Where Is Real-Life, Matka King, Ratan Khatri Right Now? He Once Made A Cameo In A Bollywood Film

Vijay Varma's crime drama, Matka King, has been grabbing the attention off lately. The series features Vijay in the lead role, and he starred alongside Kritika Kamra, Sai Tamhankar, Jamie Lever, Siddharth Jadhav, Gulshan Grover, Vineet Kumar Singh, among others. 

Vijay plays the role of 'Brij Bhatti', and it's claimed that his role has been inspired by the real-life 'Matka King', Ratan Khatri. Speaking of Vijay Varma's crime drama series, it rightfully blended fiction with facts, which made it striking to the audience. The series was released on April 17, 2026, and has been winning hearts. No sooner was the series released than the attention shifted to Ratan Khatri. But where is he right now? Amid Matka King making headlines, let's look at some lesser-known facts about him.

Where is the real-life Matka King, Ratan Kathri, right now?

Real-life Matka King, Ratan Khatri, was one of the most influential figures during his peak. He was known for building a gambling empire and turning Matka, a form of gambling, into India's biggest betting rackets, which he looked after for more than a decade. It brought him a daily turnover of Rs. 1 crore. He was born in Karachi, Pakistan, in a Sindh family, and during the 1947 partition, he migrated to India. During the '60s-'80s, Ratan Khatri established himself as the 'Matka King', who not only was known for his business, but was actually trusted by people.

Close source to Ratan believed that his strategy was three-fold, one was that he wanted to tug on the belief factor that people must get something back from the same, which would make them come back, second was faster communication, and the third was again the trust factor. Speaking of where Matka King is right now, he is no more. Matka King passed away at the age of 88 on May 9, 2020. Real-life Matka King suffered a brief illness, and reportedly, he passed away at Mumbai Central’s Navjeevan area after suffering a cardiac arrest. 

Some lesser-known facts about the real-life Matka King, Ratan Khatri

Ratan Khatri came to India during partition, and during that time, he was a teenager. The reason people believed in him was that for his syndicate, he used to draw his chits/cards from a pot (matka) in the patron's presence, to decide the number of the day. Another unknown fact about Matka King was that, reportedly, during the 21 months of the Emergency, proclaimed by then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1975, he was arrested and was put behind bars, where he served for 19 months.

Another lesser-known fact about Ratan Khatri is that he co-produced a Bollywood movie, Rangeela Ratan, with Ramchanchandra Bhikubhai. The movie starred Rishi Kapoor and Parveen Babi in lead roles. To mention, it was Ratan, who made a guest appearance in the movie. If the reports are to be believed, Matka King, even after retiring from his Matka business, continued with his betting, as he reportedly would bet on his favourite horses at the Mahalaxmi Racecourse of Mumbai. 

What do you think about the series, inspired by the life of the real-life Matka King?

Also Read: 'Prathichaya' Movie Review, Nivin Pauly's Unruly Journey Of Power, Legacy, Morality And Ambition

AWESOME NEWS! Now you can download BollywoodShaadis app and never miss a story. Get App

AWESOME NEWS! Now you can download BollywoodShaadis app and never miss a story. Choose your device Android or IOS (Apple)