- 5 months ago
Whether running businesses, writing songs, or leading teams, Ananya Birla believes in giving her all. Speaking at the India Today Conclave Mumbai 2025, she reflected on her early start, her discipline, and the values that guide her.
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00:00A very warm welcome to my guest on this fireside chat, Ananya Birla,
00:05Director of the Aditya Birla Management Corporation. Ananya.
00:18Thanks very much for being here with us today.
00:23The session is basically called Next Gen of Business
00:26and building more than just wealth and you perhaps are the perfect example of that.
00:32And I want to begin by relating a very small anecdote to our audience here
00:37and those who are watching us.
00:40At the age of 17, to think and execute a plan to do microfinance of all things.
00:48How did that happen? Because at 17, there are perhaps many other pursuits to chase in life.
00:54Firstly, thank you so much to India today for having me here.
00:58This means so much. It's been a couple of years now, so it feels good.
01:02Lovely chatting with you, Siddharth.
01:04Yeah, thank you for that question.
01:06I think, you know, at 17, there were a couple of different things that
01:10triggered is the wrong word that motivated me to start Swatantra.
01:16I think from a very young age, I've had a lot of guilt of being born in privilege
01:22and I wanted to do something by myself to make myself feel like I'm worth it, right?
01:31I think it was coming from that place as well.
01:34I wanted to do something to bridge the gap.
01:37I was born in so much privilege and then across the street,
01:39a girl didn't have anything to eat or wear.
01:41And my brain at that age just could not understand how that is, that is okay.
01:49And so I wanted to do, so basically financial inclusion.
01:53And then from a very young age, you know, coming from a Marwadi background
01:56and just looking around, being a curious mind,
02:00I realized that a woman, if a woman is not financially independent,
02:05she's either, before she's married, she's either under the thumb of her father
02:10and then her husband.
02:11She really can't make too many choices of her own.
02:16She doesn't have that independence.
02:18So I wanted to do something to contribute to that as well.
02:21And microfinance just seemed to fit that bill for everything across the board.
02:27So it was a very, very bold move that I made.
02:31Didn't have much support at that time.
02:33And rightfully so.
02:34I don't know if I would have supported me looking now back.
02:38But it's turned out we're the second largest now in the country
02:41since disbursement, 60,000 crore AUM.
02:48So, I mean, it's been a journey.
02:52And that's the story of Swatandra.
02:54It clearly must have been a tough journey
02:56because microfinance is not an easy sector to do.
02:59It sounds easy, but it's far more difficult.
03:02And I've personally reported on that.
03:04I want to add this element of the age that you started
03:09and you parallelly pursued music.
03:12Now, how does that happen together?
03:15Because for you, you're a serious musician, without doubt.
03:18How did both of them come together?
03:22That's a very good question.
03:24I think I can't go to bed at night if I don't live an authentic life.
03:30I think it's very important for me to live an authentic life.
03:33And, you know, we're just here once.
03:36It's the same person, but they're just two different facets, I would say.
03:40And it's a very important part of me.
03:44It's a huge form of expression.
03:47So it started with a love for poetry,
03:50which turned into songwriting when I picked up the guitar.
03:53And I realized that this is so cathartic
03:55that I can just stand here and express how I feel.
04:02And it's totally normal to feel a particular way.
04:05And it's just something that I knew was part of my destiny.
04:11I knew that I would not have a very linear path.
04:15And it was just a question of,
04:17okay, is this something that I want to take up or not?
04:20And, again, it's been a roller coaster.
04:24And I decided, look, you only live once.
04:26And if my music can impact even one person,
04:29and even if one person can feel like they're not alone,
04:32I'm going to do it.
04:33And that's basically what it is.
04:38That's a good point.
04:39And I see shades of spirituality in your answer.
04:41So I'm going to ask you,
04:43what does faith mean to you?
04:48What does God mean to you?
04:50So I have a tattoo that says God here on my hand.
04:53I noticed that.
04:56I'm not consciously spiritual or anything.
04:59And I have a long way to come.
05:00I'm a very flawed, imperfect person.
05:03But I have an innate faith that if we all, or whoever,
05:12I'm just going to say I because I speak for myself,
05:14if I work hard with good intention and have a clear vision,
05:20there's no reason why something will not work out.
05:22And if something doesn't work out,
05:25then it's the universe's plan,
05:27which will always be better than my plan.
05:29And that's how I function.
05:31Every day, I come from a place of everything that's happening is happening for me,
05:35not against me.
05:36It's like when you're inside a maze,
05:40you can't see the way out.
