Kerala-born businessman Atlas Ramachandran passes away in Dubai

M M Ramachandran was the managing director of Atlas Jewellery. He was ailing and had been hospitalised in Dubai a few days ago

 

Thrissur: Prominent Kerala-born expatriate businessman M M Ramachandran, 80, popularly known as Atlas Ramachandran, died in Dubai on Sunday night after a cardiac arrest. The managing director of Atlas Jewellery and a film producer, Ramachandran was ailing and had been hospitalised in Dubai a few days ago, family sources in Kerala said.

Once an expatriate success story in Kerala as well as the Middle East, his demise came at a time when he was struggling to rebuild his business empire after his release from jail.

Ramachandran’s fortunes took a turn for the worse in 2015 after he was arrested and jailed in Dubai for three years in connection with alleged financial fraud, especially in cases related to bounced cheques. Ramachandran faced several cases in Dubai after Indian and UAE-based banks approached the UAE government and the UAE central bank against him, following alleged defaults of over Rs 1,000 crore to the banks, including Bank of Baroda.

During its heydays, the Atlas Group had 42 showrooms in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) area and three in India. In 2014, a year before his business empire fell, the Atlas Group had a turnover of Rs 8,000 crore. Nearly a decade ago, the group diversified into healthcare and real estate segments.

amachandran, a native of Thrissur in Kerala, began his career with Canara Bank in 1963. He moved to State Bank of India in 1966 to become a probationary officer and later joined its subsidiary. In 1974, he joined the Commercial Bank of Kuwait where he continued until 1987.

In 1981, Ramachandran ventured into the gold business and opened the first Atlas showroom in Kuwait. He suffered a heavy loss in his business during the Kuwait war but recovered after he shifted operations to the United Arab Emirates. In the UAE, he had served as the chairman of Dubai Shopping Festival’s Gold Promotion Council and secretary of Dubai Gold and Jewellery Group.

He also produced several Malayalam movies and even directed one in 2010. Once a prominent advertiser in Kerala’s media industry, Ramachandran himself appeared in several ads with the famous tagline ‘Janakodikalude viswastha sthapanam (a firm trusted by millions)’.