Steely Resolve

Jsw Steel Is On An Expansion Spree With Demand Expected To Outstrip Supply In The Next 10 Years.

- Ashish Gupta

BEGAN HIS CAREER WITH A SINGLE steel plant in 1982 and is now head of the country’s largest steel company, JSW Steel. It’s a journey that’s come with its fair share of ups and downs. But Prashant Jain, joint managing director and chief executive officer of group firm JSW Energy, says, “Nothing, not even the biggest calamity, can ruffle him because he sees every challenge as an opportunity and is always willing to adapt to the changing environment.”

We go to JSW’s steel-and-glass corporate office in Mumbai’s Bandra-Kurla Complex to find out how Jindal battled the odds to reach the top in the infrastructure business and how he plans to stay ahead in a highly competitive steel industry. The iconic 10-storeyed building is a reflection of the increasing clout of JSW Group, one of India’s largest conglomerates with holdings across core sectors from steel and energy to cement and infrastructure. Walk into the lobby and you’re dazzled by the space and light—and, of course, Anish Gupta’s dramatic hexagon installation at the entrance and a 30 ft. by 100 ft. eye-shaped sky court in the centre that diffuses the entire building with sunlight. The building isn’t just studded with installations but the floors for senior management also have paintings by leading contemporary artists from M.F. Husain and S.H. Raza to Laxman Shrestha and Atul Dodiya. The building has a 90-seat state-of-the-art auditorium, a 200-seat cafeteria, and basement parking for more than 275 cars.