Bangalore : Scion of the erstwhile Mysore royal family and the last descendant of the Wodeyar dynasty Srikantadatta Narasimharaja Wodeyar (60) died of a massive cardiac attack on Tuesday.
Wodeyar, who had been ailing in recent months, suddenly fell unconscious and was rushed to a private hospital. Doctors tried in vain to resuscitate him.
“He was brought around 2 pm. For one and a half hours Dr Ranaganth Naik and four others tried to revive him. But by 3.30 pm. he was declared dead,” Dr Madan Kumar, Administrator, Vikram Hospital, told newspersons.
On December 1, he was elected as the president of the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) — a post he had reclaimed after a gap of three years.
Wodeyar and his group won all the posts and he took over from former India captain Anil Kumble, who defeated him in the 2010 election. He was in Bangalore in connection with the elections to the Karnataka Cricket Association.
The mortal remains of Wodeyar would be cremated at Mysore today, Home Minister K J George told reporters outside the hospital, adding, the state government has declared a two-day state mourning.
Wodeyar, the only son of Jayachamarajendra Wodeyar, the last ruling Maharaja of Mysore, and his second wife, Maharani Tripura Sundari Ammani Avaru, succeeded his father as the head of his dynasty in September 1974.
Wodeyar lived like a Maharaja although he was not one technically or legally and inherited palaces but sans a kingdom. That was 60-year-old portly ex-prince Srikantadatta Narasimharaja Wodeyar, arguably one of the richest scions of a royal family in the country.
The last descendant of the Wodeyar dynasty, he also wore many hats: he was a fashion designer, a businessman, cricket
administrator, a politician, hotelier and an investor.
A man of many passions, Wodeyar was known among other things for his fetish for imported cars and collection of watches. All his cars bore registration number 1953, the year he was born. He owned about 15 luxury cars. He was also an art collector.
“… I live like a maharaja without technically or legally being one,” Wodeyar had himself acknowledged in an interview some years ago.
The people of city of palaces of Mysore, however, believe that though he lived like a royal, he did not think like one.
Wodeyar was arguably one of richest scions of a royal family in the country. He had declared assets worth Rs 1,522.53 crore in the 2004 Lok Sabha polls. He also had declared in the affidavit that he owned seven other large properties in South India, including the famous Mysore and Bangalore palaces.
