2024 | Eastern Eye Asian Rich List
ues of our parents which are very simple: work
to give; your word is a bond; advance fearlessly;
and, growth with partnership. He always want-
ed the entire family to be together. We four
brothers were four bodies but one soul. And we
always had great respect for him, and he loved
his brothers more than his children.”
Gopi probably does not mean that literally,
but the trust between the brothers was unques-
tioning. “He wanted to ensure that if something
happens to me, he would look after everyone.
And if something happens to him, I would do
the same. And this is how things are moving
forward.” Jointly, the brothers did a lot globally,
whether it was political, with second track di-
plomacy, in the interests of India and the host
country. “Also, we always try to see what best
can be done for the group and the family. We
still follow the same principles: that everything
belongs to everyone, and nothing belongs to
anyone. SP always followed the best samskara
(the karma theory of Indian philosophy) and
liked to give good thoughts and suggestions to
others. And he always believed friendship and
relationships are very important.”
The Hindujas have tried to bring a quintes-
sentially Indian philosophy, with notable re-
spect for elders, into the running of both the
family and a worldwide business.
Gopi refers to his sons’ generation. “Sanjay,
Dheeraj, Ajay, Shom, all have their responsibili-
ties. They are very active. Even the fourth gen-
eration shares the same values. So, I hope gen-
erations to come will follow the principles and
values of our parents. At the end of the day
there is nothing you can take away (when you
pass away). Some people don’t understand
that – and talk about ‘money, money, money’.
SP was down to earth.”
Gopi is also proud of the family DNA. “In a
family when the DNA becomes different, their
thoughts become different. But in our family
whoever lives in London, breakfast is together,
lunches together, dinner together. And even
when the brothers and their children come, we
all live together. In my opinion and in SP’s
opinion, unity is strength. We remember him.
How can we ever forget him?” he asks.
Four brothers – all for one and one for all –
have become three. “We brothers remain
down-to-earth,” adds Gopi.
The Diwali party is the highlight of the Hin-
duja social calendar but Gopi revealed that as a
mark of respect to SP, “Diwali has been can-
celled for this year. We won’t be having (the
traditional party) because of this tragedy.”
During the formal inauguration of the OWO
Raffles Hotel, Gopi remembered SP on what
was a “special day for us”.
The Hindujas bought the Old War Office, a
Grade II* listed building, from the government
on a 250-year lease for £350m. The eight-year
restoration to turn the building into a hotel
with 125 rooms and suites and 85 private
apartments with marble staircases and floors
and chandeliers has cost £1.2bn.
He told some 600 guests who attended the
opening: “The idea to acquire and restore this
iconic building came about while I was on a
walk with my late brother
SP. And although he’s not
with us today, I am sure he
is proud of what has finally
been achieved. We have his
blessings upon us always, on
the whole family.”
Significantly, Gopi also
stressed the need for family
unity. “Nothing is better in
the world [than] to have a united family and
our efforts are always there, [focusing on] how
to keep the family united and be unique.”
Gopi went out of his way to thank two mem-
bers of his own family: “This project has been a
labour of love for the family. I pay special credit
to my elder son, Sanjay, and my daughter-in-
law, Shalini, the wife of (my younger son),
Dheeraj, who really supported and helped me
to complete [the project].”
The Hindujas would not be the premier
business family that they are if they did not
plan for the future.
Gopi’s assessment of the British economy
and Rishi Sunak’s prospects is cautious: “He’s
trying to see what best he can do. But he has
many challenges.”
He is more optimistic about India: “I can re-
peat what I said in 2019. India is going to be the
world’s third largest economy.”
He has signed a deal with Yogi Adityanath,
chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, to set up a large
plant to build electric buses and trucks in his
state. It will have the advantages of being run
by Ashok Leyland, a Hinduja flagship and In-
dia’s second-largest commercial vehicle maker.
When Gadkari came to Chennai for the cere-
mony to mark Ashok Leyland’s 75th anniversa-
ry, the company launched three new electric
vehicles. The company also exhibited the
country’s first hydrogen internal combustion
engine truck, which was launched earlier in
collaboration with Reliance Industries. This
will be India’s first fuel cell bus that will com-
mercially ply on the country’s roads.
Dheeraj Hinduja, chairman of Ashok Ley-
land and Switch Mobility – the latter was previ-
ously Optare, the British bus manufacturers –
said: “Ashok Leyland’s 75-year journey is a sto-
ry of transformation and innovation. As we cel-
ebrate this milestone, we renew our pledge to
further shape the future of the commercial ve-
hicle industry. We have set our sights on pio-
neering sustainable transportation solutions
and aim to support India’s economic develop-
ment for years to come.”
Alongside Dheeraj was his cousin, Shom,
and his uncles, Prakash and Ashok, who are
based in Geneva and Mumbai, respectively.
Meanwhile, Gulf Oil, which has Sanjay as
chairman, has invested over £10m in taking a
51 per cent stake in Tirex Transmission “in a
strategic move to bolster its presence in the
Electric Vehicle (EV) seg-
ment”.
Gulf’s brand ambassadors
in India include a number of
star cricketers – Mahendra
Singh Dhoni, Hardik Pandya
and Smriti Mandhana. It is
also promoted by one of the
major Indian Premier
League franchises – Chen-
nai Super Kings.
Sanjay, who has a fondness for fast cars, has
entered into an agreement with Williams Rac-
ing. During the autumn season, Formula One
fans had the chance to choose a special one-off
livery in Gulf’s colours which featured on the
Williams Racing’s F1 cars at the Singapore, Jap-
anese and Qatar Grands Prix.
There was mention of Hinduja Global Solu-
tions (HGS) in Grant Thornton’s India Meets
Britain Tracker 2023. Of the 954 companies an-
alysed, HGS UK was also recognised as the
12th fastest-growing Indian company. HGS has
over 19,947 employees across 35 delivery cen-
tres in nine countries, “making a difference to
some of the world’s leading brands”.
“Securing this opportunity was not based on
the ability to convey just what we could do to-
day, but rather our unwavering dedication to
being a trusted, collaborative partner that con-
veyed where we could go in the future – togeth-
er,” said a HGS spokesman. “We are looking
forward to this incredible opportunity to sup-
port the Cabinet Office in their vision to rede-
fine the digital landscape of central UK govern-
ment public services.”
Back in his office, there was a touching ges-
ture from Gopi. Looking up at a portrait of D P
Hinduja, Gopi folded his hands and offered a
silent pranam to his father.
The Hinduja family’s holdings in listed com-
panies have risen over the last year and their
private companies have all performed well.
The family have significant property and pri-
vate assets which we value at £33.5 billion.
Asian Rich List
We four brothers
were four bodies,
but one soul