IPL mastermind Lalit Modi opens up in an exclusive interview to PEOPLE magazine

As he reiterates so often, Lalit Modi doesn't "live in the past". But in the last few months, the past has caught up with him. Modi, who is the chairman and commissioner of the Indian Premier League (IPL) and the youngest vice-president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), has been the driving force behind the board's commercial activities and is responsible for pushing its revenues over the $1 billion mark.

Lalit Modi

However, lately he has been weathering a storm of allegations, involving misappropriation of funds belonging to the Rajasthan Cricket Association (RCA), his autocratic management style and misuse of his closeness to former Rajasthan chief minister Vasundhara Raje Scindia to further lucrative interests. Last month after a Jaipur-based NGO filed an FIR against him in a cheating case, Modi was granted interim bail by the court.

Amid growing speculation about his fate, on March 1 came news of his surprising loss in the RCA presidential elections. Modi, the incumbent, lost to IAS officer Sanjay Dixit by five votes, prompting many to declare that his era was over. But the man sees it more as a blip on the radar and intends to forge on, busy with ensuring that the IPL is implemented smoothly despite concerns about security. "What transpired in Jaipur on March 1, 2009, had political connotations and that is there for all to see," he says alluding to his defeat.

Even at the height of his success, Modi has maintained that he has been hardnosed in his functioning. "I am ruthless, without doubt," he agrees. "There are certain decisions which have to be taken at that point of time, and if the nature of that decision is perceived as ruthless, then so be it. If I didn't work that way, we would not be where we are."

Brash, ambitious, much admired and feared, Modi strikes a gentler note when talk veers to his family. "We are very close-knit," says Modi about his wife Minal, who is nine years older than him, and three children Karishma (Minal's daughter from her first marriage), Aliya, 15, and Ruchir, 14. Family matters are also strictly personal, which is why he will not comment on this month's issue of Society which has reported on his wife's illness. "She is a very, very private person. And I would appreciate if we can leave it at that," is his only response.

Modi's professional and personal problems may have clouded his immediate future but he can't wait to bounce back. "To be bogged down by such things would mean losing out to your detractors, which has never been my style."

Now, as he prepares to mount another IPL, slated for April 10 "a bigger and better global tournament," he calls it Lalit Modi answers his critics and talks about everything he believes in and lives by.

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