What makes Tina Ambani tick
For the first time ever, in a tete-a-tete with Vickram Sethi, Tina Ambani speaks about her journey from the world of glamour to art, senior citizens and her role of leading CSR and education at the Reliance Group. And of course her family…
She has been described in countless ways: glamorous star, corporate wife, fashionista. But ask Tina Ambani to describe herself and the answer may surprise you. “I’m a working woman,” she says succinctly with a no-nonsense nod of her head, softened by a flash of her easy smile. “I’m really not that different from the Indian everywoman who has professional commitments by day and personal obligations to the family when she comes home.”
A closer look into her routine reveals that she really does walk her talk. Behind the trappings of a luxe life is a woman who has painstakingly charted her own course and, in the process, crafted a professional regimen that occupies much of her time and space. Equally at ease in discussion with her “fabulous team” in the boardroom of the award-winning Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital, which is rapidly growing its national footprint, charting out the CSR plan for the Reliance Group or supervising the construction of her new home, her commitment to every project is complete and her schedule relentless.
“Tina is a strong believer in the motto of my late father Dhirubhai Ambani that work is worship,” affirms her husband Anil. “Tina is a ‘size zero’ as she can comfortably slip into any role as demanded! From a mother, a wife and sister to the leader of a hospital, she is a visionary who converts dreams into reality.”
Hard work has always been wired in Ambani’s DNA. The youngest in a large suburban Mumbai family, with a brother and seven sisters (she is the youngest), who remain her “backbone even today”, her parents grounded her with firm roots while giving her the wings to fly. “People use the term ‘destiny’s child’,” she remarks with a chuckle. “I prefer the term ‘instinct’s child’ when it comes to my life! And my instincts have never ever let me down.”
Indeed, she has always been led by instinct – a need to grow and evolve has informed her every endeavour. It has been a deeply personal process where calculation and ambition have played no role. “My dream was to study design in Paris. I never thought of becoming a model or actor,” she says wryly. But life decreed otherwise. From being selected by Femina to represent India in the Miss Teenage Intercontinental pageant in Aruba at the age of 16 – “it was my first exposure to a global event, and to the West” – to being offered a film by Dev Anand, there was a seismic shift in her life. And while she had decided to stay on in college for the first couple of years, she eventually had to drop out. “There was no flexibility in the system,” she recalls. “I enjoyed juggling both college and the film industry initially but eventually I had to take a call. My parents allowed me to mull over my choices and make my own decision.”
She followed her instinct once again when she decided to pursue a diploma in interior design and computers in Los Angeles after a decade of success when she was at the height of her popularity as an actor. “The film industry gave me everything. I owe so much of what I have and who I am to that experience,” she reminisces. “Giving it up at a time when I was successful was another huge turning point.” Her life in Los Angeles was a completely new frame of reference far removed from the trappings of stardom – she lived with her childhood friend Sachu, did household chores, drove to classes. “It was reinvention in every sense of the word,” she laughs. “But it is a decision I have never regretted. I always believe you should leave any situation gracefully on your own terms before it leaves you, whether it is a career or a relationship!”
The next dramatic turn in her life took place when Anil proposed to her and she returned to India to begin their life together in 1991. “I actually surprised myself at how well I could adapt to married life,” she says with candour. “Of course, it helped that we shared a similar upbringing. And I was welcomed with open arms into this extended family that, like my own, balanced convention with change so effortlessly.” In fact, she credits her father-in-law for opening her eyes even further to both her own potential and the world at large, and her mother-in-law Kokilaben for ceaselessly and constantly supporting her every initiative. “Mummy has always urged me to contribute my part to society,” she says with emotion. “Also, she never allowed me to feel the lack of a mother after I lost my own.”
Armed with such love and encouragement, after her marriage she began to take a keen interest in the design, research and development of a line of furnishing and textiles in the family company. Appreciating the synergy between different forms of visual art, she came upon the idea to showcase the harmony between all forms of creativity.
The result was Harmony Art, an internationally recognised endeavour that enabled the artist and art lover to come closer to one another; provided a much-needed platform for promising artists to showcase their work and hone their latent talents; and brought art into the public space and consciousness. “Art is a universal language; it bridges divides and renders boundaries meaningless,” she says. “In the times we live in, such a language is not just welcome, it is essential.”
