List of Indian entrepreneurs From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search This is an incomplete list of Indian entrepreneurs and businesspeople. • ramoji , founder of Eenadu group/Ramoji Group. • A. M. Murugappa Chettiar , founder of the Murugappa Group • Anant Koppar , founder, and former president, of Kshema Technologies • Brijmohan Lall Munjal (1923- ), founder of The Hero Group, which owns Hero Motors • Dhirubhai Ambani (1933–2002), founder of Reliance Industries • Ghanshyam Das Birla (1894–1983), prominent member of the Birla family • G. Kuppuswamy Naidu , founder of Lakshmi Mills • Capt. G. R. Gopinath , founder of Air Deccan, vice-chairman of Kingfisher Red • Jamsetji Tata (1839–1904), pioneering Indian industrialist, founder of the Tata Group of companies • J. C. Mahindra , co-founder of the Mahindra Group • Karsanbhai Patel (1945- ), founder of the Nirma Group • Kasturbhai Lalbhai (1894–1980), textile baron, founder of Arvind Mills • K. C. Mahindra , co-founder of the Mahindra Group • Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw (1953- ), founder of Biocon, the first biotechnology company in India • N. R. Narayana Murthy (1946- ), co-founder of Infosys Technologies • Raj Anand (1982-), founder of the Kwiqq and winner of Business Week Europe's Young Entrepreneur 2007 • Ramji Raghavan (1958- ), Social Entrepreneur, founder of Agastya International Foundation • Sabeer Bhatia (1968- ), co-founder of Hotmail • Sam Pitroda (1942- ), inventor, entrepreneur, policymaker • Shruti Kohli (1982- ), Founder/Editor, MoneyQuin(an online finance magazine focused on women & kids) • Subhash Chandra (1950- ), chairman of the Essel Group, launched Zee TV, the first Hindi satellite television channel • Suhas Gopinath (1986- ), notable for founding Globals Inc., an Information Technology (IT) company, at age 14 • Sunil Mittal (1957- ), chairman and managing director of Bharti Enterprises • Venkat Rangan , Founder of Yodlee.com and Vice Chancellor of Amrita University • T. V. Sundaram Iyengar (1877–1955), founder of the TVS Group • Vijay Mallya (1955- ), chairman of the United Breweries Group and Kingfisher Airlines, member of the upper house of the Indian Parliament, and owner of several sports franchises and teams {Bangalore Royal Challengers} • Vishal Gondal (b. 1976), founder of Indiagames • Aditya Jha , Canadian entrepreneur, philanthropist and philosopher; Active in Canadian public affairs • Purnima Varadrajan , founder and CEO of iPOTT group of companies. Google for general search iPOTT for software search. • Ujwal Makhija , founder and CEO of Phonon, an Indian pioneer in hosted telephony services such as click-to-call. • P. Ponnudurai , Managing Director of Lion Dates Imnex Private Ltd, market leader in packaged Dates(dry fruit). • Shruti Kohli • Sumit Gupta , founder BitRhymes. Dhirubhai Ambani From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search This article may contain wording that merely promotes the subject without imparting verifiable information. Please remove or replace such wording, unless you can cite independent sources that support the characterization. Dhirubhai Ambani 28 December 1932(1932-12-28) Born Chorwad, British Raj (now Gujarat, India) 6 July 2002(2002-07-06) (aged 69) Died Mumbai, Maharashtra, India Nationali Indian ty Occupati Business Magnate; Chairman of on Reliance Industries Net US$6.10 billion worth Religion Hinduism Spouse Kokilaben Ambani Mukesh Ambani Children Anil Ambani Dhirajlal Hirachand Ambani, (Gujarati: ધીરભાઈ અંબાણી) also known as Dhirubhai, (28 December 1932 – 6 July 2002) was an Indian rags-to-riches business tycoon who founded Reliance Industries in Mumbai with his cousin. Ambani took his company (Reliance) public in 1977, and by 2007 the combined fortune of the family (sons Anil and Mukesh) was 60 billion dollars, making the Ambani's the second richest family in the world, next to the Walton family. Dhirubhai has been one among the select Forbes billionaires and has also figured in the Sunday Times list of top 50 businessmen in Asia.[1] Dhirubhai started off as a small time worker with Arab merchants in the 1950s and moved to Mumbai in 1958 to start his own business in spices. After making modest profits, he moved into textiles and opened his mill near Ahmedabad. Dhirubhai founded Reliance Industries in 1958. After that it was a saga of expansions and successes. Reliance's story as a company has been a 'bitter-sweet' saga in India. While on one hand it remains one of the biggest Indian conglomerates,on the other hand it is well known as a company which evades taxes and is nontransparent.