Datta Phuge (1968–2016) was an Indian businessman and millionaire money-lender who gained popularity in 2012 for having a 22-carat pure gold shirt worth $240,000 made for him. The event earned him the nicknames Gold Man and Pimpri Goldman. On 14 July 2016, he was murdered by being beaten to death over a financial dispute near Dighi in Pune.
Wiki/Biography
Dattatrey D. Phuge or Datta Dnyaneshwar Phuge was born on Sunday 14 July 1968 (age 48 years; at the time of death) in Maharashtra. He was fascinated by gold jewellery and ornaments since childhood. In an interview, he explained,
When I was at college, people would say you were from a rich family if you had gold. So from the age of 20, I started wearing gold. Back then in smaller quantities, like 10 or 15 g.”
He belonged from a humble background and pursued his formal education at Pune University. He used to run a Jewellery shop. In 2009, he established a money-lending business, Vakratunda Chit Fund Pvt Ltd, along with his wife. Every six to eight months, when his company turned in a profit, he would buy something made of gold. In 2013, Phuge rose to popularity for owning a 1.27-crore gold shirt. The Jeweller-turned-financer was often accused of financial misappropriations at his company due to which he was involved in several disputes. It was reported that many local persons had invested money in the chit-fund company and Phuge had given loans to some people at a high rate of interest.
Physical Appearance
Height (approx.): 5′ 9″
Hair Colour: Black
Eye Colour: Black
Family
Parents & Siblings
His father’s name is Dnyaneshwar Phuge. Not much is known about his mother and siblings.
Wife & Children
His wife, Seema Phuge (also spelt Seema Fuge), is an ex-municipal corporator who belonged to the Nationalist Congress Party. She contested and won civic elections in 2012 from the Bhosari-Gaothan area (Ward 35-A) as an NCP candidate; the seat was reserved for an OBC candidate. In 2013, she was dismissed by PCMC from her post owing to the submission of a fake caste certificate.
Datta Phuge with his wife, Seema Phuge
Datta Phuge with his son, Shubham Phuge
Religion/Religious Views
He followed Hinduism.
Gold Shirt
In 2013, Phuge gained international attention for having made a 22-carat pure gold shirt for himself. The shirt’s price was estimated at Rs 1.27 crore approximately according to the gold rate at that time. It featured six sparkling Swarovski crystal buttons and was accompanied by a flashy gold belt, gold rings, chains, bracelets, and an ‘Om’ pendant totalling the outfit’s value around Rs 7 crores. His shirt was considered the world’s priciest at that time, weighing approximately 3.5 kilograms of pure gold. It was crafted by the renowned Ranka Jewellers located in Pune. The gold shirt was adorned with more than 14,000 gold flowers and over 100,000 spangles intricately attached to a base of luxurious velvet. It was reported to be as easy and comfortable to wear as any normal clothing. The Guinness Book of World Records recorded it as the most expensive shirt at Rs. 66,15,481 ($120,2019) brought on 6 February 2013.
Death
Datta Phuge was clobbered to death by some unknown persons on his birthday 14 July 2016 at around 11.30 pm. The officials discovered his mangled head and body in Bharat Mata Nagar, Dighi, Pimpri-Chinchwad township. It was reportedly that the murderers dragged Phuge out, attacked him with a sickle, and then pounded him to death with huge stones, before fleeing from the spot. Datta Phuge son Shubham along with his friend Rohan Panchal witnessed the horrifying murder when was delivering biryani to what he thought was a party. In his testimony, Shubham claimed that a friend of his father’s named Atul Mohite lured Datta that they were having a birthday party for him. Around 10 pm, Mohite picked up Datta Phuge from his home for going to the party. Before leaving, Mohite directed Shubham to get a biryani packed and reach the alleged party venue in Dighi. When Shubham arrived at the spot he saw that around twelve people had surrounded Datta Phuge’s car and were attacking him with sharp weapons and stones. Shubham also claimed that he recognized most of the attackers as they were acquaintances of his father. Shubham lodged a complaint at the Dighi police station on the basis of which the police chargesheeted a total of nine suspects, Amol alias Balli Kailas Pathare (24), Shailesh Suryakant Walke (26), Vishal Parkhe (32), Nivrutti alias Bal Kisan Walke (45), Atul Amrut Mohite (25), Shaukat Attar (24), Sushant alias Babu Pawar (20) and Tushar Jadhav (20), and Prem alias Kakka Dholpuriya (23). One of them was Phuge’s nephew. Mahesh Suryawanshi, another eyewitness, had told police that only the main accused Atul Mohite and co-accused Shaukat Attar, Sushant alias Babu Pawar, and Tushar Jadhav were seen assaulting Phuge. In 2018, Prem alias Pramod Santaram Dholpuriya and Shailesh Suryakant Walke were granted bail in the murder case. Police said that Phuge ran the Vakratunda Chit Fund Company in the Bhosari area. Many hailing from areas like Bhosari, Vishrantwadi, and other parts of Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad had entrusted funds to his enterprise. He had also extended loans at excessively high-interest rates. Police, while stating the motive behind the murder, said Phuge might have had disputes over financial matters with several of his investors after he allegedly failed to return their investments. Later, investigators reported that Datta Phuge was killed by his son’s friends to recover Rs. 1.5 lakh he owed them. During the investigation, the police discovered that Phuge’s famous gold shirt had mysteriously gone missing. While the family members alleged that the makers of the shirt Ranka Jewellers had custody of the shirt, Ranka Jewellers denied the claims.
Facts/Trivia
- He would regularly flaunt gold bracelets, rings, and chains. In an interview, he said,
Some people ask me why I’m wearing so much gold but it was my dream. People have different aspirations. Some elite people want to own an Audi or Mercedes, and have big cars. I chose gold.”
- In July 2021, Datta Phuge’s son, Shubham Phuge, and his accomplice Prathamesh Waykar were arrested by the Bhosari police on the charge of hacking their 27-year-old friend Aman Dangle to death. The police reported that the murder was the fallout of an argument that occurred while the friends were consuming liquor on Phuge’s terrace in Bhosari. Reportedly, Aman Dangle slapped Phuge after the argument turned heated following which Phuge and Waykar took Dangle to Bhosarigaon and then brutally assaulted him with sharp weapons.
- His wife, Seema, too has a penchant for gold. In an interview, Datta Phuge said,
She owns 500kg of gold, I’ve bought her necklaces and bags made from it”