Biography.guide
Home › People › Oil Kumar
Portrait of Oil Kumar

Oil Kumar

1951 – 1990

Indian crime boss

Don't just read it — keep itBiographies to ownE-book · Audio · Video From $7 →

About Oil Kumar

Lived 1951 – 1990 (aged 38–39).

Benakanahalli Alappa Shivakumar (1951 – 20 November 1990) (a.k.a. Boot House Kumar, Oil Kumar), was a ganglord and organized crime boss who headed the Bangalore underworld in the 1980s along with other notable figures such as M. P. Jayaraj and Kotwal Ramachandra. Activities include racketeering, substantial control of city's oil supply, labour unions, film distribution through his company SK Pictures in Gandhinagar, money laundering, monopolistic contract bidding and large-scale manipulation of state bureaucracy and politics. He was killed on 20 November 1990.

Professional life He was known to be a brilliant strategist who did not condone violence and even made sure that no bloodshed took place during his reign. His charm, convincing ability and tactical skill saw him rise through the ranks and he became the Don of Bangalore between 1988 and 1990. He was a visionary who saw great potential in the city and wanted to establish himself as a businessman and saw his life as only a means to that end. Though most of his activities, his inner circle and intentions were shrouded in secrecy, he is alleged to have created a nascent network stretching from Sri Lanka to the Middle East and Russia etc.

His expenditure was said to be close to crore a month and revenue generation capacity of crore per month in 1989.

During his last days he was said to be making inroads into the field of real estate and made large-scale investments in land around Bangalore city. Muttappa Rai planned well and killed Oil Kumar. He died on 20 November 1990.

Biography shop

Don’t just read it —
keep it.

Full-length biographies made to live with: read them, listen on the way to work, watch them tonight.

  • E-book
  • Audio
  • Video
Browse the shop — from $7

Instant download · yours to keep · every purchase keeps this site free

Important facts

Born
1951
Birth century
Died
1990
Also known as
Benakanahalli Alappa Shivakumar

Contemporaries

People whose lives overlapped Oil Kumar's

Frequently asked questions

Who was Oil Kumar?

Indian crime boss

When was Oil Kumar born?

Oil Kumar was born in 1951.

When did Oil Kumar die?

Oil Kumar died in 1990.

Sources & further reading

· Wikipedia: Oil Kumar

· Wikidata: Q18808831

· DBpedia: Oil Kumar

Cite this page

APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Oil Kumar. https://biography.guide/oil-kumar/

MLA: "Oil Kumar." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/oil-kumar/.

Chicago: "Oil Kumar." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/oil-kumar/.

Data last updated: 2026-09-20 · Spot an error? Report a correction.

Page generated 2026-09-27 05:17 UTC