Anand Mahindra is a notable businessperson who is a third-generation descendant of the Mahindra family that leads the Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) corporation. This company has its range across 22 different industries from the auto to the hospitality sector and is also known for developing some fine tractors and SUVs.
Table of Contents
Wiki/Biography
Anand Mahindra was born on Sunday, 1 May 1955 (age 66 years; as of 2021) in Bombay (now Mumbai), Bombay State (now Maharashtra and Gujarat), India. His zodiac sign is Taurus. Since childhood, he wanted to be a filmmaker.
Anand Mahindra as a baby in his mother’s lap
Being from an industrial background, his parents never forced him to carry their business forward. He completed his bachelors from Harvard University (Cambridge, US) in filmmaking. In 1977, he returned to India and in 1981, he joined Mahindra Ugine Steel Company Ltd (MUSCO) as the Executive Assistant to the Finance Director. Expanding his business globally, he became a household name after becoming the chairman of the Mahindra & Mahindra group in 2016. In between, he completed his MBA from the prestigious Harvard Business School (Boston, US).
Anand Mahinder (right) in his childhood days with his sisters
Physical Appearance
Height (approx.): 5′ 8″
Hair Colour: Light Ash Brown
Eye Colour: Dark Brown
Family
Anand Mahindra belongs to a Parsee family.
Parents & Siblings
His father is Late Harish Mahindra who is the son of the co-founder of the Mahindra group; Jagdish Chandra Mahindra. Jagdish Chandra Mahindra died in 1951.
Young Anand Mahindra with his father
Anand Mahindra’s paternal grandfather
His maternal grandfather’s name is Kailash Chandra Mahindra who died in 1963. He was a renowned industrialist and one of the co-founders of the Mahindra group.
Anand Mahindra’s maternal grandfather
His mother’s name is Indira Mahindra and she is a writer.
Anand Mahindra’s mother
Anand Mahindra’s mother in her younger days
He has two elder sisters named Anuja Sharma and Radhika Nath.
Anand Mahindra’s two sisters
Wife & Children
Anand Mahindra’s wife
He got married to Anuradha Mahindra. His wife is a journalist and the editor of the magazines ‘Verve’ and ‘Man’s World’. Plus she is also working as a Publisher of ‘The Indian Quarterly’ magazine.
Anand Mahindra with his spouse
He has two daughters named Divya and Malika.
Anand Mahindra’s daughters
Address
Nepean Sea Road in Mumbai (Maharashtra)
Signature/Autograph
Career
Highlights
November 2016– Executive Chairman, Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd
2014– Member of the board of U.S.–India Business Council (USIBC)
2013– Non-executive director, Kotak Mahindra Bank
August 2012– Chairman of the board and Managing Director, Mahindra Group from his uncle Keshub Mahindra
2001– Vice-chairman of Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd
April 1997– Managing Director of Mahindra Group
1991– Deputy Managing Director, Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd
1989- President and Deputy Managing Director, Mahindra Ugine Steel Company Ltd (MUSCO)
1981– Executive Assistant to the Finance Director, Mahindra Ugine Steel Company Ltd (MUSCO)
His professional journey started in 1981 when he joined Mahindra Ugine Steel Company Ltd (MUSCO). In 1989, he got promoted to President and Deputy Managing Director of the MUSCO. This step opened the door to Mahindra Group’s diversification into the new business level that bought real estate development and hospitality management into consideration.
Mahindra plant in Great Noida (Uttar Pradesh)
In 1996, he established a Nanhi Kali charitable trust that supports the education of the young needy girls in India. Until 2017, it has contributed to the education of around 1,30,000 girls. He also became one of the boards of the director of the Naandi Foundation which is a trust that works toward the socio-economic development of India.
Anand Mahindra shaking hands with then Chief Minister of Gujarat Narendra Modi
Soon, he became the president of ARAI (Automotive Research Association of India) that works on the research and development of environmentally safe mobility. He then co-founded the Harvard Business School Association in India that promotes Domain management in the country.
Anand Mahindra speaks at the Paris Agreement on climate change at U.N. headquarters
Soon, he established the Naandi Danone, which provides safe drinking water to rural parts of India. In August 2012, he took over the position of the Chairman of the board and Managing Director of the Mahindra group from his uncle Keshub Mahindra.
Anand Mahindra speaks with his employees in Auburn, Michigan
Besides this, he also became the promoter of Kotak Mahindra. He is been endowed with several recognitions and achievements.
Railway Minister Piyush Goyal along with Anand Mahindra and Ratan Tata during the opening ceremony of the Magnetic Maharashtra Convergence 2018 in Mumbai
Awards, Honours, Achievements
2020– Padma Bhushan by the Government of India
2016– Chevalier de l’Ordre national la Légion d’Honneur – French Republic
2016– Disruptor Personality of the Year Award’ by Bloomberg TV India
2016– Social Media Person of the Year’ by the Internet and Mobile Association of India
2014– Harvard Medal – Harvard Alumni Association
2014– Social Media Person of the Year’ by the Internet and Mobile Association of India
2014– Business Today CEO of the Year
2014– Sustainable Development Leadership Award – The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI)
2013– Entrepreneur for the Year – Forbes India Leadership Awards
2012– Best Transformational Leader Award – Asian Centre For Corporate Governance & Sustainability
2012– Global Leadership Award – US-India Business Council
2011– Business Leader of the Year – The Asian Awards
2009– Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year India award
2008– Harvard Business School Alumni Achievement Award
2007– Business India Businessman of the Year award
2006– Business Leader Award for the year award – CNBC Asia
2005– Leadership Award – American India Foundation
2004– Rajiv Gandhi Award for outstanding contribution in the business field
2004– Knight of the Order of Merit by the President of the French Republic
Favorites
Car Collection
Mahindra Bolero Invader
Mahindra Scorpio
Mahindra TUV 300
Mahindra TUV 300 Plus
Mahindra Alturas G4
Net Worth
200 crores USD (2021)
Facts/Trivia
His hobbies are watching movies, reading books, photography, and sailing.
