Celebrity Net Worth: Amitabh Bachchan invests in Indian food delivery start-up

In our fortnightly celebrity investment and wealth round-up, Ed Sheeran buys minority share in a Premier League club and Ben Affleck pays $20.5 million for Los Angeles home

Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan is reported to have a net worth of $400 million. Sarah Dea / The National

The family office of Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan has picked up a small stake in food delivery and quick-commerce company Swiggy by purchasing shares held by the firm’s employees and early investors, India's daily Economic Times reported on August 28.

However, the financial terms of the deal remain undisclosed.

This comes at a time when Swiggy is targeting a valuation of $15 billion for its forthcoming initial public offering of $1 billion to $2 billion, according to the report.

Bachchan, 81, is reported to have a net worth of $400 million, according to wealth tracking platform Celebrity Net Worth.

Over the years, the veteran actor has become involved in a range of business ventures.

In 2013, he purchased a 10 per cent stake in Indian technology company Justdial. His initial investment led to significant gains.

He also has a 3.4 per cent stake in cloud computing company Stampede Capital.

Additionally, his family owns about $250,000 worth of shares in Meridian Tech, a US-based consulting company, Celebrity Net Worth said.

Bachchan has an extensive real estate portfolio with several properties in India, including five bungalows within the Juhu-Vile Parle Development Scheme of Mumbai.

In 2023, Bachchan and his wife, Jaya Bachchan, gave their Pratiksha bungalow, the first of their five family homes in Juhu, to their 50-year-old daughter Shweta Nanda, the Hindustan Times reported.

Pratiksha was the first bungalow the couple purchased shortly after the success of his blockbuster Sholay was released in 1975.

One of their bungalows was leased to Citibank for a substantial rental income. Citibank vacated the property in June 2019 after the expiry of the lease, according to the HT.

The same property has now been leased to State Bank of India for 1.89 million rupees ($225,294) a month for 15 years, the daily reported in 2021.

This year, the actor purchased three office properties in a commercial project in Mumbai’s western suburb of Andheri for 600 million Indian rupees.

The actor reportedly also owns a number of agricultural land plots in Bhopal, Barabanki and Lucknow.

Bachchan has acted in more than 200 films in a career spanning more than five decades.

Ed Sheeran

Singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran has bought a small stake in Premier League club Ipswich Town.

Ipswich said on August 15 that the British musician has acquired a 1.4 per cent ownership stake but will be a passive investor and not part of the club’s board of directors.

The club did not disclose the value of the deal.

Sheeran, 33, has been the club’s shirt sponsor since 2021. His new status as a minority owner will also grant him access to an executive box at Portman Road stadium, the club said.

“I am really excited to have bought a small percentage of my hometown football club,” Sheeran said in a statement.

“It’s any football fan’s dream to be an owner of the club they support, and I feel so grateful for this opportunity.”

The English musician is estimated to have a personal fortune of $200 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth.

Like most musicians, Sheeran also makes money from touring. His Divide tour grossed $780 million between March 2017 and August 2019. That was enough to become the highest-grossing concert tour of all time, topping U2's 360 Degrees of 2009 to 2011, Celebrity Net Worth reported.

When he is touring, he can easily earn between $70 million and $100 million, according to the portal.

The Shape of You singer also owns a number of properties, with the total value of these assets estimated at about £5 million.

Sheeran was named one of the UK’s top 10 wealthiest people under the age of 35 last year, by the Sunday Times Rich List.

It's thought that the musician's sixth album, Subtract, which was the UK’s fastest-selling album in 2023, contributed massively to his wealth.

Ben Affleck

Ben Affleck, who is going through a divorce with Jennifer Lopez, has purchased an equestrian-style home in Los Angeles, Celebrity Net Worth reported.

The actor paid $20.5 million for the 6,200 square foot home in the Brentwood neighbourhood of LA.

The five-bedroom property is known as Paradise Found and features an open-floor plan, stables and a walking ring, among other features.

Affleck took out a $10 million mortgage to purchase the home, which is next door to actress Diane Keaton’s long-time estate, according to Celebrity Net Worth.

In July, Affleck, 51, and Lopez put their Beverly Hills mansion for sale for $68 million. The pair bought the property for $60.85 million in May 2023 after tying the knot in July 2022.

He also owns a riverfront country estate in Georgia that he picked up in 2003. It was here that the erstwhile couple held a lavish wedding celebration in 2022.

Affleck, 51, is estimated to have a personal fortune of $150 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth.

As a director, producer and writer, he has two Oscars to his name for Good Will Hunting and Argo.

He also owns a production company with actor Matt Damon called Artists Equity.

One of the actor and producer's largest career base salary acting pay cheques (before backend bonuses) was the $15 million he earned from the 2003 movie Paycheck, according to the website.

At his peak, Affleck was earning $15 million to $20 million per film with backend, it said.

Shilpa Shetty

Bollywood actor and businesswoman Shilpa Shetty has invested an undisclosed amount in Nutrispray, a maker of nutrient-rich supplement sprays.

The company said in a release on August 22 that Shetty has joined as both an investor and brand ambassador.

“I'm excited to be part of a brand that is truly making a difference in the way people approach their health,” the actor said.

Shetty, 48, has a net worth of about $16 million, according to estimates by Indian daily Financial Express.

Shetty has been a Bollywood actor for more than 30 years since her acting debut opposite Shah Rukh Khan in the 1993 thriller Baazigar. She has since appeared in nearly 50 Hindi, Telugu, Kannada and Tamil films.

She shot to international fame in 2008 after winning the UK’s Celebrity Big Brother reality series.

She returned to acting in 2021 after a hiatus with the Hindi film Hungama 2. She has also appeared and judged on several television competitions.

However, it is income earned outside entertainment that accounts for a significant portion of her net worth. She is a serial angel investor in the direct-to-consumer space.

In 2022, she put 22.5 million rupees into 100Percent Nourishment. The start-up sells a line of what it calls healthy but indulgent food products under the brand name WickedGud.

Previous investments include undisclosed amounts in other Indian direct-to-consumer start-ups.

As part of a $22 million series C funding round in 2022, she invested an undisclosed amount in Fullife Healthcare, which sells hydration drinks and energy gels, as well as wellness and nutrition supplements under the brands Fast&Up and Chicnutrix, respectively.

With her husband, businessman Raj Kundra, she was an investor in Indian Premier League cricket team Rajasthan Royals between 2009 and 2015. They held an 11.7 per cent stake.

The couple also own properties in Mumbai and the UK. Their home in Surrey, in the UK, cost £5 million when they bought it in 2009, according to India Today magazine.