Simi sits down with Ananya Birla, business leader, artist, mental health advocate, and 7th-generation scion of one of India's oldest and most storied family businesses — the Aditya Birla Group. Ananya is building across more industries than most people will touch in a lifetime. At 17, she founded what is now India's second-largest microfinance institution. After dropping out of Oxford to pursue music, she became the first Indian artist to go platinum with an English single. A consummate multi-hyphenate, she joined the family business — the first woman in her lineage — now leading subsidiaries across film, real estate, cosmetics, and AI. Today, Ananya is recognized as one of Fortune's Most Powerful Women in the world, shaping India's relationship with the world. Recorded live at the India Conference at Harvard, this unfiltered conversation covers leadership principles and privilege, music and mental health, and what it means to craft your own legacy when you were born into one. KEY TOPICS: Dropping out of Oxford to pursue musicLaunching her own ventures and earning credibility in the family businessBeing the only woman in the boardroom On leadership, privilege, and her vision for the Birla Family legacy Leading Birla Studios, Birla Cosmetics, Birla AI Labs, Birla Real EstatesSelf-worth, mental health advocacy, and leadership principlesABOUT ANANYA BIRLA: Ananya Birla is the Founder and Chairperson of Svatantra Microfin — India's second-largest and best-performing microfinance institution with a $7 billion portfolio, over 4 million customers, and 24,000 employees across 19 states. The company is heading toward IPO in 2026 — the fastest any Birla has taken a company public in seven generations. The international PE firm Advent invested $400 million alone. In music, Ananya has multiple English-language multi-platinum singles in India, was the first Indian artist featured on an American national Top 40 chart, and has collaborated with AR Rahman and Sean Kingston. She also leads Birla Cosmetics (LOVETC and Contraband), Birla Studios, and Birla AI Labs. Ananya serves on the Aditya Birla Group's apex strategic body ABMCPL and on the boards of Hindalco, Grasim, and Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail. The Birla conglomerate is one of the largest industrial dynasties in India and the largest Indian greenfield investor in the U.S. ($15 billion). South Asian Trailblazers is an award-winning media platform, community, and agency dedicated to elevating leading South Asians. Join our community at SouthAsianTrailblazers.com. Subscribe to our newsletter to get new episodes and updates on our latest events in your inbox. Follow us @southasiantrailblazers on Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok, Facebook, YouTube, and all major podcast platforms, including Apple and Spotify.
