LATE SHRI.
KAILASHCHANDRA
JHUNJHUNWALLA
He started his journey in 1963 as a college student at Sydenham College when he joined his father’s rubber factory, Hind Rubber Industries Pvt. Ltd. After a few years of internship, he left to start Bombay Chemical & Rubber Products in 1971 for trading in natural rubber. In 1972, he came across Starmag 150 made by Konoshima, Japan. This marked the beginning of his journey with Japan. He had the ability to explain the importance of the Indian market to Japanese companies and eventually secured partnerships with several
Throughout his 60-year business career, he backed several ventures successfully. Today, many of the companies he initially promoted continue running as profitable enterprises. From Punjab to Madurai, Mumbai to Kolkata, and across Indian and Japanese geographies and cultures, he had an astute ability to bring people together and convince them. He displayed remarkable foresight and judgment of market forces that few could manage at the time. Driven by huge risk appetite and motivated to achieve his goals despite adversity, he was the first in India in the 1980’s to challenge the dominance of European and American synthetic rubber suppliers. Today, Japan holds a leading position in the Indian synthetic rubber market - in part due to his pioneering efforts.
He had tremendous respect for Japanese people and culture. He was one of the earliest adopters of Japanese work ethics and systems in India. Today, his legacy lives on through the enterprises that he helped build and nurture.
