Kiran Mazumdar’s journey from a garage laboratory to leading a globally renowned biotech firm is an inspiration to aspiring entrepreneurs.
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Having come from a middle-class family and becoming a billionaire, Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, the founder of Biocon Limited, is undoubtedly one of the country’s most successful business tycoons. She is a remarkable Indian woman entrepreneur whose perseverance and commitment inspired a number of the country’s future business owners. Kiran Mazumdar married John Shaw in 1998. He was a foreign promoter and member of the advisory board of several Biocon Group companies, according to the company’s official website. John Shaw passed away on October 24, 2022.
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Who Is Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw?
On March 23, 1953, Kiran Mazumdar was born in Bangalore, Karnataka. After attending Bangalore’s Bishop Cotton Girl’s High School, she went to Bangalore University, where she graduated with a bachelor’s degree in zoology in 1973. Her aim was to become a doctor, but she was unable to realise it since she was not successful in getting a scholarship. Her father Rasendra Mazumdar was the head brewmaster at United Breweries. He advised her to pursue a master’s degree in brewing. Later, she attended Melbourne University in Australia to study malting and brewing, and in 1975, she graduated as a master brewer.
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After completing her education in Australia, she came back to India in 1976. Kiran Mazumdar received an offer from a Scottish company in 1978. Soon after accepting the position, she intended to travel to Scotland. It was serendipitous that she met an Irish biotech entrepreneur, as per Zee News. She was travelling from Baroda to Delhi on the Rajdhani Express. She was inspired by that businessman to launch an enzyme manufacturing company in India with the aid of a product purchase guarantee, reports add.
Here’s Kiran Mazumdar’s Success Story
In 1978, Kiran Mazumdar founded Biocon after making the decision to work in the biotechnology field. With barely Rs 10,000, she started Biocon in a little garage. Among the many obstacles she had to overcome were investor mistrust and the widespread belief that biotechnology was a dangerous field. She didn’t waver, though, and she stayed committed to her mission of providing everyone with access to inexpensive healthcare options.
Biocon’s first endeavours included the extraction of papain, an enzyme produced from papaya used for meat tenderization, and isinglass, a chemical generated from tropical catfish used for beer clarifying. Surprisingly, Kiran Mazumdar’s business was the first to successfully export these enzymes to both the United States and Europe within a year. She chose to move her manufacturing from a tin hut to a roomy 20-acre plot as a result of her early success.
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Biocon made great gains in the field of biopharmaceuticals under Kiran Mazumdar’s leadership, notably in creating cost-effective medications for illnesses such as cancer and diabetes. Her forward-thinking style and drive to innovation spurred Biocon’s growth, transforming it into one of India’s premier biotechnology corporations.
In addition to being a well-known businesswoman, Kiran Mazumdar is now regarded as a philanthropist and a steadfast supporter of women’s empowerment and access to cheap healthcare.