05:41But that's the whole,
05:42it's fun, right?
05:43The part is to get through the maze.
05:45So if you take a,
05:46if you go out,
05:47if you zoom out and take a bird's eye view,
05:49then you can kind of see,
05:51okay,
05:51there was a plan all along.
05:53So this is,
05:54this is a belief,
05:55the faith that I have.
05:56And I think that's the best way I can explain faith to you,
06:00what it means to me.
06:01Is there an instance that you can relate to us here,
06:05that's deeply personal,
06:06but you can go public with it,
06:08of where you really felt that at a crunch time,
06:12your faith worked for you?
06:14I mean,
06:15so Tantra,
06:15for example,
06:15because we started on that topic,
06:17right?
06:19It seems that the industry has seen some massive lows,
06:22and we have come out stronger every time.
06:25So if you just look at the crisis,
06:26the microfinance crisis that happened right now,
06:28firstly,
06:30if we hadn't acquired Chaitanya,
06:32when we did,
06:34Chaitanya would have shut down,
06:35because that's what happened with their parent company.
06:37So there would have been no Chaitanya.
06:39So obviously,
06:40because of the scale that we are at right now,
06:43we were able to manage.
06:45We are one,
06:46we are the only,
06:47one of the only MFIs actually,
06:49that's still very,
06:50very profitable.
06:51We've maintained our ROI,
06:52we've maintained our OPEX,
06:54through a very,
06:55very rough time.
06:56Now,
06:56something like that,
06:58is,
07:00you know,
07:01I feel like it is,
07:03got to do with,
07:04more than just,
07:05what is in front of the eyes.
07:07I don't know how to explain this.
07:09Or I'll give you another example.
07:11When I got into music,
07:13right,
07:13there was this whole thing,
07:14it's my own,
07:15you know,
07:15conflict.
07:16Will people take me less seriously,
07:17as a business person?
07:20Right?
07:20Naturally,
07:21because,
07:22we're not used to seeing someone,
07:24running,
07:24a financial,
07:25a really serious,
07:26large financial services company,
07:28successfully,
07:29that to a woman,
07:30who is,
07:32a young woman,
07:34and then seeing that same woman,
07:35on stage,
07:36belting out a pop song,
07:37that to an English,
07:38R&B pop song.
07:40And I happen to do both.
07:41Now,
07:41if I do it successfully or not,
07:42that's a different topic.
07:43But the point is,
07:44I happen to do both.
07:45Does that already put me on a back foot,
07:51where people won't take me seriously,
07:53in both?
07:54But somehow,
07:55it's worked out,
07:56in my favor.
07:57Again,
07:57because I've had good intentions,
07:59in both.
08:00And I've really worked hard,
08:01on my skill set,
08:03in both.
08:04So whether that is my morning riyas,
08:07then I'm in office from,
08:08doing my meetings,
08:09from 9 to 9,
08:11then I'm in studio after that,
08:13from 9.30 to 2 a.m.,
08:14which means,
08:15I don't have a social life,
08:16and I don't sleep much.
08:18So it takes a lot of effort.
08:21But I just love,
08:22I love it.
08:23I'm obsessed with it.
08:25So yeah,
08:25I think if you truly,
08:26do something,
08:28and you really want to do something,
08:30the universe kind of,
08:31just makes it happen.
08:32What's tougher,
08:33since you described,
08:34your very grueling,
08:35daily schedule,
08:36what's tougher,
08:37making music,
08:38or pouring over balance sheets,
08:40and ensuring that,
08:41there is enough return,
08:43on investment?
08:44I mean,
08:46ROI is everywhere,
08:47it's in my music as well,
08:48right?
08:48At the end of the day,
08:49I'm a Marwadi,
08:50that's in my blood.
08:53What is tougher?
08:54I think it's very contextual.
08:57So for example,
08:58but it's also very,
09:02very enjoyable.
09:03I would not have it any other way.
09:05I'm not the kind of girl,
09:07or human being,
09:08who wants to sit at home,
09:09and not do anything.
09:10I cannot be still for too long,
09:14which has its own negative impact,
09:16but it's fine,
09:16I'm young,
09:17I'm working through it.
09:18So for example,
09:19in studio,
09:19you have to be vulnerable.
09:21Or I believe in that.
09:23So every song I have written so far,
09:25the new songs I am writing,
09:26I have written to release soon,
09:29are all from experiences.
09:31And from the heart.
09:31And from the heart,
09:32right?
09:33And from the soul,
09:33really.
09:34Now you have to open up
09:36about your entire life
09:37to your co-writers,
09:38to your producers.
