The Vanguard At Motherson

Vivek Chaand Sehgal sees Motherson go beyond automotive business as a global diversified engineering company.

- V. Keshavdev

BUSINESS AND SPIRITUALITY rarely blend seamlessly, but when an entrepreneur uses spiritual philosophy as a foundation for decision-making, it’s worth paying attention. For Vivek Chaand Sehgal, spirituality is more than a personal ritual — it serves as the core of a company generating close to $12 billion (₹97,779 crore) in revenue. His guiding force? The Bhagavad Gita, which he reads daily, drawing from its wisdom to navigate the complexities of modern enterprise.

That deep spiritual connection was enshrined into a life-guiding philosophy by his mother, Swaran Lata Sehgal, when her son embarked on his entrepreneurial journey at the age of 18, founding Motherson — a silver trading business that would eventually evolve into a global automotive ancillary juggernaut. “Mother has six digits, and you, my son, have three. So, it will be six-three — six parts for me, three for you and one part will always be for Lord Krishna,” Sehgal fondly remembers.

For Sehgal, the company itself is “the mother”. In his eyes, everyone who works at Motherson — whether it’s himself, his son Vaman, the top management, suppliers, or the workers — is a child of the company, thus fostering an environment of trust, unity, and shared responsibility. Unlike typical “vision and mission” statements that usually adorn annual reports, Sehgal has indeed walked the talk.

With this simple but profound belief, Motherson has grown from a modest ₹1,000 seed capital to a multinational with over 450 plants in 44 countries. Its clients include automotive giants such as Ford, General Motors, Stellantis, and Volkswagen. Not surprising that Vaman Sehgal says the company has no headquarters. “We live on the plane and serve our customers globally,” says Vaman.