Moneycontrol PRO & Waterfield Advisors felicitate the best family-run firms at The Indian Family Business Awards 2021

For decades, family-owned businesses have displayed resilience, character, and adaptability over their long history and played a pivotal role in India’s growth story. Driving forward development and innovation, they remain key building blocks of India’s economy and societal development. Setting a benchmark in celebrating excellence amongst family businesses for their resilience, purpose, and determination, t

The inaugural edition of the Indian Family Business Awards, an initiative by Moneycontrol PRO, co-created with Waterfield Advisors honoured the best and brightest family-owned enterprises that contribute positively to India and its culture, and future.

The ceremony was held on April 29 at the Taj Mahal Palace, Mumbai. It witnessed the presence of Chief Guest Manoj Sinha - Lieutenant Governor, Jammu and Kashmir, along with top echelons of corporate India.

It was a proud moment for SRF Ltd as the multi-business chemicals conglomerate bagged the award for Best Family Business in the Giga Category - companies with a turnover of more than Rs 5,000 crore.

The winner of the Best Family Business in the Mega Category - companies with a turnover between Rs 1,000-5,000 crore, went to Kajaria Ceramics Ltd.

Tally Solutions, an Indian multinational technology company, won the Best Family Business in the Super category - companies with a turnover of up to Rs 1,000 crore.

Dixon Tech, a leader in the electronic manufacturing services (EMS) space, was awarded the Most Enterprising 1st Gen Business Award in the Special category.

The ceremony commenced with a keynote speech given by Sinha. He said, “Family businesses have contributed in nation-building and are bedrock of jobs and growth. They today contribute up to 80% to India's GDP. Along with providing utility to customers, generating jobs, and funding start-ups, they have a key role to play in achieving the ($) 5 trillion economy.”

Sharing his thoughts about family businesses and J&K, he added, “Today, the state has investment proposals worth Rs 52,000 crore. I am appealing to all leading family businesses to come and invest in Jammu & Kashmir. There is a culture of family businesses in Jammu & Kashmir as well. Family businesses have played a key role in handicrafts, pashmina, carpet and horticulture industries. I assure you that the best facilities among all states and Union territories will be provided to you in J&K.” 

The winners of the Indian Family Business Awards, across 14 categories, were chosen by a jury comprising Soumya Rajan, Founder and CEO of Waterfield Advisors; Sonu Bhasin, Founder of FAB- Families and Business; Gaurav Dalmia, Chairman of Dalmia Group Holdings; Vishesh C Chandiok, CEO, Grant Thornton Bharat; Gopal Srinivasan, Chairman, TVS Capital Funds Limited, and Sanjeev Bikchandani, Founder, Info Edge.

These members of the jury went through hundreds of nominations and narrowed down on the winners after a thorough qualitative and quantitative analysis.

The award ceremony also witnessed an insightful panel discussion where Ashwin Mohan and Anand Narasimhan engaged in conversation with Sinha, Soumya Rajan; Dinesh Kanabar, CEO of Dhruva Advisors, and Hemendra Kothari, Chairman at DSP Investment Managers. 

Sharing his perspective on the succession planning of family businesses, Kothari said, “The greatest change which has come in the last 20 years, is that new entrepreneurs have come into an old family business. Young and highly educated people are also choosing the 100-year-old family business to work. They are implementing their skills and intelligence into the family-owned business.” 

Kothari added, “Forming a board where family members can serve as directors, the business can be handed over to able professionals other than the family. CEOs can be hired, who execute all plans, with the family board supervising his plan of action in order to grow the business in the right direction." 

Kanabar said, “There was a time when Indian family businesses could only grow to Rs 2,000 cr- 3,000 cr, but the fact that we have got Giga Awards category itself is the manifestation that there are no boundaries to a family-owned business now. They grow not only from one generation to another, but across multiple generations. Similarly, there was stereotypical thinking that only sons of the family would come into a business, but now even daughters are an active part of the family business.”

Binoy Prabhakar, Executive Editor, Moneycontrol, said, “The awards provide an incredible platform to showcase the best in family business and to glean valuable insights from these enterprises. For each of the 14 winners, to whom I send my heartfelt congratulations, the awards represent the highest recognition of achievement in their respective sectors and provides a strong impetus to continue to strive for excellence. We are delighted to have Waterfield's expertise on board, which helped us in delivering such a magnificent ceremony and look forward to extending the legacy of the property in the years to come.”

Rajan said, "We are so happy to see our vision for family business recognition come to life through these awards. Seeing these iconic family businesses get recognised on a national platform was the goal behind the creation of these awards along with Moneycontrol PRO. It was inspiring to see families from across the country come down and support the winners. It’s a testament to the community. On behalf of everyone at Waterfield Advisors, I congratulate each and every winner. I’m confident that the inaugural edition will inspire more family businesses to participate next year and share the story of their resilience and family values with the people of this country.”

The event culminated in a cultural programme by the band of Nizami Bandhu that saw the esteemed guests present experience the beauty of Sufi music.

Here’s the complete list of the winners:

https://youtu.be/CM8hPbL3nAM 

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