James Crabtree

The Billionaire Raj

1. IDEA 1

   India has its own Gilded Age

   Crabtree compares modern India to America's Gilded Age, when industrialists grew enormously rich. He argues that India's rapid growth has created a similar era of great wealth and inequality. The comparison runs through the book.

2. IDEA 2

   Mumbai shows the contrast

   Crabtree describes Mukesh Ambani's skyscraper home, Antilia, rising above a city with vast slums. The image captures the gap between India's richest and poorest. The contrast is striking. It became a symbol of the age.

3. IDEA 3

   Some tycoons rose and fell

   Crabtree describes Vijay Mallya's glamorous lifestyle and the collapse of his airline. Mallya's story shows the risks of easy credit and close ties to power. He later left India facing debts.

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