One Podcast Changed Mallya’s Image?

It has been nine years since Vijay Mallya, who happens to be one of the most dynamic entrepreneur fled India after defaulting banks for thousands of crores. He had stationed himself in London all these years after having left India in 2016.

All these years, Vijay Mallya was perceived as a defaulter and financial criminal who incurred huge losses on the Indian economy. He was also accused of not paying his staff salaries which is another reason behind the outrage back then. 

However, in the period of last nine years, not once did Vijay Mallya decide to come in front of the Media and address the allegations that are made against him. And finally, he took the occasion to take part in a podcast interview that was made live last week. 

Shortly, after the release of this podcast, the video clipping of the same started to trend on social media and they are all over the place now.

When asked about the financial details behind the default allegations and banks seizing his properties, Vijay Mallya said he owed a total of ₹6000 crore while the banks seized and settled over Rs 14,000 crore properties of his. He gave the implication that all his default have been cleared through seized properties, but he is still being seen as a villain by the government. 

Mallya stated that the Indian government made him a scapegoat and there was simply no way out for him which is why he had to flee the country. 

About not paying the staff salaries, which directly affected thousands of families, Vijay Mallya said he takes complete responsibility for it. However, he stated that he was of the intention to clear the salaries, but the banks and the Indian government had already acted on him and he could do nothing about it. 

While Vijay Mallya never actively addressed all these topics over the last nine years, this sudden podcast has brought about a change in the public perception on him. There are several positive comments and a positive perception on Vijay Mallya, which is very strange considering he was seen as a villain, even a month ago.