# Bad Boy Billionaires: India
**Bad Boy Billionaires: India** is a 2020 Indian Netflix original documentary limited series that profiles four prominent [business magnates](https://www.edgepedia.org/business-magnate), [Vijay Mallya](https://www.edgepedia.org/vijay-mallya), Nirav Modi, Subrata Roy, and [Ramalinga Raju](https://www.edgepedia.org/ramalinga-raju), who built high-profile business empires before facing accusations of fraud, money laundering, and corruption.[1](https://www.netflix.com/in/title/80990073) Each of the four episodes is devoted to one tycoon and directed by a different filmmaker.[2](https://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/web-series/bad-boy-billionaires-india-review-netflix-6704285/) The series became one of the most-watched non-fiction titles to come out of India and won a Filmfare Award, but its release was shaped by legal battles: three episodes streamed in October 2020 while the episode on Ramalinga Raju was held back by court order for five years.[3](https://www.cinemaexpress.com/stories/news/2020/Oct/06/netflix-releases-three-episodes-of-bad-boy-billionaires-20627.html) • [4](https://www.indianbroadcastingworld.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/January-2026-Digital-Edition-1.pdf)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Format | Four-episode investigative documentary limited series on Netflix, one episode per tycoon[1](https://www.netflix.com/in/title/80990073) |
| Subjects | Vijay Mallya (Kingfisher), Nirav Modi (jewelry), Subrata Roy (Sahara India Pariwar), Ramalinga Raju (Satyam Computer Services)[1](https://www.netflix.com/in/title/80990073) |
| Original release date | September 2, 2020, delayed by court orders[3](https://www.cinemaexpress.com/stories/news/2020/Oct/06/netflix-releases-three-episodes-of-bad-boy-billionaires-20627.html) |
| Actual release | Three episodes on October 5, 2020; the Raju episode "Riding the Tiger" on December 31, 2025[3](https://www.cinemaexpress.com/stories/news/2020/Oct/06/netflix-releases-three-episodes-of-bad-boy-billionaires-20627.html) • [5](https://www.tvmaze.com/shows/49915/bad-boy-billionaires-india) |
| Directors | Dylan Mohan Gray, Nick Read, and Johanna Hamilton; produced by Minnow Films for Netflix[6](https://minnowfilms.co.uk/?p=531) |
| Reception | 71% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer (7 reviews); 7.8/10 on IMDb[7](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/bad_boy_billionaires_india) |
| Award | Filmfare Award for Best Non-Fiction Original (Series/Special)[8](https://www.femina.in/media/magazines/2022/january/Filmfare_Jan_2022.pdf) |
## Spoilers
### Episodes
The four episodes, with their runtimes as listed by Netflix, are:[1](https://www.netflix.com/in/title/80990073)
1. **The King of Good Times** (59 minutes). Beer baron and airline owner Vijay Mallya builds a brand image of excess until his [Kingfisher](https://www.edgepedia.org/kingfisher) empire plunges into alleged money laundering and debt. [The Indian Express](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-indian-express) review notes the episode covers his lavish parties, his craving for glamour, and the Rs 90 billion (Rs 9,000 crore) loan he defaulted upon, with contributions from his son [Sid Mallya](https://www.edgepedia.org/sid-mallya), family friend Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, and journalists who followed the story.[2](https://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/web-series/bad-boy-billionaires-india-review-netflix-6704285/)
2. **Diamonds Aren't Forever** (52 minutes). Nirav Modi dazzles the world's elite to globalize his jewelry brand and is suspected of illegally inflating diamond prices. The review describes how his troubles surfaced when a bank employee retired and his successor could not provide the same flexible terms.[1](https://www.netflix.com/in/title/80990073) • [2](https://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/web-series/bad-boy-billionaires-india-review-netflix-6704285/)
3. **The World's Biggest Family** (1 hour 4 minutes). Subrata Roy lifts his Sahara India Pariwar business empire to remarkable success, but then stands accused of luring impoverished investors into a pyramid scheme. This is the longest episode; the review describes a dramatized portrait of a young Roy and notes he was jailed for two years and later released on bail.[1](https://www.netflix.com/in/title/80990073) • [2](https://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/web-series/bad-boy-billionaires-india-review-netflix-6704285/)
