Aditya Vikram Birla

Aditya Vikram Birla was an Indian entrepreneur, industrialist, and former chairman of the “Aditya Birla Group.” He was born on November 14, 1943, in one of the largest Indian industrialist and business families. Aditya Birla was born to Basant Kumar Birla and Sarala Birla. He was the grandson of the legendary Indian business tycoon Ghanshyam Das Birla. Aditya Birla was married to Rajashree Birla in 1965. The couple had two children, a son, Kumar Mangalam Birla, and a daughter, Vasavadatta Bajaj. He completed his higher education at St. Xavier’s College in Kolkata, West Bengal. He pursued his degree in chemical engineering at the “Massachusetts Institute of Technology” a research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. After pursuing his degree, Aditya returned to India and was told to run a part of the Birla company.

Aditya started his own textiles “Eastern Spinning Mills,” and in a snap, the mill became a success. Aditya also held charge of the corporation’s expansion in the oil sector. In 1969, Aditya Birla also established the “Indo-Thai Synthetics Company Ltd.” This company was the first overseas company of the Aditya Birla Group. In 1974, the Aditya Birla Group’s Viscose Rayon Staple Fiber business “Thai Rayon” was incorporated in Thailand. The first Indo-Filipino joint project commenced in 1975 for the production of spun yarn. Aditya established the world’s most prominent single- location ‘Palm Oil’ refinery, “Pan Century Edible Oils,” in 1977. “PT. Indo Bharat Rayon” was set up by Aditya Birla in 1982.

This was the first producer of Viscose Staple Fiber in Indonesia. Soon the Aditya Birla Group was known worldwide, and the companies set up by the group became the largest producer and refiner of Viscose staple fiber and palm oil, respectively. After the death of his grandfather, Aditya was handed to most of his grandfather’s companies. Aditya was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 1993. Aditya’s aged father and his son took over charge of many responsibilities of the Aditya Birla Group. Aditya died on October 1, 1995, at the “Johns Hopkins Hospital” in Baltimore, United States.

The Government of India released a special Commemorative stamp in the name of Aditya Vikram Birla on January 14, 2013, and honored him as “India’s First Global Industrialist”. Aditya was awarded with the “Outstanding Young Person Award” in 1978, Man of the Year Award in 1985, Businessman of the Year award presented by Business India in 1990, Lifetime Achievement Award by All India Association of Industries in 1996, and many more.