Meet Indian man, once a billionaire, spent Rs 550 crore on daughter’s marriage, then lost all his money, went to jail, name is…, brother of…
Wyatt Mason 
His troubles reached their peak when London’s Insolvency and Companies Court declared him bankrupt. He was found to owe GBP 2.5 billion (over Rs. 24,000 crore at the time).
Many wealthy businessmen who once lived as billionaires eventually lost everything, forcing them to depend on their families for daily expenses. This is the story of one such individual—Pramod Mittal, the younger brother of Lakshmi Mittal, the renowned Indian steel tycoon behind ArcelorMittal, the world’s largest steel and mining company by output.
Pramod Mittal was once among the richest individuals in the UK and became globally famous in 2013 for hosting one of the most extravagant weddings ever. He spent a jaw-dropping Rs. 550 crore on his daughter Shrishti Mittal’s wedding to Dutch-Indian investment banker Gulraj Behl in Barcelona, Spain. However, his luxurious lifestyle soon collapsed under the weight of financial troubles and legal battles, ultimately leading to bankruptcy and even time behind bars.
A USD 166 million loan guarantee that led to ruin
Pramod Mittal’s financial collapse was the result of choices he made years ago. In 2013, he provided a USD 166 million loan guarantee for GIKIL, a Bosnian metallurgical company where he was both a co-owner and the chairman of the supervisory board.
Unfortunately, when GIKIL defaulted on the loan, the financial burden fell on Mittal. What started as a financial setback in 2013 snowballed into a complete economic disaster by 2020.
Drowning in debt, over Rs. 24,000 crore in liabilities
Mittal’s troubles reached their peak when London’s Insolvency and Companies Court declared him bankrupt. He was found to owe GBP 2.5 billion (over Rs. 24,000 crore at the time). Under oath, he revealed that he owned only one property in Delhi and had no personal income, relying entirely on his wife, Sangeeta, and their children for expenses.
In an attempt to settle debts, he had borrowed large sums from his own family—GBP 1.1 million from his wife, GBP 2.4 million from his son Divyesh, and GBP 1.1 million from his brother-in-law Amit Lohia. Matters worsened in 2019 when he was arrested in Bosnia alongside two GIKIL executives on fraud charges.
His dramatic downfall stood in stark contrast to his once-lavish lifestyle, which included his daughter Shrishti Mittal’s extravagant Rs. 550 crore wedding in 2013. Notably, his older brother, Lakshmi Mittal, had also made headlines for hosting an equally opulent wedding for his daughter, Vanisha Mittal, in 2004—a six-day celebration that cost nearly Rs. 240 crore, making it one of the most expensive weddings in history.