4. **Riding the Tiger** (50 minutes). After transforming information technology with Satyam Computer Services, Ramalinga Raju forges bank accounts to stay competitive. Raju was convicted in 2015 for committing one of the largest corporate frauds in Indian history.[1](https://www.netflix.com/in/title/80990073) • [9](https://www.hollywoodreporterindia.com/amp/story/features/interviews/how-netflix-india-and-supriya-gupta-took-on-a-bad-boy-billionaire-a-victory-for-free-speech)
## Production
The series was made by the British production company Minnow Films for Netflix. Its credited directors are Dylan Mohan Gray, Johanna Hamilton, and Nick Read, with Morgan Matthews and Ricardo Pollack as executive producers and Francis Longhurst and Reva Sharma as series producers; the original score is by Nainita Desai.[6](https://minnowfilms.co.uk/?p=531) Dylan Mohan Gray, an Indian-Canadian filmmaker whose debut feature *Fire in the Blood* premiered at Sundance, directed the Mallya episode, which became the most-watched documentary in India upon its release according to a festival catalog profile.[10](https://films.wavesbazaar.com/media/3868/pl-catalogue.pdf) Gray said in an interview that some viewers thought he was too harsh on Mallya and others too soft, but that most considered the treatment fair.[11](https://www.mid-day.com/entertainment/web-series/article/dylan-mohan-gray-wanted-to-explore-vijay-mallya-and-his-decisions-23158308)
Producer Supriya Sobti Gupta, who worked across access, high-profile meetings, and production on all four films, described the team as former journalists turned filmmakers covering corporate figures who, in her words, gamed the system.[12](https://www.linkedin.com/posts/supriya-sobti-gupta-mowproductions_bad-boy-billionaires-riding-the-tiger-new-activity-7413280650293633025-t3-2)
## Legal disputes and delayed release
The series was scheduled to stream from September 2, 2020, but its release was put on hold after court orders. A [Hyderabad](https://www.edgepedia.org/hyderabad) civil court issued a stay on a petition by Ramalinga Raju, and the Araria district court in Bihar passed an order based on the Sahara group's argument that the show would damage Subrata Roy's image.[3](https://www.cinemaexpress.com/stories/news/2020/Oct/06/netflix-releases-three-episodes-of-bad-boy-billionaires-20627.html) Netflix's challenge to the Bihar court order in the Supreme Court was not entertained.[13](https://www.forbes.com/sites/swetakaushal/2020/09/04/why-bad-boy-billionaires-india-featuring-nirav-modi-subrata-roy-ramalinga-raju-vijay-mallya-is-not-available-on-netflix-and-the-road-ahead/) A separate case filed by [Mehul Choksi](https://www.edgepedia.org/mehul-choksi) seeking a preview of the docuseries before release was dismissed by the Delhi High Court.[14](https://www.livelaw.in/pdf_upload/pdf_upload-382891.pdf)
On October 5, 2020, after the Araria court vacated its stay, Netflix released three of the four episodes; the Raju episode remained blocked.[3](https://www.cinemaexpress.com/stories/news/2020/Oct/06/netflix-releases-three-episodes-of-bad-boy-billionaires-20627.html) The standoff over "Riding the Tiger" lasted five years. On December 30, 2025, a Hyderabad civil court, acting on a directive of the Telangana High Court, vacated the ad-interim injunction restraining Netflix from streaming the episode, and Netflix released it on December 31, 2025. The underlying suit continued, with its next hearing scheduled for February 7.[4](https://www.indianbroadcastingworld.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/January-2026-Digital-Edition-1.pdf) • [9](https://www.hollywoodreporterindia.com/amp/story/features/interviews/how-netflix-india-and-supriya-gupta-took-on-a-bad-boy-billionaire-a-victory-for-free-speech) • [5](https://www.tvmaze.com/shows/49915/bad-boy-billionaires-india) Gupta called the release a victory for free speech in India.[12](https://www.linkedin.com/posts/supriya-sobti-gupta-mowproductions_bad-boy-billionaires-riding-the-tiger-new-activity-7413280650293633025-t3-2)
