L. K. Advani
Leader of the Opposition (Lok Sabha)

t was perhaps the latter part of 1996 when the idea of organizing a Sindhu Darshan festival in Leh (Ladakh) was put forward by Tarun Vijay. While discussing the various aspects of it, Nanik Rupani’s was amongst the few names that came to my mind. I knew him as a person who always sportingly came forward to help and participate in any effort aimed at strengthening the values and traditions of society, particularly that related to communal harmony. He came to attend the very first festival held in the winter of 1997 and thus became one of the founder members of this great festi-val of national integration and global understanding.

Nanik Rupani is a man of action and service to the cause of national integration. The way he has served the cause of national integration and got the global Indian community rec-ognized in their own land has been commendable. He is a very unassuming personality, always bubbling with joy to serve others. His contribution in recognizing the strength of Over-seas Indians and honouring the great statesmen and lead-ers of various countries around the globe has attracted worldwide recognition and brought name to Indian entrepre-neurship. I had an occasion to attend one such function when the renowned Indonesian leader and former President Ms. Megawati Soekarnoputri was honoured. I liked the idea, which in fact helped forge bonds of friendship and mutual under-standing between India and various countries.

Nanik Rupani is indefatigable and, even at this age, unstoppable. He still has a long way to go and I wish him many years of healthy life so that he can contribute his best towards national rejuvenation through his industrious spirit.


Suresh Prabhu
Former Union Minister

deem this a welcome opportunity to express my views about Mr. Nanik Rupani – the person and his work.

I have had the privilege of interacting with Nanik on a number of occasions. Every time I meet him, I find him a multi-dimensional human being, warm hearted, generous and as active as a bee. I admire him for his dedication to worthy causes and caring philanthropy.

Nanik’s qualities of head and heart are numerous but I wish to sum them up in the following four broad categories. Firstly, Nanik has an unusual ability to establish empathy with whomsoever he comes in contact. Probably this trait of his is because of his background. Uprooted from his native Sindh, instead of venting his anguish and discontent, he transformed this handicap into pleasant attributes like entrepreneurship in his telecom business and also doing good to people and society at large. I have always found in him a spirit of providing a helping hand to all in need.

Secondly, Nanik’s tireless efforts to promote ‘Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)’ are indeed commendable. Pursuit of CSR has become an obsession with him. The urge to know more about CSR has led to his exhorting the research wing of Indian Merchants’ Chamber to study Kautilya’s Arthashastra and its relevance to the Indian economy in present times. This treatise contains rare advice on Social Responsibility. Nanik believes in CSR becoming an integral part of the working of corporates and he has taken several initiatives towards this end. One such major initiative has been the creation of Priyadarshni Academy which gives awards on internationally accepted criteria to the best global performers in various disciplines. It has gained significance in almost every important sphere of social life. Priyadarshni Academy has successfully worked towards discovering excellence for many years. Its activities have crossed the shores of India and gained appreciation from all over the world.

Thirdly, Nanik’s firm belief in the philosophy embodying ‘We’ and not ‘I’ speaks volumes of his character. IMC’s motto, ‘Together We Can Do Wonders’ and Nanik’s other beliefs, ‘Whatever You Do, It Should Be Better Than The Best’ and ‘Attaining Excellence and Innovation Has No End’ are a few examples that portray his personality. Such beliefs have led Nanik not only to produce the best products but also create best processes in whichever field he has worked.

Fourth and last, Nanik has successfully steered IMC to newer heights during his term as President of the Chamber, one of the oldest Chambers of Commerce, Trade and Industry in the country. IMC will be celebrating its centenary year in 2007. To further the values of an old institution like IMC and to make it relevant to contemporary times by constantly giving new directions is indeed a Herculean task. Mr. Nanik Rupani, in my opinion, has accomplished this responsibility exceedingly well. IMC’s work is akin to a relay race, wherein the baton annually is passed on to the next President who carries forward the task and also charts out new courses for IMC to be traversed. I have found Nanik’s year of Presidentship to be one full of quality events. In the process, he has been successful in contributing to the liberalization process and to the formulation of pro-growth policies of the Maharashtra and the Central Governments.

I hope Nanik will continue to contribute his valuable insights and expertise to the above areas so that the Indian economy achieves a quick and remarkable transformation.