Mukesh Ambani is one of the most renowned industrialists from India, leading the country’s most valuable company, Reliance Industries, which boasts a market capitalization exceeding Rs 179,000 crore. As the wealthiest individual in India and Asia, Ambani’s net worth is over Rs 829,514 crore. His family is connected to some of India’s most affluent and prestigious families, including the families of Viren Merchant and Russell Mehta. One such prominent family with distant ties to Ambani is that of Arvind Poddar.
Arvind Poddar, whose net worth stands at Rs 29,126 crore, is the son of Mahabirprasad Poddar, the founder of Balkrishna Industries (BKT). BKT, with a market cap of Rs 49,654 crore, specializes in manufacturing equipment and off-road tyres for agricultural, mining, and construction vehicles. The company is currently led by Arvind Poddar. You might wonder how the Poddar family is related to the Ambanis—Arvind Poddar’s son, Rajiv, is married to Khushboo, the daughter of Manoj Modi, who is Mukesh Ambani’s trusted aide and a key decision-maker at Reliance Industries. Modi’s close association with Ambani is so valued that he received a Rs 1,500 crore home near Antilia as a token of appreciation.
Arvind Poddar ranks as the 59th richest Indian according to Forbes. His company opened a new manufacturing facility in Maharashtra in 2021, focusing on agricultural and industrial tyres. Despite their wealth, the Poddar family tends to avoid the public spotlight and steers clear of media attention. While Arvind Poddar serves as the chairman and managing director of BKT, his son Rajiv holds the position of joint managing director, alongside his wife Khushboo, who also serves as joint managing director. Balkrishna Industries entered the tyre manufacturing business in 1951, initially producing bicycle tyres in 1963 before expanding into off-road tyres in the 1990s. Today, the company supplies products to markets in Europe and the Americas.
