Gaja Capital Business Book Prize 2022: ‘How TTK Prestige Became a Billion Dollar Company’ among 10 nominees

Author Gita Piramal’s “Rahul Bajaj: An Extraordinary Life”, Mircea Raianu’s “Tata – The Global Corporation That Built Indian Capitalism” and Narotam Sekhsaria’s “The Ambuja Story” are among the 10 longlisted books for the fourth ‘Gaja Capital Business Book Prize’.

The longlist announced on Wednesday comprises books on “entrepreneurship, Indian family businesses, India’s digital tech revolution, important events in the Indian business landscape, economics and stories of personal success and failure covering the entire gamut of Indian business from independence to more recent, contemporary stories”, informed the organisers.

Other titles that made the cut include “Broke to Breakthrough: The Rise of India’s Largest Private Dairy Company” by Harish Damodaran, “Disrupt and Conquer: How TTK Prestige Became a Billion Dollar Company” by TT Jagannathan and Sandhya Mendonca, and “Harsh Realities: The Making of Marico” by Harsh Mariwala and Ram Charan.

“I’m confident the jury will curate an excellent reading list that should be on the bookshelves and desks of entrepreneurs, business owners and anyone interested in India’s growth potential.

I am especially hopeful that these interesting stories encourage young entrepreneurs to read and learn from the experience of others,” said Gopal Jain, co-founder and managing partner of Gaja Capital in a statement.

“As for writers, journalists, and entrepreneurs, this will continue to serve as a platform to share their stories and create a body of knowledge that others can leverage and build upon,” he added.

“The Struggle And The Promise: Restoring India’s Potential” by Naushad Forbes, “Xiaomi: How a Startup Disrupted the Market and Created a Cult Following” by Jayadevan PK, “Indomitable: A Working Woman’s Notes on Work, Life and Leadership” by Arundhati Bhattacharya, and “Maverick Effect: The Inside Story of India’s IT Revolution” by Harish Mehta are also in the contention for the coveted award.

The jury for the prize this year comprises stalwarts from the worlds of industry, investments, academia, public policy, and governance.

They will announce the shortlist in November 2022, and the winner in January 2023.

Instituted in 2019 to encourage Indian entrepreneurs, writers, and journalists to tell their stories for the world, the award offers prize money of Rs 15 lakh — making it the “biggest book prize” in the country to honour authors transforming the business ecosystem with their creativity.

Amrit Raj’s book “Indian Icon: A Cult Called Royal Enfield,” a gripping account of how a strong Indian brand became global, was the winner of the 2021 ‘Gaja Capital Business Book Prize’.

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Meet Abhijita Gupta the winner of Global Child Prodigy Awards 2022

The young prodigy, Abhijita Gupta has been recognised as the world’s youngest writer by the International Book of Records. She started writing poetry and prose at the age of five and first published at the age of 7. Currently a class four student.

The nine-year-old Abhijita is the granddaughter of poet duo Rashtrakavi- Shri Maithalisharan Gupt and Santkavi Shri Siyaramsharan Gupt. The young writer has been a source of inspiration for all aspiring writers as she has already penned three books “Happiness All Around”, “We Will Surely Sustain” and “To Begin with…The Little Things”.

The Telegraph Online Edugraph recently got into a candid chat with the young writer to know more about her inspirations and what inclined her towards the field of writing at such a young age.

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Professor from Chennai to head continental mathematics panel

Sanoli Gun from city’s The Institute of Mathematical Sciences will be the first president of Asia-Oceania Women in Mathematics

The Committee for Women in Mathematics, which is a part of The International Mathematical Union, announced on its website that the Asia-Oceania Women in Mathematics (AOWM), the continental organisation for women mathematicians, has been established by an online meeting on August 1, this year.

With over 200 founding members from the continents, the organisation will have as its first president Sanoli Gun, a professor of mathematics at The Institute of Mathematical Sciences, Chennai, who specialises in Number Theory. There are two vice-presidents – Melissa Tacy from University of Auckland, New Zealand, and Polly Sy from University of Philippines Diliman, Philippines – and executive committee members including women mathematicians from Korea, Indonesia, Japan, China, Kazhakstan and Iran.

Among its myriad activities, the International Mathematical Union is the body that awards the Fields Medals, the highest honour in mathematics. It is the largest organised body of mathematicians across the world.

