Top 10 Richest People In India In April 2024

In March, India’s economy didn’t just climb; it soared, padding the pockets of its richest billionaires, even as a few at the very top faced slight hiccups. Such has been India’s economic surge over the past few months that a report by Hurun India reveals that the world got 167 new billionaires in 2024, and India was a big part of that, adding 84 new billionaires. Now, India has 271 billionaires, and Mumbai has zoomed past Beijing with 92 billionaires, making it the third richest city globally. What’s more impressive? More than half of these folks made their wealth on their own.

The financial markets had a field day (or month?) too. The BSE Sensex, which tracks big companies, grew by nearly 25%. But the real stars were the smaller companies, with some indexes growing over 60%. Real estate was the top performer, doubling in value, while banks and consumer goods companies did well.

Despite this growth, experts think the market will keep climbing, even though things might get rocky because of world events and local issues like the budget and elections. Yet, with a lot of Indian investors putting their money in, the future looks bright for India’s economy and its richest people.

The Indian Billionaires

India’s richest man, Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries (RIL) experienced a subdued performance for most of March, followed by a rebound, buoyed by Goldman Sachs’ optimistic outlook predicting a 54% growth by FY26. Despite this late surge, Ambani’s net worth slightly decreased from $114 billion (₹9.5 lakh crore) to $113 billion (₹9.4 lakh crore).

That said, Goldman Sachs anticipates a shift towards less capital-intensive projects with higher returns, suggesting potential for RIL’s future growth. Although RIL shares remained stable over the past month, a 15% increase in 2024 indicates a cautiously optimistic outlook for India’s largest company.

Meanwhile, Gautam Adani’s net worth dipped from $104 billion to $99 billion amid challenges, including a U.S. investigation into the Adani Group for suspected bribery. Despite a tough start, the group made a significant comeback in the last week, launching a $1.2 billion copper plant, acquiring a port, raising stakes in a cement company, and forming an alliance with Reliance Industries.

These moves marked a recovery from the Hindenburg effect and showcased Adani’s rapid expansion strategy. With over $5 billion raised in equity and twice that in debt since the Hindenburg report, the group has strengthened its financial position, reduced debt, and continued its growth trajectory.

Shapoor Mistry, the founder of Shapoorji Pallonji Group, solidified his hold on the third spot in the billionaire rankings, edging out Shiv Nadar, the tech titan behind HCL Tech, and Savitri Jindal, the wealthiest woman in India and former chairperson of the OP Jindal Group.

While the leaderboard’s top five saw no changes since early March, the action heated up in the lower ranks of the top 10. Dilip Shanghvi, the brain behind Sun Pharma, closed in on the sixth position, with Azim Premji, the Indian IT Industry’s czar, clinging to his rank. Not to be outdone, Radhakrishnan Damani, dubbed the ‘Retail King of India,’ stormed back onto the list, nudging DLF’s chairman and CEO Kushal Pal Singh out of the top 10. Meanwhile, Cyrus Poonawalla and Lakshmi Mittal maintained their grip on the ninth and tenth spots, respectively.

Here is the ranking of the 10 richest persons in India in 2024 as per Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index:

1. Mukesh Ambani

Mukesh Ambani, the chairman and managing director of Reliance Industries Limited, holds the title of India’s richest person. Ambani also stands eleventh on the global billionaire list with a net worth of $113 billion (₹9.4 lakh crore).

Under his leadership, RIL has grown into one of India’s leading firms with a global footprint. In recognition of his extraordinary accomplishments, he received the prestigious Padma Vibhushan award in 2016.

Ambani’s conglomerate spans a broad spectrum, including petrochemicals, refining, oil and gas exploration, and telecommunications. Since taking the reins in 2004 following his father Dhirubhai Ambani’s passing, he has propelled RIL to new heights. He orchestrated the launch of Reliance Jio, a telecom venture that transformed the Indian telecom landscape with its affordable data plans and high-speed internet services.

In addition to his business prowess, Ambani is renowned for his philanthropic activities. His Reliance Foundation focuses on enhancing healthcare, education, and rural development across India.

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2. Gautam Adani

Adani, who slipped out of the elite club of the world's top 10 richest people in 2023, is now 14th on the global list, consolidating his place as the second richest man in India.

Adani has a net worth of $99 billion (₹8.26 lakh crore) after losing a massive $50.3 billion over the first few months of 2023. Adani's conglomerate has widespread interest across sectors like power generation and transmission, real estate, commodities and infrastructure.

Several Adani Group companies are publicly listed, including Adani Enterprises, Adani Green Energy, Adani Power, Adani Wilmar, Adani Transmission, Adani Ports & SEZ, Ambuja Cements and ACC. Several of these stocks have turned multi-baggers — that is, they have fetched returns in multiples for the investors.

