Sadhguru

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Program Leader
Yogi, Mystic & Founder of Isha Foundation

“Yogi, mystic and visionary, Sadhguru is a spiritual master with a difference. Absolute clarity of perception places him in a unique space, not only in matters spiritual but in business, environmental and international affairs, and opens a new door on all that he touches.

Probing and passionate, insightful, logical and unfailingly witty, Sadhguru’s talks have earned him the reputation of a speaker and opinion-maker of international renown. He has been conferred the Padma Vibhushan by the Government of India in 2017, the highest annual civilian award, accorded for exceptional and distinguished service. He has been a lead speaker at the United Nations General Assembly, a regular at the World Economic Forum, and a special invitee at the Australian Leadership Retreat, Indian Economic Summit, and TED. His astute and incisive grasp of world affairs, as well as his unerringly scientific approach to human wellbeing have had a transformative influence at establishments such as the World Bank, House of Lords (UK), the World Presidents’ Organization, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), the University of Oxford, Harvard University, Stanford University, Duke University, IMD Business School, the London Business School, Google, and Microsoft, to name a few.

With a celebratory engagement with life on all levels, Sadhguru’s areas of active involvement encompass fields as diverse as architecture and visual design, poetry and painting, aviation and driving, ecology and horticulture, sports and music. Sadhguru has initiated Rally for Rivers, a nationwide campaign to revitalize India’s severely depleted rivers, which has found phenomenal support among India’s people and leadership. He is the designer of several unique buildings and consecrated spaces at the Isha Yoga Center, which have received wide attention for their combination of intense sacred power with strikingly innovative eco-friendly aesthetics.
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SANJEEV SANYAL

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Principal Economic Adviser, Ministry of Finance, Govt. of India

Sanjeev Sanyal is an internationally acclaimed economist and best-selling author. He is currently the Principal Economic Advisor to the Government of India and also serves as the Co-Chair of the G-20 Framework Working Group. Prior to joining the government , he spent two decades in the financial sector and was Global Strategist & Managing Director at Deutsche Bank. He was named Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum in 2010. He is also a well known environmentalist and urban theorist. In 2007, he was awarded the Eisenhower Fellowship for his work on urban dynamics. He has been a Visiting Scholar at Oxford University, Adjunct Fellow at the Institute of Policy Studies, Singapore and a Senior Fellow of the World Wide Fund for Nature. In 2016, he served in the Future City Sub-Committee of the Singapore government tasked with building a long-term vision for the city-state and is currently a member of the committee tasked with writing a new National Urban Policy for India (to be published 2018).

Sanjeev attended Shri Ram College of Commerce, Delhi and Oxford University where he was a Rhodes Scholar (1992-95). His best-selling books include Land of the Seven Rivers, The Indian Renaissance and The Ocean of Churn, all published by Penguin. In addition, he had published around 200 articles, columns and reports in leading national/international publications. He was given the inaugural International Indian Achievers Award for contributions to Literature in 2014. He has been a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, London and a Visiting Fellow of IDFC Institute, Mumbai.

VARDA SHINE

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Former CEO, De Beers Diamond Trading Company

Varda is a Non-Executive Director, CEO’s mentor and a Diamond Industry Advisor. Previously, Varda was CEO of De Beers Trading Company delivering record sales ($6Bn) and profits. She currently sits on the boards of Lonmin PLC, Mineral Development Company Botswana, and Sarine Technologies. She is also a Governing Board member of the Diamond Empowerment Fund (DEF) and a trustee at Teenage Cancer Trust.

Varda has completed business and management courses at Templeton College, Oxford, Cranfield and INSEAD. During her 30 years of work in the diamond industry, she became the first woman to be awarded honorary lifetime membership of the Israel Diamond Exchange (IDE) and received the Women’s Jewellery Association (WJA) Hall of Fame Lifetime Achievement Award (2011). In 2014 Varda was made an honorary member of the London Diamond Bourse.

RACHNA AGGARWAL

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Former CEO, Indus League (brand division of Future Lifestyle Fashion) Rachna Aggarwal is currently advisor to Shoppers Stop, mentor at NSRCEL, IIM – BANGALORE, and founder angel investor with Angels 92.

Rachna completed her schooling and college in Kolkata, receiving a B Sc (Economics) from St. Xavier’s college and PGDM from IIMA in 1992.