“We have to set the tone, and generate funds to actually make all the programmes happen. We have to create a logo and a website to start with. We also have to integrate… Asia is a very diverse continent, and there is Oceania. So there’s a lot of work ahead,” Said Prof. Gun.

The goal of this committee is threefold – facilitate exchange of knowledge between all the member countries, and improve the number of women mathematicians working on their Ph.Ds in mathematics and the mathematical sciences. The second goal is to help women who have Ph.Ds, but somehow get lost in the system. “Maybe we can create some fellowships,” says Prof Gun. The third goal is to make conditions more favourable for those women in faculty positions in various institutes. This will help check the so-called ‘leaky pipeline’. “About steps specific to Asia and Oceania, we will have a better idea after our first EC meeting in September,” she said.

She also pointed out that when a young person takes up research in mathematics, the names she or he encounters are usually Ramanujan and Harishchandra, and very few are inspired. The importance of having the work of great women mathematicians thrown into prominence is therefore obvious. Prof. Gun also mentioned that her colleagues from Europe had spoken of having an exhibition that describes the phenomenal work done by women in mathematics.

Unlike in literature, there are no prizes specifically for women in mathematics. “This is one of the things we will try to get for young people,” she said.

Women in research and even in faculty positions face a lot of discrimination. “One way to tackle this is by creating more women mathematicians,” Prof. Gun said.

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When Indians call shots in global business

World’s largest coffee chain, Starbucks has appointed Indian origin Laxman Narasimhan as the chief executive officer on August 3. Here are the list of Indians who are heading several global corporations

-Laxman Narasimhan – CEO – Starbucks / Leena Nair – CEO – Chanel / Satya Nadella – CEO – Microsoft / Sundar Pichai – CEO – Google / Arvind Krishna – CEO & Chairman – IBM/ Parag Agrawal- CEO – Twitter / Shantanu Narayan – Chairman, President , CEO – Adobe Inc / …

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Indian-origin Suella Braverman appointed UK Home Secretary

The 42-year-old barrister was among the first contenders to throw her hat in the ring to replace Boris Johnson.

Suella Braverman, nee Fernandes, the Conservative Party member of Parliament for Fareham in south-east England, on Tuesday appointed as the UK’s new Home Secretary, succeeding fellow Indian-origin colleague Priti Patel.

The 42-year-old barrister, who until now served as the Attorney General in the Boris Johnson led government, was among the first contenders to throw her hat in the ring to replace Johnson as Tory leader and Prime Minister.

Braverman was named as the Home Secretary by newly-appointed Prime Minister Liz Truss.

“I want to embed the opportunities of Brexit and tidy up the outstanding issues and cut taxes, said Braverman, a prominent member of the pro-Brexit wing of the Conservatives who wants a clear break from Europe, including taking the UK out of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR).

She referenced her personal migrant story as the London-born daughter of Hindu Tamil mother Uma and Goan-origin father Christie Fernandes, who migrated to the UK from Mauritius and Kenya respectively in the 1960s.

They loved Britain. It gave them hope. It gave them security. This country gave them opportunity. I think my background’s really informed by approach to politics, said Braverman in her leadership campaign launch video in July.

However, she was knocked out in the second round of the initial ballot of Tory MPs and threw her support behind Truss, who as Prime Minister has rewarded her with one of the highest offices in the UK government.

Suella Braverman, nee Fernandes, the Conservative Party member of Parliament for Fareham in south-east England, on Tuesday appointed as the UK’s new Home Secretary, succeeding fellow Indian-origin colleague Priti Patel.

The 42-year-old barrister, who until now served as the Attorney General in the Boris Johnson led government, was among the first contenders to throw her hat in the ring to replace Johnson as Tory leader and Prime Minister.

Braverman was named as the Home Secretary by newly-appointed Prime Minister Liz Truss.

“I want to embed the opportunities of Brexit and tidy up the outstanding issues and cut taxes, said Braverman, a prominent member of the pro-Brexit wing of the Conservatives who wants a clear break from Europe, including taking the UK out of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR).

She referenced her personal migrant story as the London-born daughter of Hindu Tamil mother Uma and Goan-origin father Christie Fernandes, who migrated to the UK from Mauritius and Kenya respectively in the 1960s.

They loved Britain. It gave them hope. It gave them security. This country gave them opportunity. I think my background’s really informed by approach to politics, said Braverman in her leadership campaign launch video in July.

