Meet Ravi Pillai, Kerala's richest man, whose daughter's Rs 55 crore wedding was attended by guests from 42 countries

Kerala's richest person Ravi Pillai hosting his daughter's 2015 lavish wedding is still making headlines in 2023. Ravi Pillai, among the most powerful Indians in the Middle East, splurged Rs 55 crore on his daughter Aarthy Pillai's wedding to Aditya Vishu, a doctor by profession, on November 26, 2015, in Kollam, Kerala. 

The wedding was attended by top global CEOs with a total of over 30,000 guests from 42 countries. The Royal families of Qatar also attended the lavish wedding. 

Who is Ravi Pillai? 

Billionaire Ravi Pillai is considered the richest person in Kerala and is a self-made business tycoon who has an inspiring rags-to-riches story. Ravi Pillai is also the first Indian to own the Rs 100 crore Airbus H145 helicopter. 

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Ravi Pillai was born as a son of a farmer struggling with poverty and turned successful with his determination as he founded the RP Group's multi-million dollar empire. He rose to wealth and fame with the construction giant which earns revenue of $7.8 billion (over Rs 64,000 crore) construction heavyweight. He then made inroads in businesses like luxury hotels, steel, gas, oil, cement, and shopping malls.

Ravi Pillai hails from a small village in the coastal town of Kollam in Kerala and was born into a farming family. He has a postgraduate degree in business administration from Kochi University. 

After a few unsuccessful attempts at establishing a business, Ravi Pillai went to Saudi Arabia in 1978 and formed a construction company with 150 people. His workforce has today grown to over 70,000.

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Ravi Pillai also runs several 5-star hotels like The Raviz Ashtamudi, The Raviz Kovalam, and The Raviz Kadavu. He owns several homes in different parts of the world including a Trump Tower luxury condo in Pune. He has stakes in banks, and real estate and owns RP Mall and a 300-bed multispecialty hospital in Kollam.

His RP Group is among the largest employers of Indian workers in the Middle East. He was rewarded with the Pravasi Bhartiya Samman in 2008 and the Padma Shri honour in 2010 by the Indian Government. He also has a doctoral degree from New York’s Excelsior College.

As for his daughter's wedding, Ravi Pillai threw one of the costliest wedding ceremonies in Kerala at a reported Rs 55 crore for his daughter. The wedding was organised by the hit film Baahubali’s production designer. 

Ravi Pillai's net worth is more than Rs 25,000 crore ($3.1 billion) as of now.