India’s most inspiring tech billionaires – from Sunil Mittal to Azim Premji and Shiv Nadar … who’s the richest?

Apr 12 , 2020

These five faces have all made billions from India’s tech boom. Photos: Instagram/handout/Forbes/AFP

Forbes’ India rich list highlights many rags-to-riches success stories to spring from the South Asian country’s monumental tech boom – read the most inspiring ones here

Stuck indoors as a result of government-enforced social distancing, the importance of online engagement becomes ever more important. Not only for online social activities but for many in the commercial industry this is a vital vein to stay connected and keep the economy going. India, with its vast land mass and a population of almost 1.4 billion, is a hotbed for tech start-ups in the Asia-Pacific region. Take a look at some of the country’s most prominent tech entrepreneurs to make Forbes’ list of India's 100 Richest People.

Shiv Nadar

Net worth: US$14.4 billion

The co-founder and chairman of HCL Technologies, Nadar has his very own Bill Gates story – where in 1976 he started a company in his garage which would eventually propel him to become one of India’s richest tech entrepreneurs. HCL produces calculators and microprocessors and rakes in revenue of around US$9.7 billion, making it one of India’s largest software services providers.

Nadar is also an active philanthropist. Through his Shiv Nadar Foundation, the billionaire has donated around US$662 million to education-related causes. He was awarded a Padma Bhushan in 2008 by the Indian government for his contribution to the country’s IT industry. His daughter Roshni Nadar Malhotra is CEO of HCL Corporation and vice-chairman of HCL Technologies and is recognised as one of India’s tech giants in her own right. She placed 54th on Forbes 100 Most Powerful Women list, alongside German Chancellor Angela Merkel, music phenomenon Taylor Swift and environmental activist Greta Thunberg.

Sunil Bharti Mittal

Net worth: US$7.6 billion

Sunil Bharti Mittal and his family are recognised as giants in India’s telecom industry. Their company Bharti Airtel is one of the country’s largest mobile phone operators with over 418 million subscribers. Mittal is the founder and chairman of Bharti Enterprises, and also owns Airtel Payments Bank, which is controlled by billionaire Uday Kotak in a joint venture with Kotak Mahindra Bank.

Mittal’s company started selling bicycle parts in 1976, which he then sold to start a business in importing portable electric generators from Japan, but that came to a halt when the government introduced an import band. The entrepreneur then set his sights on push-button phones from Taiwan in 1984 and successfully bid for one of four mobile phone network licences auctioned in India in 1992.

Azim Premji