In 1975, a 19-year-old boy from Bihar had arrived in Bombay with nothing but a tiffin box, his bedding, and big dreams. Today, he is a billionaire and the founder of one of the largest mining companies in India. Anil Agarwal, the Executive Chairman and Founder of Vedanta Resources Limited, started from scratch and to call his journey ‘inspiring’ would be nothing but an understatement.
Anil Agarwal took to Twitter to share his story with only a few words, but they had a lasting impact on his followers. Among the millions of people who come to Bumbai nagariya with a bag full of dreams, he too arrived in the city of dreams to try his luck.
“Millions of people come to Mumbai to try their luck. I was one of them. I remember the day I left Bihar with only a tiffin box, bedding, and dreams in my eyes. I arrived at Victoria Terminus station, and for the first time…”
He went on to reveal that he had only seen the kaali-peeli taxi (black and yellow taxi) and the double-decker bus in films. For the first time, he was seeing them in real life. He urged youngsters to work hard and shoot for the stars.
“I saw a kaali peeli taxi, a double-decker bus & the City of Dreams – all of which I had only seen in the movies. I encourage the youth to work hard & shoot for the stars. Agar aap majboot irade ke saath pehla kadam uthayenge, manzil milna tay hai!“
Have a look at his tweets here:
Millions of people come to Mumbai to try their luck. I was one of them. I remember the day I left Bihar with only a tiffin box, bedding, and dreams in my eyes. I arrived at Victoria Terminus station, and for the first time… pic.twitter.com/e4cN2U89vu
— Anil Agarwal (@AnilAgarwal_Ved) February 15, 2022
…I saw a kaali peeli taxi, a double-decker bus & the City of Dreams – all of which I had only seen in the movies. I encourage the youth to work hard & shoot for the stars. Agar aap majboot irade ke saath pehla kadam uthayenge, manzil milna tay hai!
— Anil Agarwal (@AnilAgarwal_Ved) February 15, 2022
According to NDTV, Anil Agarwal started off as a scrap metal dealer. Today, he is 67-years-old and he is worth $3.6 billion.
According to an earlier interview Mr Agarwal did with Rediff, he revealed that for 10 years, he worked in the scrap business. He used to collect scrap from most of the cable companies in other states and sell it in Mumbai. He then took a loan from Syndicate Bank and started a cable company.
He learnt how to speak English, dress well, and the tricks of the trade. His first office was 8 x 10 square feet at Kalbadevi and he had 3 people working for him. Even the telephone was rented from another office upstairs. In 1986, he got into the business of jelly-field cables and started Sterlite Industries. He then set up a copper plant, then an aluminium plant. He took over Balco and then Hindustan Zinc. With investments in innumerable Indian businesses, the man eventually became what he is today. To read the entire interview, click here.
Indeed, Mumbai can do wonders!