However, she was knocked out in the second round of the initial ballot of Tory MPs and threw her support behind Truss, who as Prime Minister has rewarded her with one of the highest offices in the UK government.

Liz is ready now to be PM. She won’t need to learn on the job. And the job is hard and needs to be done properly. The party has had a difficult six years and stability is urgently and swiftly needed, Braverman said of her future boss at Downing Street.

The Cambridge University law graduate married Rael Braverman in 2018 and her maternity leave famously brought about an overdue legal change last year to allow her to remain a Cabinet minister while away to give birth to their second child.

Braverman is a Buddhist who attends the London Buddhist Centre regularly and took her oath of office in Parliament on the Dhammapada’ scripture of Lord Buddha’s sayings.

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‘Cup of Life’ creates Guinness World Record, one lakh and one menstrual cups donated in Kerala’s Ernakulam

Hibi Eden, Ernakulam MP who has been spearheading the ‘Cup of Life’ campaign, received the Guinness World Records certificate at Lulu Mall in Kochi on August 31.

Creating history and a Guinness World Record (GWR), one lakh and one menstrual cups were distributed for free in a span of 24 hours last week in Ernakulam. Hibi Eden, Ernakulam MP who has been spearheading the ‘Cup of Life’ campaign, received the Guinness World Records certificate at Lulu Mall in Kochi on August 31. Along with district administration, Indian Medical Association, with the support of Muthoot Finance, and scores of people collaborated for the world record.

Starting from Rajiv Gandhi Indoor Stadium to Lulu Mall, the cups were distributed to the beneficiaries at more than 100 centres.

Creating history and a Guinness World Record (GWR), one lakh and one menstrual cups were distributed for free in a span of 24 hours last week in Ernakulam. Hibi Eden, Ernakulam MP who has been spearheading the ‘Cup of Life’ campaign, received the Guinness World Records certificate at Lulu Mall in Kochi on August 31. Along with district administration, Indian Medical Association, with the support of Muthoot Finance, and scores of people collaborated for the world record.

Starting from Rajiv Gandhi Indoor Stadium to Lulu Mall, the cups were distributed to the beneficiaries at more than 100 centres.

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Unheralded Tamil short film ‘Shashthi’ wins 25 film festival awards

Featured in 59 film festivals, ‘Shasthi’, which digs into the world of a girl and her journey, has already won 25 awards.

 From a career in chartered accountancy to winning accolades in international film festivals, it may seem like a long shot. But producer and director Jude Peter Damian has done just that with ‘Shashthi’, his first short film.

Featured in 59 film festivals, ‘Shasthi’, which digs into the world of a girl and her journey, has already won 25 awards.

As a director, Jude always wanted to make movies projecting “good characters” who can be examples for developing nations and societies.

‘Shashthi’ narrates the interesting tale about Devi, a woman from an economically weaker background, who changes society to the extent that she is equated with ‘Shashthi’, the goddess of children. It is about how ordinary people (particularly women) can do ‘great’ things and about how perceptions change in different circumstances.

While talking about the recognition that the film is receiving constantly, Jude shared: “Right from the time of writing/planning of the film production, I had international film awards in my mind.”

“I’m happy about the recognition from so many international film festivals, but, honestly, I’m slightly disappointed that the film was not able to enter the Academy Awards competition. I hope I’ll be able to make a film in the near future that gets nominated for the competition sections of the Academy Awards and Cannes Festival.”

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Double podium finish for India in IBSF World Junior Snooker Championships

Last year, Tamil Nadu’s Ramachandran clinched the first position in the women’s (1st leg) round-robin league of the GSC World Snooker Qualifiers.

 India’s Anupama Ramachandran and Keerthana Pandian won the silver and bronze medals respectively in the U-21 Women’s event at the IBSF World Junior Snooker Championships in Bucharest, Romania.

Ramachandran lost to Thailand’s Panchaya Channoi 1-4 in the summit clash on Tuesday.

The 20-year-old Pandian also went down Channoi 0-3, settling for a bronze.

The Sports Authority of India (SAI) congratulated the cueists for their achievements.

“Many Congratulations Champs!! Well Done,” the SAI tweeted.

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Record 130-plus Indian-Americans at key positions in Biden administration

U.S. President Biden shattered the record of his predecessor Donald Trump, who had appointed more than 80 Indian-Americans

U.S. President Joe Biden has appointed more than 130 Indian-Americans to key positions in his administration so far, the best representation from the community that makes up around one per cent of the American population.

