Mumbai News

When billionaire Anil Agarwal arrived in Bombay, he only knew two English words – ‘yes & no’; bought his f – Economic Times

Indian billionaire Anil Agarwal only knew two English words when he came to Mumbai, which was then called Bombay. Those two words were “yes” and “no”, but he held on to his dreams of making it big in the city.

The founder and chairman of Vedanta Resources Limited took to his official Twitter handle on Monday to share his story with over 111K followers.

In his post, Agarwal said that he knew the journey to success would be a long one, but he was ready to travel the road. ”
Bohot mehnat ki, mushquilein sahin, phir bhi ubharta chala gaya… (did a lot of hard work, struggled but kept growing.)” he wrote alongside a black and white picture with his wife from their wedding day.

Within three years of his moving to Bombay, Agarwal was able to buy his first house which was around 400sq ft.

“That was a great achievement to start my journey with,” he shared.

He was then married in Patna, where the couple also gave birth to their son.

“I got married in Patna, and had my son born in Patna. I eventually persuaded my parents to send my wife and my son to Mumbai,” Agarwal wrote. He wanted his son and wife to move to Mumbai with him because family turns a house into a home.

“It was the happiest time of my life when my family joined me in the city,” he added.

For Agarwal, the small house was his empire.

Further in his post, the 68-year-old said that during his initial time in Mumbai, he found out that one of the cable companies was on the brink of bankruptcy and soon, he started dreaming about acquiring that company.

Agarwal was only 19 when he left Patna and moved to Mumbai to explore career options. His father Dwarka Prasad Agarwal ran a small aluminum conductor business in Patna. His company, Vedanta Resources Plc was the first Indian firm to be listed on London Stock Exchange in 2003.

Source: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/magazines/panache/when-billionaire-anil-agarwal-arrived-in-bombay-he-only-knew-two-english-words-yes-no-bought-his-first-flat-in-three-yrs/articleshow/90206245.cms