Mukesh Ambani tops the Hurun India Rich List 2025 with ₹9.55 lakh crore, reclaiming the richest Indian title. Meanwhile, Elon Musk becomes the first person in the world to hit $500 billion net worth.

Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani has once again emerged as India’s wealthiest individual, according to the Hurun India Rich List 2025 released on October 1. Despite a 6% dip in his net worth, Ambani’s fortune stands at ₹9.55 lakh crore, placing him well ahead of Gautam Adani, who is ranked second with ₹8.14 lakh crore.

Last year, Adani briefly overtook Ambani after his wealth surged due to a massive recovery in Adani Group shares post-Hindenburg controversy. This year, however, Ambani’s consistency has restored him to the top of the rich list.

For the first time, Roshni Nadar Malhotra of HCL broke into the top three, amassing wealth worth ₹2.84 lakh crore. Vaccine tycoon Cyrus Poonawalla and family retained the fourth position with ₹2.46 lakh crore, while industrialist Kumar Mangalam Birla secured fifth with ₹2.32 lakh crore. Collectively, the list values India’s richest at an astonishing ₹167 lakh crore, nearly half the nation’s GDP.

Notably, Chennai-born Aravind Srinivas, 31, founder of Perplexity, entered the billionaire club with a net worth of ₹21,190 crore, making him the youngest among India’s 350 billionaires. Meanwhile, Niraj Bajaj and family surged to sixth place with wealth of ₹2.33 lakh crore after a 43% jump.

On the global front, Elon Musk created history by becoming the first person ever to cross a net worth of $500 billion, driven by Tesla’s rally this year. According to Forbes’ index, his wealth touched $500.1 billion, far outpacing Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, who sits at a distant second.

Analysis:
India’s billionaire boom underscores the country’s growing role in global wealth creation—Hurun notes India has added one billionaire every week for the last two years. However, the widening gap between a handful of ultra-rich and the rest of the population also raises questions about equitable distribution of resources. For policymakers, the challenge lies in ensuring that this wealth translates into job creation, infrastructure, and innovation for the broader economy.