In fact, the much-awaited Harmony Art Show, a first-of-its-kind blockbuster art event where I helped with the curation, showcased the work of close to 2,000 artists, attracting over half-a-million visitors. Other activities included workshops, residencies and international collaborations as well as public infrastructure, when Harmony Art was commissioned to install artworks along the Delhi Airport Metro Express Line. Notably, in 2008, Harmony Art showcased upcoming Indian artists at Christie’s in London, thus drawing attention to the wealth of talent in India. The same year, Ambani was invited to the Board of Trustees of the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, Massachusetts, the oldest continually operating museum in the US. She continues to be on the advisory committee.
Just as art grew to become an abiding passion in her life, the plight of India’s elderly became an overarching concern. With this in mind, she established Harmony for Silvers Foundation in 2004. It was, like many of her ideas, far, far ahead of its time. A non-government organisation formed to enhance the quality of life of ‘Silvers’ – Harmony’s term for the elderly – in India, its activities over the years included magazine Harmony – Celebrate Age, a dedicated web portal, an interactive centre, research division, annual ‘silver awards’ and senior citizens’ runs at the Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru and Kolkata marathons.
“When personal experiences and a growing understanding of the trials and tribulations of Indian silvers impelled me to do something constructive to make a difference, I was walking a lonely road,” she acknowledges. “Twenty years ago, silver advocacy was not a ‘fashionable’ cause; although, due in part to our efforts, that perception has changed today. What’s more, it was not seen as a particularly worthy cause. When it came to silver concerns, there was neglect at the government level, apathy at the community level and disinterest at the media level. Now, everyone else, like your magazine, is catching up!”
Inevitably, her extensive work with silvers also made Ambani acutely aware of the tremendous gaps in the Indian healthcare fabric. That was the genesis of Kokilaben Hospital, India’s most advanced quaternary care facility with a unique full-time specialist system. Over the past 15 years, Kokilaben Hospital, which has consistently been rated as the top multispecialty hospital in Mumbai and Western India, has bridged many a healthcare gap. It has also continued to widen its healthcare embrace, including the Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospitals in Navi Mumbai and Indore, as well as the cancer care centres in Akola, Gondia and Solapur, part of Ambani’s landmark initiative to take cancer care to the hinterland. Most significant, she has ensured that her hospitals endeavour not to turn back a single patient owing to lack of funds.
“We are all here with a purpose. If you have the power to change another person’s life, you must do it,” she says softly. “India is undoubtedly making its presence felt as an emerging power in the world. However, while our financial and physical infrastructure is on everyone’s mind, we have paid little attention to building our social infrastructure. Until we commit ourselves to building a truly inclusive society that carries every segment along, words like development and progress mean very little. This must be a priority for both our government and the private sector.”
Thus, she takes her position as CSR chairperson of Reliance Group very seriously. “I firmly believe that power demands principle,” she underlines. “We must consider the interests of society in every step we take and make a firm commitment to give back to the communities that nourish and sustain us.”
Further, Ambani is also chairperson of the Mudra Foundation for Communications Research and Education – one of its main activities is the prestigious MICA, the only residential institute in India dedicated to creating leadership in strategic marketing and communication. She has also recently taken over as president of the Dhirubhai Ambani Institute of Information and Communication Technology (DA-IICT), which is now recognised as a multidisciplinary education and research university. “Building on its legacy of excellence, we aim to make it a world-class multidisciplinary institution, dedicated to driving positive social change and contributing to the advancement and well-being of communities,” she emphasises.
It all begs the question: With such a laundry list of commitments and responsibilities, is life somewhat of a juggling act for Ambani? “Not at all!” she exclaims with a chuckle. “Women are born multitaskers. The strength of a woman can carry the weight of the world, they say. I think if one looks upon each challenge as an opportunity to excel, one can move mountains. Also, if you are committed to what you are doing, you will do it well, no matter how much work you have. Passion is the key to the success of any project.” And what about the energy? “It comes from within,” comes the reply. “When you believe in what you do, the energy just presents itself!”