09:39So it becomes like a mini therapy session
09:41with people who are not therapists.
09:43So that can be uncomfortable sometimes,
09:46right?
09:46So you have to have that sense of vulnerability.
09:49So that could be hard.
09:51Obviously when it comes to music,
09:53it's much more,
09:57it's your face out there.
09:58That comes with other pressures.
10:01In the business world,
10:02being a woman,
10:03being the first woman
10:04in a legacy of only men
10:06who's working in the family business,
10:09who's also started her own businesses,
10:11being taken seriously,
10:12especially when I have
10:13this other facet of mine as well.
10:16Having to manage teams.
10:18I'm very lucky.
10:19I have great teams across the board.
10:22But it's a,
10:23it's a continuous thing,
10:25right?
10:25It's a 24-7 thing.
10:26It's all,
10:27it's just running a business
10:28is 24-7,
10:29365 days,
10:30366,
10:31depending if it's a leap year or not.
10:33So it's really,
10:36I don't know which one's harder,
10:37which it just,
10:38it really depends.
10:39It's like asking me to choose
10:40between my mom and my dad.
10:44The very important point
10:45about working hard
10:46and in the context
10:47of the controversy
10:48we saw
10:49when Mr. Narayan Murthy
10:50exhorted people
10:51to work much harder,
10:52that's a very good point.
10:53but I want to ask you,
10:55what does it mean
10:57to be a Birla?
10:59Because it's not just
11:01a business legacy,
11:02it's not a massive
11:03mega-billion dollar corporation.
11:05By the way,
11:06one of the largest
11:07Indian investors
11:08in the United States
11:09is the Aditya Birla Group.
11:11The largest.
11:12The largest.
11:13And in the context
11:14of what's happening,
11:15I think that's a very
11:15important point to note.
11:16But what does it mean
11:17to be a Birla?
11:18Because you're wide of family,
11:20that surname is associated
11:22with our freedom struggle
11:24as well.
11:24Yeah.
11:25What does it mean
11:27to be a Birla?
11:28I think, you know,
11:29at the end of the day,
11:30everyone sitting here,
11:32what does it mean
11:32to be your parents'
11:33son or daughter?
11:34It's literally the same thing.
11:36I want to make
11:37my parents proud.
11:39Yes, there are more
11:40eyeballs on me,
11:41I would say.
11:43Just eyeballs
11:44or pressure?
11:46It's self-induced
11:47pressure, right?
11:48Okay.
11:49So, I can choose,
11:51let's say,
11:51let's say,
11:54let's say we were
11:55having an interview
11:55and it wasn't very,
11:56it's going very pleasantly,
11:57let's say it wasn't
11:58going pleasantly
11:59and I've had interviews
12:00like that
12:01and let's say you were
12:01putting pressure on me
12:02or you were asking
12:03me some questions.
12:04It's on me
12:05on how I want
12:05to take it, right?
12:06It's about how I react
12:07to a situation.
12:09So, I would say
12:09it's all self-induced.
12:11Initially,
12:11that pressure was humongous.
12:13I put a lot of pressure
12:15on myself.
12:15I still do.
12:17But that's just because
12:17I have an inner critic
12:19that wants to do better,
12:22that wants to be
12:22a better person,
12:23that wants to be
12:23a better business person,
12:24that wants to be
12:25a better artist.
12:27But none of that
12:28comes from anybody external
12:31or from my family
12:32at all.
12:34Yes, I am aware
12:36that there are
12:36more eyeballs on me.
12:40Yes, I'm aware that,
12:43extremely aware
12:44that one wrong step
12:47and it could have
12:48a repercussion
12:49on five to six
12:50generations before me.
12:51and that's something
12:53I do not take lightly
12:54at all.
12:56So, yes,
12:56that pressure,
12:57of course,
12:58without,
12:58I mean,
12:59that's there without
13:00question.
13:01But Ananya,
13:02would that pressure mean,
13:03and because you spoke
13:04about the legacy,
13:05does that mean
13:06that you are
13:07less willing to fail
13:09because part of business
13:10and entrepreneurship
13:11particularly is
13:12that you fail,
13:13you learn,
13:13you iterate,
13:14re-iterate
13:15and get on with life?
13:17No, you have to fail.
13:18Success and failure
13:19are two sides
13:20of the same coin.
13:21My parents say this
13:22to me all the time.
13:23The point is...
13:24Where did you fail?
13:25Sorry, I interrupted you.
13:26Where did you fail?
13:26I fail on a daily basis,
13:27I'm telling you.
13:28I fail,
13:29I literally fail
13:30on a daily basis.
