Video And Pics After The Jump
Dattatray Phuge has gotten rich and he'll be damned if he doesn't die trying to get the world's attention. The 40-year old landowner from Pimpri-Chinchwad, India paid an incredible $22,754 for a shirt made of solid gold.
Although there have been reports that Phuge made the shirt to attract females, he is already married and did it just to gain attention.
"I own everything right from chains to rings, bracelets, watches in gold. Now, I wanted something that no one would have,” he told Ranka Jewelers of Pune, according to Daily News and Analysis “That’s when Tejpal Ranka suggested making a shirt of gold. Just like Shivaraj Maharaj used to wear a chain shirt while going to war, this garment was to be similar. I didn’t think it was possible but was excited with the idea as it would help us garner international attention,”
It took Ranka Jewelers two weeks, using 15 goldsmiths, working 16 hours a day to make the shirt made of 3.5 kilograms of gold. Phuge thinks the stunt will earn him a place in the Guinness Book or Limca Book of World Records.
It pieces together 14,000 gold spangles interwoven with 1 lakh rings on a specially imported white velvet cloth. It features six Swavorski crystals as buttons and comes with a gold belt. In addition to the gold shirt, Datta reportedly wears 4 kilos of gold on his body in the form of necklaces, bracelets and rings.
"I am a Maharashtrian, a Maratha hence I like to wear and display gold. I got this idea to stitch a shirt made of gold from one of my friends who said that nobody had done it before," Phuge said. "We wanted to do it below 3 kilios, however we overstepped the mark."
Phuge's wife, Seema, said he would only wear the shirt on special occasions.
“At major public events or where he needs to make a statement, otherwise it will stay in the locker,” she said.
Because he wears so much gold, Phuge employs 20 bodyguards to ensure his safety.
“I have been wearing a heap of gold since many years. I am always surrounded by my trusted boys and no one can dare to harm me," he said.
Pics from The Daily News
Datta Phuge cops $23,000 shirt made of solid gold
Report from India
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