Ambani is the first to acknowledge, though, that teamwork is equally intrinsic to success. “You have to be able to empower people in every organisation, delegate, put your faith in people so they can deliver the best results.” Accessible and open with her teams, she welcomes candour, encourages dialogue and relishes interaction. “It’s very easy to isolate and insulate yourself from the world and live in a bubble,” she says. “Very easy but very limiting. While there’s reassurance in consistency and the known, we all need to come out of our comfort zones, shift chairs, and see life afresh. That only happens with interaction, meeting people with different life experiences. You can learn something from every single person you meet. To believe that you cannot is sheer arrogance. It is also vital to understand that there is no expiry date to personal growth.”
That personal growth continues when she’s ‘off-duty’. Ambani limits her social engagements, preferring downtime with the family. Her “circle of love”, as she calls it, has widened with the addition of daughter-in-law Khrisha to the family two years ago when she married elder son Anmol.
To her left: Son Anshul, husband Anil, mother-in-law Kokilaben and to her right son Anmol and his wife Khrisha
Dinners en famille are a ritual, greatly relished over stimulating conversation with Khrisha and Anmol, younger son Anshul, and Anil. “The children bring such energy to the home,” she says. “Their perspectives are unique; they have such courage of conviction.”
“What I admire most about Mom is that she’s always been a rebel and a revolutionary – never afraid to challenge cultural norms or to shake up the status quo – a trait that has definitely passed on to Anmol!” says Khrisha. “That apart, she is a diligent and dedicated working woman, a title she is immensely proud of, as much as the pride in the work done by her team. She would any day choose a day at the office over a night out partying. Mom has always offered platforms and opportunities to newcomers, to help showcase their work and level the playing field. That is something I resonate with, and have also worked towards in my own capacities.”
Anshul, too, swears by her work ethic. “What I admire about Mom is her passion and hard work,” he shares. “Once she sets her mind on a certain goal, it is almost impossible to stop her from achieving it. Her force and drive are so strong that the outcome is inevitable: excellence. Nothing less will do!”
For his part, Anmol describes his mother as a strong, determined, powerful and graceful woman who has been a gamechanger and trailblazer in everything she has pursued. “She has always been an independent woman from a very young age and I really admire that. One of the greatest lessons I have learnt from her is to always stand your ground and stand in your truth.”
Khrisha, Anmol and Anshul are the founders of Jnanganj, a shared vision that unites a community and network of those aiming to envision and build a ‘New Earth’, based on principles of kindness, compassion, harmony, regeneration, oneness and love, drawing on ancient wisdom, radical thinking, honest intentions and powerful tools and technologies. “Witnessing the degradation of society, culture, health and wellbeing of all living beings and the planet, we feel compelled to develop, design and support solutions to the complex problems that we are facing – on an emotional, psychological, physical, metaphysical and spiritual level,” they say.
Their areas of focus include integrated health and holistic healing; alternative and vocational education; regenerative agriculture and natural food systems (Jnana Farms, helmed by Anshul, is up and running); clean, free and alternative energy; environmental protection and animal conservation; ancient wisdom and spirituality; indigenous traditions and communities; conscious media, art and culture; and natural and sustainable community living. “The children’s work is truly inspiring and they have opened a new world to us,” she says with pride.
With father-in-law Dhirubhai, mother-in-law Kokilaben, husband Anil and sons Anmol and Anshul
Another incredible source of learning – and strength – is her husband. “Anil really is the wind beneath my wings,” she confesses, her eyes softening. “He has always shared my dreams and impelled me to be all I could possibly be. I learn from him every day. At home, he is a deeply spiritual man; a devoted son, loving husband and doting father. In the professional arena, he is tireless in his pursuit of knowledge and excellence. He tackles new challenges with relish and is a true gladiator. In fact, my father-in-law Dhirubhai Ambani once described him to me as a ‘lion’. That really says it all.”
Downtime for Ambani also includes watching late-night talk shows and stand-up comedy on her iPad – “a great destressor” – in addition to following political news. “It is very important to be clutched into what is happening in India and overseas,” she says. “It makes you see the bigger picture.”
Part of that bigger picture is knowing her own place in the world. “The past few years, with the lockdown and global churn, have reinforced my long-held conviction that we are all mere custodians of the privileges we inherit and the world we inhabit,” she asserts. “Our duty is to pay forward what we get to the next generation, making a difference in whatever way we can, sparking change, touching lives. Power, prestige, wealth – these tangibles are illusory, fleeting, transient. It is the intangible gains of the spirit and soul that give life purpose and meaning. And keep you recharged for the next day at work!”
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