Off The Record
Man Builds $20m White House Replica Atop Skyscraper—Now Legal Woes Keep Him Out
Around the world, architectural vanity projects are springing up, utilising opulence to flaunt the owner’s lavish fortune. However, one intriguing $20,000,000 replica home has been abandoned for almost ten years after its owner got into serious legal issues.
Many of the world’s most famous landmarks are opulent structures that are nearly unreal in their size and grandeur, yet some of the wealthiest people have used their enormous wealth to build these structures for themselves.
Indian entrepreneur Vijay Mallya took the risky choice to not only construct a luxurious residence on top of a 400-foot-tall high-rise apartment complex, but also to have it be an exquisite $20 million replica of the White House, akin to the Eiffel Tower on the Las Vegas strip.
This enormous house, which is about 40,000 square feet in size, was finished in 2010 and, when compared to the surrounding skyline of UB City, Bengaluru, is still both amazing and completely ridiculous to look at.
Aside from its striking resemblance to the mansion of the US President, this building is absolutely unique. It boasts an infinity pool in front that would make anyone’s knees tremble, a gorgeous surrounding garden, and a rooftop helipad—because how else would you get there?
The most startling aspect of this not-so-humble residence, however, is that Mallya may never really move in because he is now involved in serious legal issues that keep him from returning to his home country of India.
According to LADbible, Mallya left India for the UK in 2016 after going into default on debts totalling more than $1,000,000,000 and being accused of fraud, which the businessman disputes.
Nearly ten years have passed since Mallya’s last visit to India, and more than ten and a half years have passed since the opulent house was completed, yet for the most part of its existence, it has been abandoned, its owner stranded overseas.
After losing an appeal in April of this year, he is currently battling bankruptcy charges in the UK as well. He is still opposed to any expedition process that would take him back to India, even if it meant relocating to this rooftop house.
Former UK Security Minister Tom Tugendhat stated in 2023 that he does not want the nation to be “a place where those who are seeking to evade justice can hide,” notwithstanding Mallya’s own assertions that his obligations have been paid after Indian authorities seized his assets.
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