IPO puts shine on Sun TV

THERE IS a new billionaire in town: the reclusive Kalanithi Maran, CMD and promoter of Sun TV, south India's media and entertainment major. Sun TV, which made a big-bang debut on the Indian bourses on Monday, has a market cap of Rs 10,090 crore as against leader Zee Telefilms' Rs 10,212 crore.

THERE IS a new billionaire in town: the reclusive Kalanithi Maran, CMD and promoter of Sun TV, south India's media and entertainment major. Sun TV, which made a big-bang debut on the Indian bourses on Monday, has a market cap of Rs 10,090 crore as against leader Zee Telefilms' Rs 10,212 crore.

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It is not just Maran. The ongoing bull run has given rise to a new breed of billionaires: Tulsi Tanti of Suzlon, Naresh Goyal of Jet Airways and Atul Punj of Punj Lloyd.

Like Sun TV, these newly listed entities have outpaced the leaders in their sectors. Since Maran owns 90 per cent stake in the company, the value of his holding is Rs 9,080 crore, which is more than what any Indian promoter in the media and entertainment field has.

In fact, the wealth of Zee Tele promoter Subhash Chandra is just Rs 2,397 crore. Zee is the oldest listed entity in this sector.

The richest among the new promoters is Tanti, chairman of Suzlon Energy, a company that entered the capital market in October 2005. A reason for this sudden spurt: institutional investors are looking at new assets.