## Reception
On Rotten Tomatoes the series holds a 71% Tomatometer average across 7 critic reviews.[7](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/bad_boy_billionaires_india) Reviewers generally judged the series a well-constructed account of familiar material. The Indian Express gave it 3 out of 5, writing that it sheds no new light on its subjects but coherently stitches newsprint and news footage into an engrossing narrative.[2](https://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/web-series/bad-boy-billionaires-india-review-netflix-6704285/) The Times of India gave it 4 out of 5, calling it a vicarious tale of the hubris of flamboyant criminals.[15](https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/web-series/reviews/english/bad-boy-billionaires-india/bad-boy-billionaires-india-season-1/seasonreview/78505588.cms) A Scroll.in review argued that, because legal proceedings were ongoing, the episodes remained cautiously non-committal and merely scratched the surface.[16](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/bad_boy_billionaires_india/s01) On IMDb the series holds a 7.8/10 rating from about 3,800 users.[17](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt12923630/)
Commercially, the series enjoyed a multiple-week run as the number one most-watched Netflix title in India despite the controversies, and it won the Filmfare Award for Best Non-Fiction Original (Series/Special).[8](https://www.femina.in/media/magazines/2022/january/Filmfare_Jan_2022.pdf)
## References
1. [Bad Boy Billionaires: India, Netflix Official Site](https://www.netflix.com/in/title/80990073)
2. [Bad Boy Billionaires India review: No revelations, but a gripping narrative of what we know, The Indian Express (October 5, 2020)](https://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/web-series/bad-boy-billionaires-india-review-netflix-6704285/)
3. [Netflix releases three episodes of Bad Boy Billionaires, Cinema Express (October 6, 2020)](https://www.cinemaexpress.com/stories/news/2020/Oct/06/netflix-releases-three-episodes-of-bad-boy-billionaires-20627.html)
4. [January 2026 Digital Edition, Indian Broadcasting World](https://www.indianbroadcastingworld.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/January-2026-Digital-Edition-1.pdf)
5. [Bad Boy Billionaires: India, TVmaze](https://www.tvmaze.com/shows/49915/bad-boy-billionaires-india)
6. [Bad Boy Billionaires, Minnow Films](https://minnowfilms.co.uk/?p=531)
7. [Bad Boy Billionaires: India, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/bad_boy_billionaires_india)
8. [Best Non-Fiction Original (Series/Special), Filmfare, January 2022 issue](https://www.femina.in/media/magazines/2022/january/Filmfare_Jan_2022.pdf)
9. [How Netflix India and Supriya Gupta Took On A Bad Boy Billionaire: 'A Victory For Free Speech', The Hollywood Reporter India (January 2026)](https://www.hollywoodreporterindia.com/amp/story/features/interviews/how-netflix-india-and-supriya-gupta-took-on-a-bad-boy-billionaire-a-victory-for-free-speech)
10. [2025 Selected Participants catalogue, Waves Bazaar](https://films.wavesbazaar.com/media/3868/pl-catalogue.pdf)
11. [Dylan Mohan Gray: Wanted to explore Vijay Mallya and his decisions, Mid-Day](https://www.mid-day.com/entertainment/web-series/article/dylan-mohan-gray-wanted-to-explore-vijay-mallya-and-his-decisions-23158308)
12. [Supriya Sobti Gupta, LinkedIn post on Riding the Tiger](https://www.linkedin.com/posts/supriya-sobti-gupta-mowproductions_bad-boy-billionaires-riding-the-tiger-new-activity-7413280650293633025-t3-2)
13. [Why 'Bad Boy Billionaires India' Is Not Available On Netflix And The Road Ahead, Forbes (September 4, 2020)](https://www.forbes.com/sites/swetakaushal/2020/09/04/why-bad-boy-billionaires-india-featuring-nirav-modi-subrata-roy-ramalinga-raju-vijay-mallya-is-not-available-on-netflix-and-the-road-ahead/)
14. [Livemint court filings compilation, LiveLaw](https://www.livelaw.in/pdf_upload/pdf_upload-382891.pdf)
15. [Bad Boy Billionaires: India Season 1 Review, The Times of India (October 6, 2020)](https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/web-series/reviews/english/bad-boy-billionaires-india/bad-boy-billionaires-india-season-1/seasonreview/78505588.cms)
16. [Season 1 critics reviews, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/bad_boy_billionaires_india/s01)
17. [Bad Boy Billionaires: India, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt12923630/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Series and fictional screen worlds › Unscripted, reality, and web-native series › Documentary, docudrama, and lifestyle series › True crime and investigative docuseries › Premiered 2006 to 2022*
*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license