He is a huge fan of the African-American popular music genre; R&B. He started a Mahindra Blues festival, which is held annually in Mumbai since 2011. This music fest features some of the top Blue artistes from around the world.
Anand Mahindra in Mahindra Blue festival
He is the recipient of some popular honors like Barron’s List of Top 30 CEOs worldwide in 2016 and ‘Knight in the National Order of the Legion of Honor by the President of the French Republic. He also holds the ‘Asia’s 25 most powerful businesspeople’ tag in 2011 and ‘Entrepreneur of the Year’ by Forbes India in 2013.
He also talked about the 11th NASSCOM Design & Engineering Summit in 2021 from September 26-27 at The Leela Palace, Bangalore. He told,
“There is a sense of excitement in India about spurring innovation at a pace never witnessed before. Doing more with less, getting it ‘First Time Right, and a genuine passion to create anew. These are some of the key driving factors that make India the new destination for innovative, sustainable, and advanced engineering and design initiatives. I think the Indian mindset has moved from one of ‘Jugaad’ to one of ‘Jhakaas’. The jugaad mindset was about just ‘making do’. On the other hand, the Jhakaas mindset is about thinking outside the box to ‘create’ something truly unique and awe-inspiring.”
He is also a well-known philanthropist who has gifted cars to some of the popular sportspersons around the country for their exemplary performances. Those sportspersons are P.V. Sindhu (Mahindra Thar), Sakshi Malik (Mahindra Thar), Dutee Chand (Mahindra XUV 500), and Kidambi Srikanth (Mahindra TUV 300). He also gifted cars to some of the members of the Indian cricket team in April 2021 for their splendid performance in the Australian tour which includes Mohammad Siraj, Shubman Gill, Shardul Thakur, Washington Sundar, Navdeep Saini, and T. Natarajan. His gesture was appreciated by T. Natarajan in his tweet,
Playing cricket for India is the biggest privilege of my life. My #Rise has been on an unusual path. Along the way, the love and affection, I have received has overwhelmed me. The support and encouragement from wonderful people, helps me find ways to #ExploreTheImpossible ..1/2 pic.twitter.com/FvuPKljjtu
— Natarajan (@Natarajan_91) April 1, 2021
Besides this, he is been tagged as the face of Indian capitalism by the Economist.
His donation to the Harvard Humanities Center of $10 million is the largest personal donation overseas by an Indian.
Interestingly, Anand Mahindra being from a rich family has spent his entire childhood in a rented house, which his grandfather bought even before his birth. However, the tenant in the early 2010s decided to renovate the house. So, he told Mahindra to vacate the house. Anand Mahindra then bought the property, which he named ‘Gulistan’. This property has an area of 3000 sq feet and is located near to his last house. He has never worn a wristwatch.
‘Gulistan’ property of Anand Mahindra
He was a classmate of Bill Gates; the founder of Microsoft and one of the richest people in the World at Harvard in 1973. However, Bill Gates later dropped out to focus on his company.
Anand Mahindra (extreme right) with Bill Gates during his visit to India in 1997
He once shared his childhood photo on Twitter and wrote,
“After seeing that video of Nick, I retrieved this pic from my school album. That’s Nick at the mike. Always the singer. The twerp to his left is yours truly. Despite being a junior they let me join their band: ‘The Blackjacks.’ Maybe Nick will remind me what song we were playing (sic).”
Anand Mahindra played guitar in his childhood along with his schoolmate in Ooty
He is a keen nature lover who loves posting frequently on social media platforms. Moreover, he is more active on Twitter. This can be estimated from the fact that he has over 8.5 Million followers on this giant platform. One Twitter user from Uttarakhand posted a photo of himself swimming in a water stream located on the mountains with the caption
“No other swimming pool is better than this natural swimming pool.”
Photo of a man swimming in a water stream
To this Anand Mahindra reacted,
“Whaaaat?? I’ve never seen anything like this. This HAS to go on my travel bucket list as the ultimate swimming experience. Where exactly is this @Sidbakaria? Need GPS coordinates!”
Once a man named Vipul requested Anand Mahindra to gift him a Mahindra Thar on his birthday as he is a big fan of the Mahindra & Mahindra’s supremo. To which Anand Mahindra replied that took over the internet by storm.
Word lesson of the day:
CHUTZPAH
/ˈxʊtspə,ˈhʊtspə/
noun
extreme self-confidence or audacity (usually used approvingly).
“love him or hate him, you have to admire Vipul’s chutzpah”
Full marks for chutzpah, Vipul, but unfortunately I can’t say yes. Mera dhandha bund ho jayega! 😊 https://t.co/wzsUsCZBkM
— anand mahindra (@anandmahindra) August 16, 2019