Why High-Earning Men Like Prasanna Sankar Are Facing Headwinds In Divorce

When marriages fail, billionaires struggle with the financial, emotional, and legal turmoil  

Divorces today are making headlines for a multitude of reasons – fame, scandal, or pure spite. Very often, it is the astronomical wealth involved in the split that grasps public attention. Behind these shocking settlements, however, is a reality that has emerged: high-earning men - regardless of where they live, their temperament, or the reason for divorce - are increasingly encountering headwinds during divorces. The latest is billionaire Prasanna Sankar, co-founder of Rippling. Be it in the form of public scrutiny, financial drain, or even emotional distress, high earners are not spared.

The 2021 divorce settlement of Bill and Melinda Gates is estimated to have split a $152 billion fortune equally and it became one of the most expensive in history. One more similarly high-profile, yet amicable, split took place 2 years before it in 2019 between Jeff Bezos and MacKenzie Scott, and Scott walked away with Amazon stock worth $38.3 billion.

But what if all is not well?  

Not all high-net-worth separations are as peaceful. Bill Gross, the “Bond King,” had a bitter fallout with wife Sue Gross and there were disputes even over their Picasso painting and pet cats. It ended in a $1.3 billion settlement. Media mogul Rupert Murdoch’s four divorces, including a $1.7 billion pay out to his first wife Anna, and a reported $250 million settlement with his latest ex-wife Jerry Hall are some of the well-known ones.

There is an evolving reality in these stories and that is: the richer the man, the more complex and costly the divorce.

While Western media frequently focuses on American billionaires, India is seeing its own share of contentious divorces involving not just high-earning men, but even the more common middle class.  

Some notable examples of the high stake divorces include the Hrithik Roshan-Sussanne Khan split, where Sussanne reportedly received ₹380 crore in alimony. Nawaz Modi and Gautam Singhania divorce is the other one with Nawaz reportedly demanding a jaw-dropping 75 per cent of Singhania's ₹11,600 crore fortune. They have now resolved it privately.  

The case of Atul Subhash, a Bengaluru techie who died by suicide amidst prolonged divorce litigation, brought attention to the psychological toll of disputes. He left behind a 24-page note of alleged legal and emotional harassment. It raised serious concerns about how India’s divorce system, particularly around alimony and domestic violence allegations, impacts men. In another case, an India-born U.S. tech entrepreneur had to almost pay ₹500 crore to his second wife—despite the second marriage lasting less than a year. The SC granted Rs 12 crore and warned against misuse of 498A. More recently, a woman demanded ₹6 lakh per month in maintenance—justifying her need for high-end cosmetics, branded clothes, and luxury dining. While the judge questioned the validity of such extravagant claims, the case shed light on how the Hindu Marriage Act, meant for equitable support, can sometimes be stretched in interpretation.

Recognizing the rising complexity of alimony cases, the Supreme Court of India recently laid down eight factors to determine alimony, including the duration of the marriage, standard of living, age and health of both parties, and the financial and non-financial contributions made by each spouse.  

A cautionary tale for Founders is the recent Prasanna Sankar story. It shows the striking example of this growing pressure on wealthy men in divorces. Indian American tech entrepreneur Prasanna Sankar, co-founder of US Based HR Company Rippling, recently had his name out in the open in a prolonged and contentious divorce battle that is being played out not just in the courts but also on social media. His estranged wife accused him of many allegations including kidnapping of the child that Prasanna has denied. According to Prasanna’s tweets, “The child was with me under my custody. She violated the MoU by not submitting the child’s passport per MoU. I moved to courts for passport submission and interim custody. She attempted to abduct the child from my hotel and when I stopped it went to cops.  Divorce has been filed on Sep 4 and is pending before courts. Contested divorce in India takes a year or more.” According to Prasanna’s tweets, “I filed for a divorce in India. She filed for a divorce in the US, to try and make more money from the divorce.”

Even when settlements are ultimately resolved privately, it shows how easily public perception and complex legal nuances can cast shadows over founders and CEOs. It has become a touchpoint in discussions about the vulnerability of tech founders, especially those without ironclad asset protection mechanisms.

Designed to protect women’s rights, especially in patriarchal societies, some laws are now being called out for misuse. False allegations or excessive alimony demands weaponize the law and drag high earners into prolonged litigation. In today’s hyper connected world, divorce battles rarely stay private. For high-earning men, divorce can quickly become a global, multi-million (or billion)-dollar affair that tests not just their wallets, but their reputations, business credibility, mental health and relationships.  

Divorce is no longer just a personal or familial matter—it’s a financial, emotional, and societal flashpoint. There's a growing call for gender-neutral laws that truly recognize contribution, not just earnings. High-earning men, once presumed to have the upper hand, are increasingly finding that the courtroom, like love, doesn’t always play fair.