OYO’s Ritesh Agarwal and Future Group’s Kishore Biyani did not make the cut this year to be among India’s richest billionaires

Still on the list but no longer as wealthy, Patanjali’s chairman Acharya Balkrishina, was the biggest loser on the Hurun Rich List 2021. He saw a 32% dip in his estimated net worth which led to a fall of 489 positions within the rankings.

In the last one year, Patanjali has been caught in a war of words over its Coronil tablet. The company claims that Coronil is an evidence-based medicine to fight COVID-19. However, it has faced a lot of criticism from major stakeholders like the Indian Medical Association (IMA) over the lack of data to prove the medicine’s efficacy.

A farmer's son, P.P. Reddy founded Megha Engineering Enterprises to build small pipes for municipalities in 1989. The company was soon expanded to building bigger infrastructure projects such as dams, natural gas distribution networks, power plants and roads.

Right now, Megha Engineering Enterprises is setting up India’s largest lift irrigation project, worth $14 billion, in the Indian state of Telangana, which is prone to droughts.

Despite the megaproject, Reddy saw a 26% dip in his estimated wealth.

The founder of AU Small Finance Bank, Sanjay Agarwal, and his family saw their net worth drop by 20% in the last year, leading them to drop off the Hurun Rich List 2021 altogether.

Cyrus Pallonji Mistry of the Shapoorji Pallonji Group has not had an easy year. Not only was COVID-19 making the rounds, but he was engaged in a court feud against the Tata Group. The dispute is over where the Tata Group has the power to remove Mistry from the post of executive chairman.

Amidst all the drama, Mistry’s estimated net worth took a 5% hit.

In December 2020, the Supreme Court reserved its judgement on the case and the verdict is still awaited.

The founder of OYO Rooms — India’s first unicorn startup — lost his billionaire status this year due to the impact of COVID-19. The tourism and hospitality industry has been the hardest hit with airlines and railways coming to a halt during lockdowns and limitations on public gatherings to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

The company recently raised $7.4 billion from Hindustan Media Ventures in a series F round of funding. “We are seeing growth in weekend travel, and we are seeing essential travel increase, so we are doubling down there,” Agarwal told Business Insider India in an earlier interview.

Kishore Biyani of Future Retail was the fastest wealth creator in 2018. Come 2021, he has dropped off the Hurun Rich List after over-leveraging — having too much debt that it impedes a company’s ability to make payments and cover operating expenses — that blew out of control due to COVID-19.

Biyani has also been caught in a court battle against Amazon. The US-based giant believes that Biyani’s Future Retail-Reliance deal with Mukesh Ambani is in violation of its partnership contract. This is because it would be considered an asset sale to a rival. If the transaction fails, there will be no reprieve for the company’s debt.

Last month, Biyani was also banned by Securities and Exchange Board of india (SEBI) from accessing the securities market.

The executive chairman of jewellery company Rajesh Exports has dropped off Hurun’s Rich List as well. The company has its footprint in every part of the jewelry making process, from refining to retailing.

The only issue is that when your main selling position is an exporter, it doesn’t help that borders are being closed off due to the coronavirus pandemic and business comes to a halt.