13:31It's about how you react
13:33and how you learn
13:34from that failure.
13:37I don't know
13:38how to give you instances
13:39that I have failures
13:40all the time.
13:42I mean,
13:42that could be...
13:43For one,
13:44I'm really bad
13:45with time management,
13:46for example.
13:47My meetings run over,
13:50I'm stuck in traffic,
13:51right now,
13:52I have a slip disc.
13:53You're not alone.
13:54If I were to ask people
13:56to raise hands,
13:57this entire hall
13:58would go up.
13:59So there are tons of things
14:00I need to work on.
14:02But I would say
14:03that those are areas of...
14:05It's a white space.
14:07Okay.
14:08It's areas of growth
14:10and I have a long way to go.
14:14So I fail on a daily basis,
14:16I rise on a daily basis,
14:18I fail again,
14:19I rise again
14:20and that's...
14:21Like a heartbeat
14:22is also like that, right?
14:23It's kind of just
14:24the way it works.
14:25Yeah.
14:25Okay.
14:26I want to explore
14:27your management style
14:30and what you have learned
14:33from the family
14:33and what you have done yourself,
14:36you know,
14:36the innovation
14:37or the changes
14:38that you have brought about,
14:39if you could flesh it out for us.
14:42So that's very interesting
14:43because I think...
14:45How do I...
14:47We live in a world
14:49where now,
14:50which Papa didn't have to deal with,
14:52it's...
14:53I call it open...
14:54It's an open community
14:55with social media coming in,
14:58with IoT coming in.
15:00We are all much more connected.
15:03We can put opinions out there much more.
15:06So we are having to deal with things differently
15:11because now we have contact with each other
15:16in a different way.
15:18Which means that now that we...
15:21Whether it's WhatsApp,
15:22whether it's LinkedIn,
15:22whether it's Instagram,
15:23whether it's TikTok,
15:25whatever it may be,
15:26there's more out there,
15:30which means that there are more opinions,
15:32which means that
15:33it can all be much messier,
15:35but it also means
15:37that there's that much more potential
15:38to build
15:40a stronger,
15:44loyal base.
15:46Whether that is with your team,
15:48strong relations with your team,
15:49whether that is with your consumers,
15:50whether that is with your partners.
15:51Now the question here,
15:54which I think my dad's generation
15:55as businessmen didn't even have,
15:58is how do you choose to
16:00show up in an open community?
16:04Now you can either show up as someone who...
16:06Because this is curated reality, right?
16:08You don't really know what's going on in my home.
16:11You can be relatable,
16:12you can be aspirational.
16:15I have chosen,
16:16my team and I have very consciously chosen
16:20to take the authentic route.
16:22Would I be right in describing
16:24what you just said
16:25to try and capture it in a caption?
16:27Crowd-sourced management?
16:29Is that the right...
16:30No, so I'm just getting to it.
16:31So I think,
16:32let's say,
16:33if I had to like really compare,
16:34like let's say,
16:35Papa was sitting here
16:35and I was sitting here
16:36in my meetings,
16:38I think I am much closer to my team.
16:41Number one.
16:43Just because of this, right?
16:44We're in communication much more.
16:47Because of work from home as well,
16:48there's a lot more
16:49that I'm working on my phone,
16:51on my laptop.
16:53Papa's more,
16:55he goes to office.
16:56I also go to office,
16:57but you know,
16:57in person more.
16:59So that's one difference.
17:01I'm much closer to my team.
17:02Because of the music side,
17:04we are personally connected as well.
17:06He has more of a,
17:08I'm at work
17:09and then I'm at home.
17:11I am more of a,
17:12lines are quite blurred.
17:13So people I work with
17:16have been my friends
17:17since many,
17:17many years.
17:18So that's one,
17:19another difference.
17:21I am a bit more informal
17:23with the way I conduct
17:26certain meetings.
17:27He's a bit more formal.
17:29I am more authentic
17:30with how I
17:32present myself to my team.
17:35So for example,
17:36let's say I have a slip disk,
17:37I'll tell them I have a slip disk.
17:38My dad wouldn't tell them.
17:40What else?
17:42For example,
17:43for my team
17:44and everyone that I work with,
17:45we give things like
17:46menstruation leave,
17:47we give mental health leave.
17:49I think for Papa's generation,
17:51that was not important
17:52at that time.
17:55So,
17:56but I would say
17:58he is a more disciplined,
18:02I think I'm just a,
18:04not as refined version of him.
18:06Well, that's a very, very,
18:08is how I would put it across.
