Rajashree Birla

Last updated

Rajashree Birla
Born (1948-01-01) 1 January 1948 (age 75)
Madurai, Tamil Nadu, India
OccupationBusinessperson
Spouse Aditya Vikram Birla
Children Kumar Mangalam Birla (son),
Vasavadatta Bajaj (daughter)
Awards Padma Bhushan
Women Achievers Award
Corporate Citizen of the Year
Seva Shiromani Award
Citizen of Bombay Award 2003
The Pride of India Award
Website Official web page

Rajashree Birla is an Indian philanthropist. She was married to Aditya Birla (scion of the Birla family of business magnates). After her husband's death in 1995, Rajashree began working in CSR and charity sectors, developing a large philanthropic organization funded by her family. In 2011, the Government of India honoured her with the Padma Bhushan, the third highest civilian award, for her services to society. [1]

Contents

Biography

Rajashree was born in 1948 in Madurai, in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, in a family which hailed originally from Rajasthan in north-western India. Her father, Radhakishen Fomra, [2] held a dealership agency for Burmah Shell. [3] Her mother, Parvati Devi Fomra, was a home-maker. The family were Marwari Vaishyas and belonged to the Maheshwari sub-caste.

Rajashree and her sisters studied at St. Joseph's convent school in Madurai, [4] Following the usual Indian custom, Rajshree's marriage was arranged by her parents into a family belonging to their specific Maheshwari sub-caste. The nuptials were celebrated in three stages, as per the Marwari tradition. The first stage, being the engagement, was performed when Rajashree was around 10 years old. Her fiancé was Aditya Vikram Birla, scion of the Birla family and grandson of the legendary business magnate Ghanshyam Das Birla. The second stage comprised the initial ceremony of marriage (essentially an irrevocable engagement), which was performed when Rajashree was 14, and the final ceremonies (gauna and vidaai) was performed in 1965, when she was 17 years old. At this point, she departed her parents’ house in Madurai and moved into her in-law's house in Kolkata.

By this time, she had completed her matriculation and was studying at Fatima College in Madurai. With the encouragement from her husband and his parents, she enrolled at Loreto College, Kolkata and took a degree in Arts from the University of Calcutta. [3] [5] [6]

In June 1967, Rajashree became a mother with the birth of a son, Kumar Mangalam Birla. This was followed in June 1976 by a daughter, Vasavadatta. With the full support of her family, Rajashree completed her education (albeit with a break for the birth of Kumar Mangalam) and took a degree in Arts from Kolkata university. For the next three decades, she devoted herself to caring for her family and raising her two children, viewing this as her primary responsibility. Only after they had grown up and settled down did she devote her energy to public or social welfare. Throughout her life, Rajashree has maintained an understated, unostentatious lifestyle and a middle-class sense of morality and family responsibility, bringing up her children also with the same values. She has in interviews attributed this quality to the influence of Mahatma Gandhi upon her family (Ghanshyam Das Birla was a close associate of the Mahatma) and the teachings of the Bhagwat Gita. She has stated that her favourite axiom at all time, good and bad alike, is the phrase "This too will pass," a quotation from the Bhagwat Gita.

Rajashree Birla sits on the boards of her family businesses in India and abroad and heads the Aditya Birla Centre for Community Initiatives and Rural Development, the charity arm of the Aditya Birla Group, which looks after the corporate social responsibilities of the conglomerate. [3] [5] She lives in South Mumbai with her son, Kumar Mangalam Birla and his family. [6]

Social service

Aditya Birla Centre for Community Initiatives and Rural Development

As the Chairperson of the Aditya Birla Centre for Community Initiatives and Rural Development (ABCCIR), Rajashree oversees the charity efforts, development activities and community initiatives of the Aditya Birla Group, with the help of INR 1.6 billion, the Aditya Birla Group, spends on CSR activities, of which ₹ 400 million goes for educational activities. [3] The main focusses are on education, employment, drinking water and women empowerment initiatives. She is also involved in activities related to assistance to rural poor and physically disabled people, widow remarriage and activism against dowry. ABCCIR assists in the running of 42 schools and 18 hospitals and pays for the education of around 18,000 students. [3] These activities are reported to have assisted around 7 million people in about 3000 villages around the globe and has presence in countries like Thailand and Egypt. [7]

