LEADERS WHO LEAD

Featuring India's most inspiring women and men who set an example for innovation and leadership in their fields

- Neeva Jain

Your unique entrepreneurial journey radiates tenacity and fortitude. Please share what your early days were like.

I got married fairly young, when I was still in my final year of electrical engineering. I became a mother of two while I was working for a company. Eventually, I realised I wanted to make it big in life while having the flexibility to raise my kids. So I started my own business in real estate construction and manufacturing. I also wanted to pursue further studies, so I took up a course on law to enhance my knowledge in legal affairs. At the same time, I grew my business from the ground up without taking a penny from anyone. Running a business, studying law. and raising kids at the same time made it a difficult phase in my life. But in hindsight, having so much on my plate made me efficient at multitasking.

Over the years, my hunger for learning took me to Cambridge for a management programme and London Business School for HR strategy. After 10 years helming a business, I had the confidence and skills to take on significantly larger ventures. That's when I started my solar firm, secured General Electric as an investor, built the finest plants across the country and scaled it up to 315MW solar plants. I sold this business to a marquee private equity fund in 2019. Using this money, I started four new businesses that function under Rattan India Enterprises Ltd. I'm a lifelong learner, and hence I keep taking up new courses along with managing my business. I'm currently enrolled in a three-year owner/president management programme at Harvard Business School.

Your billion-dollar RattanIndia Enterprises comprises a number of verticals of new-age businesses like electric vehicles, e-commerce, fintech and drones. How did it all start for you?