In doing so he has not only fulfilled his promise to the community that he had made as a presidential candidate in 2020, but also shattered the record of his predecessor Donald Trump, who had appointed more than 80 Indian-Americans and his previous boss Barack Obama, who had appointed over 60 Indian-Americans to key positions during his eight years of presidency.

More than 40 Indian-Americans has been elected at various state and federal levels including four in the U.S. House of Representatives. Not to miss the more than 20 Indian-Americans leading top U.S. companies.

While the first-ever presidential appointment was done during the time of Ronald Regan, this time Mr. Biden has appointed Indian-Americans to almost all departments and agencies of his administration.

“Indian-Americans have been imbued with the sense of seva (service) and this is reflected in their enthusiasm to pursue positions in public service instead of the private sector,” Silicon Valley-based entrepreneur, philanthropist and venture capitalist M. R. Rangaswami told PTI.

“The Biden administration has now appointed or nominated the largest group to date and needless to say we are proud of our people and their accomplishments for the United States,” Mr. Rangaswami said. Mr. Rangaswami is founder and head of Indiaspora, a U.S.-based global organization for Indian-origin leaders. Indiaspora keeps a track of Indian-origin leaders.

Mr. Biden, who has maintained a close relationship with the community since his Senator days, often jokes around about his Indian relationship. He made history in 2020 by selecting Indian-origin Kamala Harris as his running mate.

The list of Indian-Americans in the White House as compiled by Indiaspora reflects that there would be only a few meetings inside the White House or in Mr. Biden’s Oval Office that would not have an Indian-American presence.

His speech writer is Vinay Reddy, while his main advisor on COVID-19 is Dr. Ashish Jha, his advisor on climate policy is Sonia Aggarwal, special assistant on criminal justice is Chiraag Bains, Kiran Ahuja heads the Office of Personnel Management, Neera Tanden is his senior advisor, and Rahul Gupta is his drug czar.

Last week when India’s Ambassador to the U.S., Taranjit Singh Sandhu, hosted a reception at India House on the occasion of Independence Day, Indian-Americans from his administration were representing almost all major branches of the U.S. government.

Young Vedant Patel is now the Deputy Spokesperson at the Department of State, while Garima Verma is the Digital Director in the Office of the First Lady. Mr. Biden has also nominated several Indian-Americans to key ambassadorial positions.

According to the list prepared by Indiaspora, more than 40 Indian-Americans have been elected to various offices across the country. Four are in the House of Representatives — Dr. Ami Bera, Ro Khanna, Raja Krishnamoorthi and Pramila Jayapal. This includes four Mayors.

Led by Indian-Americans Sunder Pichai of Google and Satya Nadella of Microsoft, there are over two dozen Indian-Americans heading U.S. companies. Among others include Shantanu Narayen of Adobe, Vivek Lall of General Atomics, Punit Renjen of Deloitte, Raj Subramaniam of FedEx.

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Google Doodle pays tribute to Indian physicist and meteorologist Anna Mani

Anna Mani was an Indian physicist and meteorologist, who retired as the Deputy Director General of the Indian Meteorological Department

Google is paying tribute to Indian physicist and meteorologist Anna Mani, who made significant contributions to meteorological instrumentation, conducted research and published papers on solar radiation, atmospheric ozone and wind energy measurements.

Google has depicted a Doodle dedicated to Mani, to celebrating her 104th birth anniversary.

Anna Modayil Mani was born in 1918 in Peermade, Kerala, and obtained her B.Sc. (Hon.) in 1939 from the Madras Presidency College. A voracious reader since childhood, Mani initially wanted to pursue dancing, but eventually decided in favour of physics since she liked the subject.

She began her scientific career with C.V. Raman at the Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, where she studied the fluorescence and absorption patterns and spectra of diamonds. In 1945, she went to the Imperial College, London, and later to the British Meteorological Office, studying the evolution of weather instruments. She visited several field observatories and manufacturers of meteorological instruments in England and Scotland. and later joined the India Meteorological Department (IMD).

She made significant contributions to meteorological instrumentation, conducted research, and published papers on solar radiation, atmospheric ozone and wind energy measurements. She was a member of a number of organizations including the International Ozone Association, Indian National Science Academy, American Meteorological Society, International Solar Energy Society, World Meteorological Organisation, among others.

She retired as the Deputy Director-General of the IMD in 1976. She passed away in 2001.

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