stated that his goal had always been to repay the debts taken out for Kingfisher Airlines. He asked, “If I had really defrauded the banks, how did the government recover so much money?”
Mallya blamed the then-ruling government for requesting that he refrain from cutting the airline during the 2008 financial crisis. He recounted an exchange with the then Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, who purportedly requested that he continue operations for the purpose of employment and connection, with the assurance that banks would continue to back him.
Additionally, he said that the 2007 purchase of low-cost airline Air Deccan was a calculated strategy to eliminate a competitor that was distorting consumer expectations and undermining industry profits by charging unsustainable Rs 1 rates. According to Mallya, who currently resides in London and is battling extradition to India in UK courts, Kingfisher Airlines' greatest achievement was the establishment of multiple new airline routes.
Mallya claimed that opinions of his lifestyle, which included an extravagant 60th birthday celebration and purported foreign investments, also contributed to the public's ire. He remarked, "I publicly apologise for the airline's failure," but he denied rumours that he embezzled money. "I presented the banks with four settlement options. None were approved.
Mallya indicated that if he could be guaranteed a fair trial, he would be willing to go back to India. "I will give it careful thought if I am given a firm guarantee [of a fair trial]."