Juhi Chawla’s husband Jay Mehta was once ‘almost destroyed’ due to…, then he invested Rs 6240000000 in KKR with Shah Rukh Khan and…

Shah Rukh Khan became the owner of the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) cricket team back in 2007, but he didn’t do it alone. He teamed up with his Red Chillies Entertainment partner, actress Juhi Chawla, and her husband Jay Mehta to buy the team. When they entered the Indian Premier League (IPL), their star power brought a lot of glamour and attention to the tournament. Even though KKR didn’t perform too well in the early seasons, the team still stayed in the spotlight, mainly because of Shah Rukh Khan’s massive fan following.

In a past interview, Jay Mehta recalled that when he decided to invest in the team, many people told him he was “crazy” for taking such a risk. But he trusted his instincts and believed the decision would pay off.

Speaking in a video shared by the Institute for Management Development (IMD) on YouTube, Jay offered some advice based on his years in business. He said, “First, avoid taking on too much debt, it happened to us once and almost ruined everything. Second, build a strong team by hiring the best people you can find. And most importantly, stay curious. Read a lot, learn about how businesses work, and stay updated with the latest trends. Always try to stay one step ahead.”

Jay Mehta revealed that when he was offered the chance to invest in cricket, his business was actually going through a rough patch. Despite the challenges, he and his partners decided to take a bold step and bought the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) franchise for USD 75 million.

“At that time, things weren’t easy for us financially,” Jay explained. “But then this opportunity to invest in cricket came along. Almost everyone around me thought I had lost my mind. They said, ‘You’re crazy to even think about it.’ But I had a strong belief in the idea. I wanted to go ahead with it.”

He went on to share how many people had seen the same investment proposal but didn’t understand how the business model worked. “When I looked at it closely, I realized it was based on a cash flow model, which made sense to me,” he said.

Jay also mentioned that the initial investment was relatively modest, but he had faith in the potential of the T20 format. “I thought cricket could grow into something huge just like football in Europe or the NFL in the United States. So I took a chance and went for it. Looking back, I can say without a doubt, it’s the best investment I’ve ever made,” he added.

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