G M Rao:
Rank: 13
Networth: $4.3 billion
Age: 59
An engineer-turned-industrialist, Grandhi Mallikarjuna Rao, Chairman, GMR Group, was born in Rajam, Srikakulam district. 59-year-old Rao became an entrepreneur in 1978 setting up a jute mill in his hometown. Subsequently, he diversified into ferroalloys business, sugar, brewing and infrastructure. Rao was instrumental in pioneering the company’s forte as an established player in sectors covering airports, highways, urban infrastructure and power.
With foresight on the potential in airports development, Rao had aggressively bid and won the building of four airport projects and modernization of the Delhi International Airport Similarly, he has set his eyes on foreign shores and is in the process of establishing strong presence in locations such as UK, Netherlands, Australia and Turkey to bag infrastructurerelated contracts. Rao, a sports enthusiast, also owns the Delhi Daredevils team of the Indian Premiere League for which he paid $84 million.
With a vision to make a difference to the society, he has set up GMR Varalakshmi Foundation as the Corporate Social Responsibility arm of GMR Group.
L Madhusudan Rao:
Ranking: 34
Networth: $1.67 billion
Age: 43
Guntur-born Lagadapati Madhusudhan Rao, is the Executive Chairman, Lanco Infratech Ltd., which has presence in power, construction and property development. Rao, an engineer, is the brain behind the company’s ambitious 121- storey residential apartment complex, Lanco Hills, which is billed as the country’s tallest buildings. Known for extraordinary risk-taking initiatives, Rao’s power division is currently in the process of setting up 8,000 megawatts of power projects besides an order book worth $3 billion in construction business.
G V Krishna Reddy:
Ranking: 47
Networth: $1.07 billion
Age: 72
G V Krishna Reddy, Chairman, GVK Group joined his family business, which was into construction-related projects, soon after completing his education. Gradually, he forayed into other sectors such power, hospitality, airports, petrochemicals and pharmaceuticals.
Interestingly, Reddy was one of the first few private entities to build a power plant in India.
Similarly, he also built the city’s first five-star hotel - Taj GVK - that currently is one of the leading hospitality chains. With nearly five decades of work experience spanning multiple industries, he has led the Group carve a niche in airport modernization projects. Currently, it is working on modernizing the Mumbai International airport. He encourages budding talent in sports by way of sponsorships and has been a great source of fiscal and moral support for tennis player Sania Mirza.
Murali Divi
Ranking: 59
Networth: $910 million
Age: 58
Murali Divi, is a UStrained scientist and holds a doctorate degree in pharmaceutical sciences. He was a one-time partner of pharma tycoon K Anji Reddy but later started his own drug research firm -- Divi Laboratories. He later forayed into generics business and even into contract manufacturing besides producing nutraceuticals used in food products and animal feed. Divi, is a member of American Institute of Chemical Engineers, American Chemical Society and American Pharmaceutical Association and has extensive experience of over 30 years in the active pharmaceutical ingredients industry.
Dr K Anji Reddy
Ranking: 64
Networth: $830 million
Age: 68
Dr Kallam Anji Reddy, a pioneer of the Indian pharmaceutical industry, is the Founder & Chairman of Dr Reddy’s Laboratories. Reddy started his pharma venture way back in 1984 with an initial capital of Rs 25 lakh, which is currently grown into a billion dollar company with presence across the globe. With research as the core value of the company, Reddy had set up the country’s first drug discovery research center in 1993. He also owns credit for being the first non-Japanese Asian pharmaceutical company to list on New York Stock Exchange in April, 2001. Recognizing the contribution made to the pharma sector, Reddy has been nominated to the Board of National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPER) and has been conferred with several awards including Padma Shri in 2001.
Dr Prathap C Reddy
Ranking: 86
Networth: $555 million
Age: 77
Dr Prathap C Reddy, founded the first corporate hospital chain in India with 46 hospitals including 8,000 beds across 38 locations including Sri Lanka and Dubai. Reddy did his Fellowship at the Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston and served as head, research programmes at the Missouri State Chest Hospital.
With an intention to serve the society, Reddy, a cardiologist, left his flourishing practice in the West to start the first clinic in Tamil Nadu. He was also instrumental in brining several regulatory changes relating to licensing, import restrictions and permissions for organ transplants in India. Reddy, who was conferred with the Padma Bhushan, enjoys horse racing and even owns a few studs.
P V Ramaprasad Reddy
Ranking: 88
Networth: $540 million
Age: 50
P V Ramaprasad Reddy, cofounder of Aurobindo Pharma, which is among the world’s top five producers of penicillin. Reddy, who has put up an aggressive expansion plan in store, has drawn flak from several investors for proposing the acquisition of Trident Life Sciences, a clinical research company owned by his son Sharath Chandra.
Meanwhile, to expand footprint, he forged ties with Pfizer, which now has the right to market Aurobindo’s products in both emerging and western markets.