Adani continues to tread the recovery path after a majority of this wealth was eroded in the aftermath of prominent U.S. short-seller Hindenburg Research publishing a report that alleged Adani Group engages in widespread fraud and financial malpractices. However, the conglomerates’ listed entities have held up well in the market after fresh allegations suggested that business partners of the family used ‘opaque’ funds to invest in stocks. 

At the end of 2022, Adani held the title of India’s wealthiest individual. Adani’s conglomerate reached its pinnacle, securing its position as the second-largest Indian conglomerate, surpassed only by Reliance Industries.

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3. Shapoor Mistry

Shapoor Mistry. Photo: Courtesy of Shapoorji Pallonji Group

The founder of the Shapoorji Pallonji Group, with a net worth of $37.4 billion (roughly ₹3.12 lakh crore). The third wealthiest person in India, Mistry also holds the 40th position among the world’s richest individuals and receives recognition for his philanthropic endeavours alongside his business ventures.

4. Shiv Nadar

Shiv Nadar. Photo: Courtesy of Shiv Nadar Foundation

Shiv Nadar, HCL Technologies co-founder, holds the third position among India’s richest billionaires, with an estimated wealth of $35.8 billion (roughly ₹2.98 lakh crore). HCL is a prominent provider of software services in India, boasting a substantial revenue of $13.1 billion (₹1.09 lakh crore). Under Nadar’s guidance, HCL has emerged as one of the country’s largest IT services companies, operating in over 45 countries.

Nadar also ranks 45th on the global billionaire’s list. Nadar’s contributions to the IT industry and philanthropic endeavours have earned him numerous awards and accolades.

5. Savitri Jindal

Savitri Jindal, India’s wealthiest female, is the only businesswoman in the country’s top 10 richest people. As the Jindal Group’s chairperson, she holds a net worth of $29.8 billion (roughly ₹2.48 lakh crore).

The conglomerate has not only become one of India’s major steel producers under her leadership but also successfully expanded operations. These include power generation, infrastructure, cement, and textiles.

6. Azim Premji

Azim Premji. Photo: Courtesy of World Economic Forum/Flickr

Former chairman of Wipro Limited and a philanthropist, Azim Premji is the sixth richest Indian, with $26.7 billion (₹2.23 lakh crore) in net wealth. In 2019, Premji dropped from the 2nd position in the Forbes India Rich list to the 17th position after he gave away a huge amount to charity. Under his leadership, Wipro expanded from the cooking oil industry to the IT industry, and today it is a leading software services company with a presence in over 50 countries.

7. Dilip Shanghvi

Dilip Shanghvi. Photo: Courtesy of Wikimedia

Dilip Shanghvi is an Indian billionaire businessman and the founder of Sun Pharmaceutical Industries, one of India’s largest pharmaceutical companies. Shanghvi's net worth stands at $26.5 billion (roughly ₹2.21 lakh crore), making him the seventh richest person in the country. Shanghvi's Sun Pharmaceutical Industries is among the nation's leaders in pharmaceutical supplies, with an annual revenue of $5.6 billion (₹46,730 crore).

8. Radhakishan Damani

Avenue Supermarts Limited's founder Radhakishan Damani's $21.3 billion (roughly ₹1.77 lakh crore) worth places him eighth on this list. Damani became the retail king of India after his supermarket chain completed ₹1,870 crore ($229 million) IPO in March 2017.

The investor holds stakes in companies like VST Industries, India Cements, TV Today Network and Health and Glow. The transaction, worth around ₹700-750 crore, involved acquiring the business from the family offices of Rajan Raheja and Hemendra Kothari.

9. Cyrus Poonawalla

Cyrus Poonawalla, the chairperson of Serum Institute of India (SII), boasts a $21.2 billion (₹1.77 lakh crore) net worth. Notably, Poonawaala played a key role in producing the Covishield vaccine during the COVID-19 pandemic, earning him the Padma Bhushan in 2022 for his contributions to global vaccination efforts.

His son, Adar Poonawalla, leads as the CEO of SII and Chairman of Poonawalla Fincorp. The Cyrus Poonawalla Group spans various sectors, including Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology, Finance, and more. Recently, Poonawalla was hospitalized following a heart attack but is subsequently, in stable condition post-angioplasty.

10. Lakshmi Mittal

Lakshmi Mittal. Photo: Courtesy of Arcelor Mittal Group

India’s tenth richest, ArcelorMittal’s Chairman Lakshmi Mittal boasts a net worth of $20.9 billion (roughly ₹1.74 lakh crore). His company is currently the world’s largest steel and mining producer by output, with revenues of $53.3 billion.

Under Mittal’s leadership, ArcelorMittal has become a global leader in the steel industry, with operations in more than 60 countries.

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