In Kerala, there are more successful and wealthy businessmen than him, but none commands the fame and unique attention he has. This heir of a family jewellery business has built a massive personality cult, fueled by social media and the insatiable appetite of 24/7 television for the absurd.
His public persona, defined by philanthropy, spectacular displays of wealth, flamboyant parties, eccentric stunts, irreverent interviews, and misogyny, all play out across thousands of videos scattered across the internet.
At the centre of this attention economy stands a man in a white mundu, a white t-shirt, and a shock of unruly hair – Chemmanur Devassikutty Boby – BoChe to his fans and the entities he promotes.
On the surface it seems like he is famous because he is rich and loud. But a deeper investigation into his finances suggests the opposite. Being famous might actually be the basic pillar of BoChe’s business model.
How else can one explain the rationale behind 11,879 partners investing a total of Rs 764 crore in eight loss-making Limited Liability Partnership (LLP) companies linked to him? These eight entities, which have his relatives and employees as designated partners, recorded a net loss of Rs 68 crore in 2022-23 and Rs 92 crore in the financial year 2023-24.
In the first instalment of this multi-part series by TNM and Azhimukham, we investigate the dealings of the eight firms that were registered as LLPs. Interestingly, these firms were supposed to be in the business of trading in gold, but that appears to be a cover.
The rest of the series will look at the operations of the Malankara Multistate Cooperative Credit Society, a multi-state cooperative society promoted by Boby and Phygicart, a hybrid entity engaged in direct selling and e-commerce.
The eight entities
The eight LLPs we investigated are financially on thin ice.
These include Chemmanur International Jewellers LLP (CIJ), Thiruvathira Gold Palace LLP (TGP), Orelia Jewellers LLP (OJ), Marathakam Gold and Diamonds LLP (MGD), Caroline Jewellers LLP (CJ), Vishakham Jewellers LLP (VJ), Anna Boby Jewellers LLP (ABJ), and Aayilyam Jewellers LLP (AJ).
The network of LLPs seems to run like a collective investment scheme, where the promised returns are collected from new, incoming partners, rather than from legitimate business profits. This setup requires a constant flow of new investments to survive.