During her seven-year stint with Madura Garments (a division of Coats Viyella Plc), she was Asst. Brand Manager for Van Heusen. Later, as Group Brand Manager, she introduced the concept of “Friday Dressing” to India through the successful launch of Allen Solly.

In April 1999, she left Madura Garments to join a team of professionals promoting Indus-League Clothing Limited (which later merged into Future Lifestyle Fashions) She served as CEO of Indus-League from 2008-2017, managing a diverse portfolio of brands including Indigo Nation, Jealous 21, Indigo Nation, Scullers, Manchester United, Converse, Giovani.

ABHAY AIMA

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Country Head in HDFC Bank covering businesses of Private BankingABHAY AIMA

Abhay is a Country Head in HDFC Bank covering businesses of Private Banking, Retail Liabilities, Digital Banking & International Business. He has more than 30 years of experience, 22 years being in the bank and is considered to be one of the Wizards of Dalal Street.

He has a multi-disciplinary profile where he started off in the National Defence Academy at Khadakwasla, from where he joined the air force. After that he started off in Mumbai selling lamp shades, STD disconnectors and CCTV cameras before a break in Citibank.

Abhay, then became a member of the core promoter group of HDFC Bank. He initially focused on investments and gradually expanded into private banking business and the investment product distribution business where he played a pioneering role in the industry and built a market leadership position for HDFC Bank. He is also a director in HDFC Securities.

ASHUTOSH PANDEY

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MD & CEO at Mahindra First Choice Wheels.

Previously, he was the CEO of Tata CLiQ (Tata Unistore Limited), the digital commerce venture of the Tata Group,a business that he was responsible for founding and developing in the period October 2014 to May 2018.

Ashutosh has more than two decades of experience in leadership roles across E-commerce and Retail, and functional roles in diverse industries.

He joined the Tata Group in 1998 as a member of its flagship cadre, the Tata Administrative Services (TAS). Over the next sixteen years, Ashutosh took up challenging assignments in Tata Global Beverages (erstwhile Tata Tea), Rallis India, Tata Communications and the Taj Group of Hotels, in functions spanning marketing, strategy, business development, and project management. He also worked with Accenture Consulting for a year, where he was responsible for the post-merger integration of two large companies.

Before taking up his assignment as CEO of Tata Unistore in 2014, he was the COO of Landmark E-Tail Limited, Trent’s online retail business, from 2013 to 2014. He was earlier the COO and Business Head of Landmark, one of India’s leading leisure and entertainment retailers, from 2009 to 2013. During this time, he was responsible for the turnaround in the retail format besides building the brand, customer connect and store operations.

Ashutosh is an MBA from FMS Delhi and holds a BE degree from BIT Sindri. He is based in Mumbai where he lives with his wife Aparna and two lovely daughters, Shriya and Shraddha.

RACHNA AGGARWAL

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Founder Partner, 92 Angels | Former CEO – Indus League (brand division of Future Lifestyle Fashions)

Rachna currently is founder partner at 92 Angels, a nurture seed capital fund, an advisor to Shopper’s Stop and a mentor/advisor to many young entrepreneurs. She has 25 years of rich experience in brand building in the fashion industry bringing passion, energy, a deep understanding of the fashion and retail landscape, consumer focus and brings a futuristic, innovative mindset to her work. The touchstones of her style have always fused together creativity with analysis and insight.

With 92 Angels, she looks for deep science/ deep tech paradigm-changing ideas that would
have a positive impact on society to mentor invest in. She did her schooling at Loreto House and her B Sc (Economics) from St. Xavier’s College, Kolkata followed by her PGDM from IIM, Ahmedabad.

Rachna is married to Arun Sirdeshmukh and they have two daughters Riya (21) and Risha (16). She loves to travel, play mahjongg, binge on television serials or get creative making candles and doing pottery or decoupage.

RAJIV SURI

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CCA, CEO, & MD, Shoppers Stop Ltd

Mr. Rajiv Suri, is the Customer Care Associate (CCA), Managing Director (MD) and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of India’s leading fashion and beauty retailer Shoppers Stop Limited. He joined Shoppers Stop in January 2018 as the CEO and got elevated in June 2018 as the MD & CEO to lead the overall strategy and performance of the company. Rajiv brings over 25 years of leadership experience spanning multiple
geographies viz. Europe, East Europe, Middle East and India – specialising in the Fashion, Beauty, Home
and Department Store segments.

