Piramal Group's next-gen leader Anand Piramal is all set to tie the knot with Reliance Industry chief Mukesh Ambani's daughter Isha
Anand is the son of Ajay Piramal, the owner of the $10-billion Piramal Enterprises, and his wife Swati Piramal. The 33-year-old is the Executive Director of the Piramal Group and is heading the company's real-estate vertical.
Anand, a 2006 alumnus of the University of Pennsylvania, has a Bachelors' Degree in Economics. He went on to earn his Masters in Business Administration from Harvard Business School in 2009-2011.
Before joining his father's group, Anand had founded Piramal eSwasthya, a rural healthcare start-up in Rajasthan. It was later merged with Piramal Swasthya - India's largest private primary healthcare initiative with a network of over 4,000 employees and 490 doctors. It has presence across 11 states with dedicated health hotlines, mobile medical units and telemedicine centres.In 2015, Piramal Swasthya had won the 'Times Social Impact' Award and, in 2013, the Forbes philanthropy award. It has helped 90 million-plus people since its inception.
In 2012, Anand had set up his second venture, Piramal Realty, a real estate startup, drawing inspiration from a business school summer study.He played a significant role in acquiring prime land parcels across Mumbai and built a team with world-class experts.In 2015, he had raised $434 million from Goldman Sachs and Warburg Pincus for the venture -- considered one of the largest private equity investments in real estate in India.
Anand was previously the youngest President of the Indian Merchant Chamber - Youth Wing. In 2018, he was awarded the Hurun Real Estate Unicorn of the Year 2017 by Hurun India and Young Business Leader award by Hello! magazine.
In a recent conference, Anand said Reliance Industry Limited Chairman and his would-be father in-law Mukesh Ambani gave him the best advice when he was 25. "He told me -- 'Being a consultant is like watching cricket or commentating about cricket, while being an entrepreneur is like playing cricket. You can't learn how to play cricket by commentating. If you want to do something, be an entrepreneur in the long-term and start now'."
Anand and Isha are friends for a long time and their families have shared a strong bond for over four decades. The Piramals and Ambanis have said that the wedding bell will ring in the festivities this December.