They often say Parents are a child’s first teachers. They nurture the little one with love, affection, and family value and ensure that he turns out to be a beautiful individual. Parents are cornerstones upon which the entire family structure stands and this holds especially true in the life of Mr. Yash Birla. Mr. Yash Birla has shared a very close-knitted relationship with his parents, Ashok and Sunanda Birla.

Mr. Ashok Birla, at the prime of his life, had successfully diversified the business group he had inherited into companies like Zenith Birla, Birla AccuCast, Birla Precision Technologies, and textiles and chemicals such as Birla Cotsyn, Birla TransAsia Carpets. He was among the first Indian corporates to go international, by introducing The Yash Birla Group

Yash Birla recalls his childhood to be “secure, happy and uncomplicated”. The only son to his parents (sister Sujata was younger then) and living in a joint family, Yash Birla was fortunate to receive much affection from his great grandfather, the venerable G.D. Birla, who was a close associate of Mahatma Gandhi, and his grandfather, B.K. Birla mentored him as a child. As a doting yet strict father, Mr. Ashok Birla inculcated in him the “values of honesty, consistency, integrity, hard work and putting your best foot forward in whatever one was doing”. These Qualities have stood him in good stead to date.

Mr. Ashok Birla

and Mrs. Sunanda Birla were highly contented with their ambition of joining the family business and looking after their 2 wards. Mr. Birla believed in the Hindu philosophy of the family you one was born into being the purpose of his life. He always wanted to do “something big that also gave back to society”. And yet he never compromised on his family; whenever he returned from a long business tour, he would love to spend some quality time with the family. Though this was a “pressure cooker” environment in Mr. Yash Birla’s words he also admits these were the times that gave him maximum learning. As he grew up Mr. Yash Birla was entrusted with the supervision of a small business unit and this helped him grow smarter and sharper.

Mr. Yash Birla remembers his father’s emotional advice even today, words such as “Be very brave. Look after your mother and sister, and don’t grieve in public.”  Ring in his ears even today.

After an exceptionally good childhood, Mr. Yash Birla went abroad for further studies. He was studying MBA in the USA, when he suddenly got a tragic call from his aunt and uncle regarding his parents’ and sister’s demise in a plane crash in Bengaluru in 1990. This tragic incident left him broken and miserable.

However, they say every cloud has a silver lining. Mr. Yash Birla’s loss of his family and the resulting challenges he faced, proved to be the turning point of his life. Often, recollecting this loss he says “It left me with no choice but to grow up fast, It was huge learning by itself. It taught me about the impermanence of life, to be resilient, and to also appreciate the value of family and close friends that saw us through this very difficult phase.”