Anand Mahindra

Some Lesser Known Facts About Anand Mahindra

• Anand Mahindra is an Indian business tycoon and the third-generation heir of the Mahindra clan that leads the Mahindra & Mahindra conglomerate. This company operates around 22 industries from auto to real estate and is widely known for producing some fine heavy vehicles like SUVs & tractors.

  

• Since childhood, he had a deep interest in film-making. Carrying forward his interest, he completed his graduation in Film making from Harvard University in 1977, and in 1981, he started his professional journey by joining Mahindra Ugine Steel Company Ltd (MUSCO). He was also a member of the Phoenix S.K. Club.

  

• In 1996, he established the ‘Nanhi Kali’ charitable trust that supports primary education for underprivileged girls in India. As of 2017, the trust has supported more than 1,30,000 girls. Besides this, he is also one of the board of directors of Naandi Foundation. Naandi Foundation is a trust that works towards the socio-economic development of India. He then became the president of ARAI (Automotive Research Association of India) that works on the research and development of environmentally safe mobility. Besides this, he is the co-founder of the Harvard Business School Association in India that promotes Domain management in India. He also co-founded Naandi Danone that provides safe drinking water to rural areas in India. His donation to the Harvard Humanities Center of $10 million is the largest personal donation overseas by an Indian. ^[26]Drivespark.com

  

• Just as when the stock market of Mahindra was running low, the launch of the Scorpio; an SUV in 2002 was a major boost to the group. In July 2008, he bought Kinetic Motors and relaunched the ‘Freedom’ bike under the label name ‘Mojo’. In the Financial year 2019, its company sold 4,004 units 73 percent less than the previous year. In an event organized by the British carrier Virgin Atlantic, Anand Mahindra told, ^[27]Business Standard
  

  “We knew our dream well and we had the right things, but how to win is where we went wrong. We should have never gone to the commuter bike side.”

  

  

• He enjoys listening to the blues. He has also launched Mahindra Blues Festival which is held every year in Mumbai since 2011. Top Blue musicians around the world take part in this fest.

  

• He has worked for several influential bodies around the world including the Global Board of Advisors of the Council on Foreign Relations (New York) and the International Advisory Council of Singapore’s Economic Development Board. He was also named in Barron’s List of Top 30 CEOs worldwide in 2016. In the same year, he was appointed the ‘Knight in the National Order of the Legion of Honour by the President of the French Republic. He is the recipient of many honors like ‘Asia’s 25 most powerful businesspeople’ in 2011 and ‘Entrepreneur of the Year’ by Forbes India in 2013.

  

• In November 2016, Anand Mahindra became the sole owner of Epic TV Channel. Reliance Chairman Mukesh Ambani sold his personal investment in the Hindi general entertainment channel to Anand Mahindra. ^[28]The Economic Times In May 2020, when the Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi announced an economic package of INR 20 lakh crore, Anand Mahindra hails his step as the opportunity to change the narrative from ‘Survival’ to ‘Strength.” He further added,
  

  “We will know tomorrow whether or not this is going to be a transformational moment like 1991.”

• In his foreword for the upcoming 11th NASSCOM Design & Engineering Summit to be held on the theme of ‘Future of Engineering: Designing an Intelligent Eco-system’ in 2021 from September 26-27 at The Leela Palace, Bangalore, Anand Mahindra said,
  

  “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 been tagged as the face of Indian capitalism by the Economist. ^[29]The Economist He is widely renowned for gifting cars to some of the aspiring celebrities in India. Apart from cricketers, he had gifted cars to Dutee Chand (Mahindra XUV 500), Sakshi Malik, and P.V. Sindhu for their exemplary performance at the Olympic Games (Mahindra Thar), and Kidambi Srikanth, an Indian shuttler with Mahindra TUV 300.

• On 8 November 2021, he was conferred with the Padma Bhushan award, India’s third-highest civilian honor, in the field of Trade and Industry. However, he wasn’t satisfied with the award. He told in an interview that he felt dishonored alongside individuals who have significant contributions at their ground level. He told,
  

  “I truly felt undeserving to be amongst their ranks.”

  This Govt has made a long-overdue, transformational shift in the texture of the Padma Awards recipients. Now, the focus is largely on individuals making seminal contributions to the improvement of society at grassroots levels. I truly felt undeserving to be amongst their ranks. https://t.co/jor34tqx1w

  — anand mahindra (@anandmahindra) November 9, 2021

• Anand Mahindra was living as a tenant in the same bungalow his grandfather and father were living decade before he was born. However, when the owner decided to renovate the house, he told Mahindra to vacate the house. Anand Mahindra then bought the property called ‘Gulistan’ of 3,000 sq ft at its nearby location. Also, he doesn’t wear a watch. ^[30]MensXP.com

• Anand Mahindra and a founder of Microsoft; Bill Gates were classmates at Harvard in 1973 before Bill Gates famously dropped out to focus on his company. ^[31]NDTV

  

• Sharing his childhood picture on Twitter, Anand Mahindra 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).”

  

• For the splendid performance by the Indian Men’s Cricket team in Australia, Anand Mahindra gifted new Mahindra Thar to their team members including T. Natarajan, Shardul Thakur, Mohammad Siraj, Navdeep Saini, Washington Sundar, and Shubman Gill in April 2021. Thanking Mr.Mahindra’s gesture, T. Natarajan wrote on Twitter

  As I drive the beautiful @Mahindra_Thar home today, I feel immense gratitude towards Shri @anandmahindra for recognising my journey & for his appreciation. I trust sir, that given your love for cricket, you will find this signed shirt of mine from the #Gabba Test, meaningful 2/2

  — Natarajan (@Natarajan_91) April 1, 2021

• In September 2021, Anand Mahindra hinted at naming his new Electric car after Pioneer Auto Electrician; Roy Doring in his tweet.

  Never be afraid of being ahead of your time… #MondayMotivation
  (And I think a new electric car called a ‘Doring’ would be a great tribute and a great idea) pic.twitter.com/OqX9WlBlrs

  — anand mahindra (@anandmahindra) September 13, 2021

  This was the PM’s Carpe Diem (Seize the Day) speech; an opportunity to change the narrative from ‘Survival’ to ‘Strength.’ We will know tomorrow whether or not this is going to be a transformational moment like 1991. What I also believe is I won’t get much sleep tonight!

  — anand mahindra (@anandmahindra) May 12, 2020

• He is an avid nature lover and is known for his frequent presence on Social Media. He enjoys spending time on Twitter. He has Twitter followers of over 8.5 Million. One of the Twitter users posted a water stream photo on Twitter with the caption “No other swimming pool is better than this natural swimming pool”.
  

  

  To which Anand Mahindra replied with Mesmerisation,

  “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 had an unusual request to Anand Mahindra. In his tweet, he said that he is a big fan of Mahindra and asked if he could gift him a Mahindra Thar on his birthday. To which Anand Mahindra gave a witty reply that is loved by all.

  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