[2] It has presence in various sectors like petrochemicals, textiles and is involved in the production of crude oil and gas, polyester and polymer products. The company's refinery at Jamnagar accounts for over 25% of India's total refining capacity and their plant at Hazira is the biggest chemical complex in India. The company has further diversified into Telecom, Insurance and Internet Businesses, Power Sector and so on. The Reliance group with over 85,000 employees provides almost 5% of the Central Government's total revenue. In 1986 after a heart attack he handed over his empire to his two sons Anil and Mukesh. His sons have helped Reliance to grow in a more globalized world after economic liberalisation in India, which occurred in 1991. ==Early life He was born in a Gujarati family of modest means. Hirachand Gordhandhas Ambani was a village school teacher with little income. Hirachand and Jamanaben had two daughters - Trilochanaben and Jasuben and three sons - Ramnikbhai, Dhirubhai and Natubhai. Dhirubhai was the second son.[1] Dhirubhai was precocious and highly intelligent. He was also highly impatient of the oppressive grinding mill of the school classroom. He chose work which used his physical ability to the maximum rather than cramming school lessons. When Jamnaben once asked Dhirubhai and Ramnikbhai to help his father by earning money, he angrily replied, "Why do you keep screaming for money? I will make heaps of money one day". On weekends, he began setting up onion/potato fries stall at village fairs and made extra money which he gave to his mother. Contents [hide] • 1 Life in Aden • 2 Majin Commercial Corporation • 3 Reliance Textiles • 4 Initial public offering • 5 Dhirubhai's control over stock exchange • 6 Diversification • 7 Criticism ○ 7.1 Tussle with Nusli Wadia ○ 7.2 The Indian Express Articles • 8 Death • 9 Reliance after Dhirubhai • 10 In popular media • 11 Awards and recognitions • 12 Reference and notes • 13 External links [edit] Life in Aden [edit] Majin Commercial Corporation Ten years later, Dhirubhai Ambani returned to India and started "Majin" in partnership with Champaklal Damani, his second cousin, who used to be with him in Aden, Yemen. Majin was to import polyester yarn and export spices to Yemen.[3] The first office of the Reliance Commercial Corporation was set up at the Narsinatha Street in Masjid Bunder. It was 350 sq ft (33 m2). room with a telephone, one table and three chairs. Initially, they had two assistants to help them with their business. During this period, Dhirubhai and his family used to stay in a one bedroom apartment at the Jaihind Estate in Bhuleshwar, Mumbai. In 1965, Champaklal Damani and Dhirubhai Ambani ended their partnership and Dhirubhai started on his own. It is believed that both had different temperaments and a different take on how to conduct business. While Mr. Damani was a cautious trader and did not believe in building yarn inventories, Dhirubhai was a known risk taker and he believed in building inventories, anticipating a price rise, and making profits.[4] In 1968, he moved to an upmarket apartment at Altamount Road in South Mumbai. Ambani's net worth was estimated at about Rs.10 lakh by late 1970s A former secretary reveals: "He was very helpful. He followed an 'open-door' policy. Employees could walk into his cabin and discuss their problems with him." The chairman had a special way of dealing with different groups of people, be they employees, shareholders, journalists or government officials. Ambani's competitors allege that he bought off officials and had legislation re-written to suit him. They recall his earlier days and how he picked up the art of profiteering from the then-Byzantine system of controls of Indian officialdom. He exported spices, often at a loss, and used replenishment licenses to import rayon. Later, when rayon started to be manufactured in India, he exported rayon, again at a loss, and imported nylon. Ambani was always a step ahead of the competitors. With the imported items being heavily in demand, his profit margins were rarely under 300 percent. He was a genius." [edit] Reliance Textiles Sensing a good opportunity in the textile business, Dhirubhai started his first textile mill at Naroda, in Ahmedabad in the year 1966. Textiles were manufactured using polyester fibre yarn. [5] Dhirubhai started the brand "Vimal", which was named after his elder brother Ramaniklal Ambani's son, Vimal Ambani. Extensive marketing of the brand "Vimal" in the interiors of India made it a household name. Franchise retail outlets were started and they used to sell "only Vimal" brand of textiles. In the year 1975, a Technical team from the World Bank visited the Reliance Textiles' Manufacturing unit. This unit has the rare distinction of being certified as "excellent even by developed country standards" during that period.[6] [edit] Initial public offering Dhirubhai Ambani is awarded with starting the equity cult in India. More than 58,000 investors from various parts of India subscribed to Reliance's IPO in 1977. Dhiru bhai was able to convince large number of small investors from rural Gujarat that being shareholders of his company would be profitable. Reliance Industries was the first private sector company whose Annual General Meetings were held in stadiums. In 1986, The Annual General Meeting of Reliance Industries number of first- time retail investors to invest in Reliance. Ambani's net worth was estimated at about Rs.1 billion by early 1980s.