For the Chairman and Managing Director of a media conglomerate in the South, Kalanithi Maran is hardly seen, read or heard.

The reticent Maran may lack the flamboyance of a Rupert Murdoch, but his sprawling business empire has managed to stay in the news consistently.

With a dominant market share among regional entertainment channels, Sun TV is certainly a household name in the South.

In the DTH space, too, the Sun group has a dominant southern presence. Besides Tamil magazines and dailies, the group also runs a film production firm, Sun Pictures, which has produced a string of movies including the Rajnikanth-starrer Endhiran .

Not content with media, Maran surprised many when he acquired a stake in SpiceJet airlines two years ago.

Today, the company owns a majority interest in the airline, which reported profits last quarter after hovering in losses for five consecutive quarters.

Though it is too early to call Maran’s purchase of an IPL team a master stroke, he certainly has the appetite for more.

The 48-year-old Kalanithi Maran and his wife Kavery became part of corporate folklore when they were listed second among the highest paid Indian executives (of listed companies) with a pay package of Rs 57 crore each in 2011-2012, behind Congress MP Naveen Jindal.

Maran’s rapid rise to fame and money began in 1993, when he founded Sun TV.

Sun TV was listed on the BSE on April 24, 2006, raising $133 million. Today, the Sun network operates 32 television channels in various languages (including nine in Telugu) and 46 radio channels across the country. In 2010, Maran became 17th richest Indian with a net worth of $4 billion.

Kalanithi Maran’s father is the late Murasoli Maran, who was Union Commerce Minister.

His brother Dayanidhi Maran has held charge of Textiles and Telecom Ministries at the Centre.

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