Vijay Mallya's 20M USD Sky Mansion Began As A Joke, Told Developer, 'If You Can Lift It, Build It'

Vijay Mallya, who was popularly known as the 'King of Good Times', is no stranger to luxury. Whether it was about his lavish parties, owning a Formula 1 team or offering the most extravagant services on his now-defunct airline, Kingfisher, he used to represent luxury in the business world. However, it all came crashing down after the collapse of his airline company. Although the businessman lives in the UK, one of his significant legacies in the form of Bengaluru's iconic Sky Mansion, still stands high atop the 33-story Kingfisher Tower. In a recent conversation, Vijay Mallya revealed how the construction of that architectural wonder began as a 'joke'.

Vijay Mallya reveals Sky Mansion is an ancestral bungalow which dates back more than 100 years 

After a long silence on the collapse of Kingfisher and his legal battles, Vijay Mallya recently made an appearance on Raj Shamani's podcast. During the conversation, he shared the back story behind Sky Mansion's construction, which continues to intrigue architecture enthusiasts. He revealed that the 33-storey Kingfisher Tower in Bengaluru was built over land where his ancestral bungalow stood for more than 100 years. In these words:

"It (Sky Mansion) started as a joke which is the bungalow, was on that piece of land for over 100 years. That is where I grew up. That is where my father lived."

When real estate developers from Prestige group and Vijay's close friend, Irfan Razack, approached him with a proposal to develop the land, Vijay Mallya made a casual joke. He mentioned that if they could lift the bungalow on the tower, he would agree, and they unexpectedly delivered it. However, he revealed that its construction is incomplete because the property got embroiled in the UBHL liquidation, where government took over some of his properties to recover the amount of his loans to Indian banks. He said:

"When these developers asked me that land should be developed, in a joking way, I said to Irfan Razak of Prestige group, a very dear friend of mine, if you lift this building and put it on the top of the tower, you want to build, I will agree. He said, ok, that is what we'll deliver, and that's what they did."

Watch the video here.

Irfan Razack revealed building Sky Mansion was a challenging task for his team 

In an old interview with Business Times India, Irfan Razack, the chairman of Prestige Estates Projects, was asked about the status and insights into Sky Mansion's construction. He explained that building the project's cantilevered design at a long height was a challenge for his team. However, they worked hard to ensure that it was made per the vision of its owner and their plans. At that time, he also claimed that after the project was over, they would give it back to the owner as per their agreement. 

More about Vijay Mallya's Sky Mansion 

Sky Mansion is built on a 33-storey skyscraper, which is an ideal example of luxury and incredible architectural work. It's modelled as a replica of the White House, which is situated at a height of 120 meters. The sprawling bungalow of 40,000 sq ft has two floors with dramatic white colonnades, a wide porch, a rooftop, a helipad and more. One of the best parts of the Sky Mansion is that it gives a complete 360 view of the Bengaluru city below. But despite the grandeur, it's unlikely that Vijay Mallya could ever live there as he has been fighting a case against his extradition from the UK to India since 2016. 

Vijay Mallya is yet to live in his dream home, but the Sky Mansion continues to be a symbolic monument about his 'high-flying' past.

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