18:10But these are the different,
18:11I'm trying to give you differences,
18:12very practical differences
18:13so the audience can understand.
18:15But all of this stems
18:16from the fact that
18:17I think we're just more
18:19open in our generation
18:21and the entire world, right?
18:24We're exposed more.
18:26I mean, what,
18:27the mobile phone came in 94,
18:28I think?
18:29Yeah, yeah, yeah.
18:29Right?
18:30And your father,
18:32your group has played
18:33a stellar role
18:34in building digital Bharat.
18:36None of digital Bharat
18:38would have existed
18:39had those
18:403G, 4G, 5G networks
18:42not been...
18:42Which is what we spoke about
18:43and yeah,
18:44that was very kind of you
18:45to say.
18:47I'm sure he'll see this
18:48but I'll tell him
18:49that you said that.
18:49Okay, as we wind down
18:52the conversation,
18:53I want you to tell us
18:55what would you like
18:56to be remembered
18:58as, as someone who
19:00added and created
19:03more wealth
19:04or as someone who
19:06did something innovative
19:08and created scale
19:09and a never before
19:11kind of event?
19:14I don't know.
19:16I don't want to work this up.
19:17I don't want to do this backwards.
19:18It's never worked for me.
19:19I think it's really important
19:20for me to do what I'm doing
19:21and do it with all my heart.
19:24Of course, ROI is very important.
19:26Going beyond ROI
19:27is very important.
19:29Now, what that leaves people with,
19:31I would like to leave that
19:32up to people to decide.
19:34I think that's only fair.
19:36But if there's one thing
19:37I would say is
19:38I would like people
19:39to say that
19:40she made me feel
19:44a certain way.
19:45I don't know good or bad
19:47but when you make
19:48someone feel a certain way
19:50they don't forget that.
19:54Okay.
19:55That's a very good answer.
19:57One final question
19:58and I'm fortunate in my job
19:59as a journalist
20:00to meet
20:01lots of
20:02next-gen
20:03people from business families
20:05across sectors
20:06and
20:07I have noticed
20:08that many people
20:09of your generation
20:11would rather not
20:13slog it out.
20:15They would like
20:16Are you sure?
20:17Some of them.
20:18I don't want to take names.
20:19Yeah, I know.
20:19But, you know,
20:20they wouldn't want to
20:21slog it off.
20:22Then they certainly
20:23don't want to be
20:24for example
20:25doing darshan
20:27at Dilli Darbar
20:27because the way
20:28technology has changed
20:29the way business
20:30and we have
20:31lesser regulations now
20:32and they certainly
20:33also may not want
20:34to live off
20:35their parents' money.
20:37Is that something
20:38that you see
20:39in your cohort
20:39or is your generation
20:41as committed
20:42to building
20:43India
20:44and building business
20:45as your father
20:46or your grandfather's
20:48generation?
20:49So from everyone
20:49I am quite a
20:51I'm quite a hermit
20:52like I'm quite
20:53like I told you
20:54what my schedule
20:55pretty much is like
20:56and then I'm just
20:57at home after that.
20:58So from the ones
20:59I know
21:00everyone's very committed
21:01but having said that
21:04I can only speak
21:04for myself
21:05I think Papa
21:07was dedicated
21:08in a different way
21:09I am dedicated
21:09in a different way
21:10I think Dadaji
21:11was dedicated
21:11in a different way
21:12BK Dadaji
21:13was dedicated
21:14in a different way
21:14and GD Dadaji
21:15was dedicated
21:16in a different way
21:16and the world
21:18is so different
21:19we are such
21:20different personalities
21:20I think the one
21:22thing that brings
21:22us all together
21:23as Birlas
21:24are the values
21:24that we have
21:25of honesty
21:26hard work
21:27integrity
21:28of teamwork
21:30of equality
21:33so I think
21:37the values
21:37bring us together
21:38and
21:39but like I said
21:43I just think
21:44I'm a Chinese
21:46version of my
21:47father
21:47well that's
21:49certainly a beautiful
21:51way to end
21:51I'm getting looks
21:52from my team
21:53like whatever you
21:53just said
21:54he's just a much
21:55better version of me
21:56like I don't know
21:57I look up to him
21:58I'm like
21:58like okay
21:59I see myself there
22:01but like you're
22:02just so much
22:02cooler than I am
22:04well that's a
22:05brilliant and
22:06beautiful way to
22:07bring this conversation
22:08to an end
22:09Ananya Billa
22:10thank you very much
22:11for being here
22:11with us
22:12a round of applause
22:13thank you so much
22:14thank you for having
22:15me
22:15thank you
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