Health care

Rajashree Birla, as a tribute to her late husband, set up a 325-bed hospital, Aditya Birla Memorial Hospital, at a cost of US$ 30 million, in Pune, 2006. The hospital complex, spread over a land measuring 18 acres, is managed by the Aditya Birla Center for Community Initiatives and Rural Development and is funded by the Aditya Birla Foundation. [6] [7]

Rajashree also oversees the running of a healthcare initiative which conducts around 3500 medical camps a year, attending to reportedly 3 million patients. The initiative also conducts around 20,000 polio vaccines to children. [6] Rajashree has also donated US$1 million to Rotary International for the eradication of polio. [8]

Other social activities

Rajashree Birla is in active association with Population First a non-governmental organisation dedicated to the cause of female foeticide. She maintains a close association with Habitat for Humanity, sits on the Boards of its Asia Pacific and Global committees and attended Habitat conference in Manila, the Philippines, in 2012. The same year, she rallied a group of celebrity cricketers such as M. S. Dhoni and collected a sum of US$ 2 million for the efforts of the organization. She has personally arranged a contribution of ₹ 100 million to the Habitat for Humanity. [3]

On the issue of widow remarriage, which is still a taboo among many village people in India, Rajashree and her volunteers have worked with the village chieftains for their support. She is reported to be largely successful and her foundation has distributed monies in the form of loans to the prospective husbands for starting small businesses. She admits that this initiative is the one closest to her heart [6]

In Rajasthan, she has helped build a charity kitchen which supplies 30,000 meals every day, in association with the State Government's free lunch program for poor children studying in Government schools. She is in the process of setting up two more kitchens in Odisha, at a cost of US$ one million, to cater to 60,000 children. She is also planning to open vocational institutes in Kerala. [6]

Rajashree Birla has built a memorial to her late husband in Pilani, Rajasthan and is looking to build a temple in Pune. [6]

Positions

Apart from being the Director board member of most of the Aditya Birla Group companies, Rajashree Birla also holds or has held various other posts of importance.

She is also the trustee of many foundations related to her family such as G. D. Birla Medical Research and Education Foundation, Vasavadatta Foundation, Neerja Foundation, Rajashree Foundation, Aditya Birla Foundation and Aditya Vikram Birla Memorial Trust. [5]

Awards and recognitions

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">G. D. Birla</span> Indian businessman

Ghanshyam Das Birla was an Indian businessman and member of the Birla Family.

The Birla family is a family connected with the industrial and social history of India.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ajay Piramal</span> Indian businessman

Ajay Gopikisan Piramal is an Indian billionaire businessman, and the chairman of the Piramal Group, a conglomerate with interests in pharmaceutical, financial services, real estate, healthcare analytics and glass packaging. As of September 2022, his net worth was estimated at US$3 billion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aditya Birla Group</span> Indian multinational conglomerate

The Aditya Birla Group (ABG) is an Indian multinational Fortune 500 company headquartered in Mumbai, Maharashtra. The group has a presence in 36 nations. As of 2023 the company's revenue is worth $60 billion and derives over 50% of its revenue from its global operations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hindalco Industries</span> Indian multinational aluminium manufacturing company

Hindalco Industries Limited an Indian aluminium and copper manufacturing company, is a subsidiary of the Aditya Birla Group. Its headquarters are at Mumbai, Maharashtra, India.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">K. K. Birla</span> Indian industrialist

Krishna Kumar Birla was an Indian industrialist of the Birla family.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kumar Mangalam Birla</span> Indian industrialist (born 1967)

Kumar Mangalam Birla is an Indian billionaire Industrialist, philanthropist, and the chairman of the Aditya Birla Group, one of the largest global conglomerates in India. He is the chancellor of the Birla Institute of Technology & Science, Pilani and ex Chairman of Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad. According to Forbes, he has an estimated net worth of US$13.8 billion, as of March 2023 making him the 9th richest person in India.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sameer Nair</span> Indian businessman

Sameer Nair is an Indian media executive and business professional currently serving as CEO of Applause Entertainment Limited. He helped revamp the Star India, Star One, Star Utsav, Star Gold, Star Vijay and Channel V television networks and participated in the launch of the Kaun Banega Crorepati, and Balaji Telefilms' soap operas on Star Plus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aravind Eye Hospitals</span> Network of eye hospitals in India

