Lalit Modi was an Indian businessman who founded the Indian Premier League (IPL) cricket tournament. He was born in 1963 in Delhi and attended universities in the US. In the 1980s and 1990s, he held executive roles with tobacco and cigarette companies. In the early 2000s, he worked to establish the IPL through leadership roles in various state cricket associations. However, controversies around the Kochi franchise sale and his lavish lifestyle led to his removal from the IPL in 2010 and relocation abroad.