It's a typical story of a bad boy who turned good; a journey straight from Page 3 to the front page.
For Jeh Wadia, there was a never a dull moment. Once a heavy drinker and a party animal, Jeh after dabbling his hand in the group's textile business is the proud owner of Go Air -- touted as the 'lowest cost' airline in India.
The younger son of Nusli Wadia, Jeh is a man with diverse interests. He is passionate about travelling, cars and music, and not necessarily in this order.
But he is not the quintessential 'poor little rich kid'. Meaning this rich kid also has place for the country's underprivileged in his heart. His endeavours in the villages of Chitrakoot, Madhya Pradesh are testimony to this.
Wanting to make the farmers of Chitrakoot self reliant Wadia helped in setting up seed banks and financed the development of organic fertilisers by using only local resources.
He has also developed a farming research and development centre called Krishi Vidya Kendra.
"At 26, I realised that while I was seeking responses to my questions, the answer was always in front of me. That's when I joined Nanaji (Deshmukh) and got involved in social work at Chitrakoot."
Education:
St. Lawrence's Boarding School in Sanawar
Richmond College, England
MSc. from Warwick University, England
Career graph:
Forged a joint venture with Tata Nova during the dot com boom.
Set up a car dealer agency -- PNS Motors -- and imported cars.
Was made a management trainee in Bombay Dyeing with a Rs 2,000 monthly salary
On his Bombay Dyeing experience
"I had cotton coming out of my ears and I hated it."
Genesis of Go Air:
With no domestic air connectivity at that time, going to Chitrakoot meant flying from Mumbai to Delhi and Allahabad, and then taking a car.
As flying by private jet cost him a bomb, Wadia decided to travel a part of the journey like a 'common man'. The experience of travelling by train appalled him.
"Even an air-conditioned seat didn't guarantee the basic facilities. The conditions were pathetic. That's when I decided that I'd make a difference to their lives by having a low-cost airline, offering train fares for flying."
His inspiration:
His father, mother and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh stalwart Nanaji Deshmukh, who has been a close Wadia family friend for decades.
Deshmukh, a champion of the self-reliance movement for the underprivileged residing in Chitrakoot in Madhya Pradesh, had a great influence on the Wadia boys.
POOJA SHETTY
Not only does Pooja Shetty, director, IMAX Adlabs Dome Theatre and Multiplex, successfully runs India's first IMAX theatre and multiplex, but she is also counted among the rising entrepreneurs of India.
Education:
Graduated from Purdue University
She featured in an edition of Vogue as a young business tycoon
She acquired a major stake in Siddharth Basu's Synergy Communications, a leading content provider for television.
According to Pooja, Las Vegas is the ultimate stress buster and her favourite casino is MGM Grand
While Frankfurt she feels is the best international airport, as a business traveler she prefers to travel British Airways and Singapore Airlines.
Image: Managing director of GoAir India airlines, Jeh Wadia (L) and vice president sales of Airbus India, Miranda Mills (R) hold a model of the Airbus A320 during a press conference in New Delhi
Photograph: Manpreet Romana/AFP/Getty Images
Also read: Drive these cars @ 40 paise per km!
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