Aravind Eye Hospitals is a hospital chain in India. It was founded by Dr. Govindappa Venkataswamy at Madurai, Tamil Nadu in 1976. It has grown into a network of eye hospitals and has had a major impact in eradicating cataract related blindness in India. As of 2012, Aravind has treated nearly 32 million patients and performed 4 million surgeries. The model of Aravind Eye Care hospitals has been applauded and has become a subject for numerous case studies across the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grasim Industries</span> Indian industrial conglomerate

Grasim Industries Limited is an Indian manufacturing company based in Mumbai. Since its inception in 1947 as a textile manufacturer, Grasim has diversified into textile raw materials like viscose staple fiber (VSF) and viscose filament yarn, chemicals and insulators, along with cement and financial services through its subsidiaries UltraTech Cement and Aditya Birla Capital respectively. The company is a part of the Aditya Birla Group.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aditya Vikram Birla</span> Industrialist from India

Aditya Vikram Birla was an Indian industrialist. Born into one of the largest business families of India, he oversaw the diversification of his group into textiles, petrochemicals and telecommunications. He was one of the first Indian industrialists to expand abroad, setting up plants in Southeast Asia, the Philippines and Egypt. His net worth was estimated at £250 million by 1995. His death at the age of 51 left his young son Kumar Mangalam Birla in charge of his group of companies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prafulla Dahanukar</span> Indian painter (1934–2014)

Prafulla Dahanukar was an Indian painter, a leader in modern Indian art who also helped and influenced many young artists in India.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">More (store)</span> Indian grocery chain

More Retail Private Limited is a national omni-channel food and grocery retailer. MORE operates its stores under two formats. More Supermarkets and More Hypermarkets and also offers an online grocery service via its mobile app. More Retail was previously known as Aditya Birla Retail Limited when it was part of the Aditya Birla Group before More was sold to investors led by Samara Capital and Amazon. More Retail has a network of 878 Supermarkets in 30 cities and 42 Hypermarkets in 12 cities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ragini Shankar</span> Indian violinist

Ragini Shankar is an Indian violinist who performs Hindustani classical music and fusion. She is the grand-daughter of the renowned Padmabhushan Dr. N. Rajam. and the daughter of Dr. Sangeeta Shankar

Yamunabai Waikar, née Yamunabai Vikram Jawle was an Indian folk artist, known for her expertise in the Marathi folk traditions of Lavani and Tamasha, folk art forms involving music and dance and reported to be one of the leading exponents of the art genres. A recipient of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award, she was honored by the Government of India, in 2012, with the fourth highest Indian civilian award of Padma Shri.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Polio Children</span>

Polio Children is an international non-governmental organization which has fundraised over £1.3million to fund projects in India, Tanzania, South Sudan and Sierra Leone which enhance the welfare of children with poliomyelitis. The charity has provided scholarships, vocational training and material assistance to polio victims across the world to ensure they can live dignified, independent lives.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sarala Birla</span> Indian businesswoman

Sarala Birla was an Indian Businesswoman prominent member of the Birla family of Indian industrialists. She took interest in public education and, along with her husband, is credited with having co-founded about 45 educational institutions supported by her family's conglomerate.

India National PolioPlus Society is a non-profit organization. The Initiative has achieved significant progress toward its goals. There has been a dramatic decline in cases everywhere in the seventeen years since the target was set in 1988.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ananya Birla</span> Indian musical artist

Ananyashree Birla is an Indian singer, songwriter and entrepreneur. Since her debut single in 2016, Birla has reached more than 350 million combined streams and collaborated with artists including Sean Kingston, Afrojack, and Mood Melodies. Birla is the first Indian artist with an English language single to go platinum in India; five of her singles have achieved platinum or double platinum status.

Aryaman Birla is an Indian cricketer and businessman. In 2023, he was appointed as one of the directors of Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail.

References

  1. 1 2 "Padma announcement" . Retrieved 12 August 2014.
  2. ↑ Early life
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Bhagat, Rasheeda. "I don't dream, I just do it". Business Line . Retrieved 12 August 2014.
  4. ↑ Early years
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 "Profile" . Retrieved 12 August 2014.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Forbes philanthropy". Forbes . Retrieved 12 August 2014.
  7. 1 2 "Forbes bio". Forbes . Archived from the original on 24 June 2012. Retrieved 12 August 2014.
  8. ↑ "Polio". Forbes . Retrieved 12 August 2014.
  9. ↑ "ALL Ladies League" . Retrieved 12 August 2014.
  10. ↑ "ALL Ladies League" . Retrieved 12 August 2014.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.