Before setting sights on India’s burgeoning retail market, Rajiv was Chief Executive Officer at Majid Al
Futtaim Fashion (MAF) – a leading shopping mall, communities, retail and leisure pioneer across the Middle East, Africa and Asia from 2014 to 2017. He lead the strategic development, growth & transformation, innovation and digitalisation for MAF which was including global brands like A&F, Hollister, Crate & Barrel and Allsaints, Lululemon. During his time at MAF, Rajiv served on the Board of Directors of Abercrombie & Fitch Middle East, Monsoon & Accessorize Middle East, and the Dubai Retail Business Group.

Prior to this, Rajiv was CEO Retail at Jashanmal (a premium/luxury retailer in the Gulf region) from 2007 – 2014 which included global brands such as Burberry, Salvatore Ferragamo, Bally, Kate Spade New York, Brooks Brothers, Calvin Klein, Clark’s etc. As part of his role, he served on the Board of Directors of Burberry Middle East and was instrumental in launching Burberry in India. Prior to his association with Jashanmal Group, he was working with Mexx Europe Holding as the Franchise Director and Managing Director of Mexx (an international fashion company) between 2003 and 2007. Anchored out of Paris, he joined Mexx in 1998. He was associated with M.H. Alshaya Co. for a decade.

Rajiv holds a Strategic Retail Management certificate from Harvard Business School, Boston, Massachusetts, United States. He has a dual PGD in Sales & Marketing Management from Bhartiya Vidya Bhavan, Jaipur and PGD in Business Management from Institute of Marketing Management, New Delhi.

Rajiv’s extensive international repertoire lends him an astute and futuristic lens into the business of fashion. He is passionate about the fashion industry’s transformative impact on customers. He is a firm believer in leveraging market opportunities, strengthening customer relationships, and driving cohesive and innovative growth across all spheres of business.

VELLAYAN SUBBIAH

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Managing Director, Tube Investments of India Ltd.

Mr. Vellayan Subbiah, son of Padma Bhushan M V Subbiah, is part of the fourth generation of the Murugappa family.

Mr. Vellayan holds a Bachelor of Technology in Civil Engineering from IIT Madras and an MBA from the University of Michigan. He has over 23 years of experience in varied fields viz., technology, projects and financial services. He has worked with McKinsey and Company, 24/7 Customer Inc. and Sundram Fasteners Ltd. He was a recipient of the Extraordinary Entrepreneur of the Year – TiECON 2014 Award. He was the Managing Director of Laserwords Private Ltd from 2007-10 and of Cholamandalam Investment and Finance Company Limited from 2010-17. He is currently the Managing Director of Tube Investments of India Ltd.

Mr. Vellayan is an avid cyclist and a marathon runner.

MANISH CHHABRA

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Managing Director and CEO, Hygienic Research Institute

Taking beauty care from India to the world.

Manish Chhabra has proven that business can indeed bring beauty.

With 27 years of dedicated leadership he has led Hygienic Research Institute Pvt. Ltd., to become a leading player in the beauty care industry.

After completing his graduation in Pharmacy from Pune college of Pharmacy, Manish Chhabra had to join his family business upon the untimely demise of his father in 1989.

He started out as a floor chemist supervising a team of 22 workers. He learned the ropes of the business in a short span of 3 years and grew taller to shoulder more responsibilities to write the success story of HRIPL in the history of the Indian Hair Care Industry. Taking over as the CEO of the company in the year 1998 and MD & CEO in the year 2007, he led the company from a modest topline of INR 23.87 Cr in FY 1998-99 to above INR 400 Cr in FY 2015-16.

Recognizing the potential in Him and HRIPL, Azim Premji invested in a minority stake in HRIPL with a vision to reach 1000 cr by 2021.

The globally recognized World Consulting & Research Corporation has awarded Manish Chhabra, the Managing Director & CEO of HRIPL as Asia’s Most Promising Leader 2013. The award, adjudged after a widespread research based on several industry barometers, points to the Vision of Manish Chhabra. The company has also won many awards under his leadership.

Timely initiatives for setting up a professional division and international tie-ups to provide quality products in the professional range achieved a positive momentum and then there was no looking back. He has also ventured into strategic manufacturing alliances with two leading European manufacturers to ensure that no stone remains unturned in his endeavors to create a strong foot print in the professional segment.