Geetanjali Kirloskar is an Indian businesswoman. She is the Chairperson and Managing Director of Kirloskar Systems Limited. She is the wife of the Vice Chairperson of Toyota Kirloskar Motor, Vikram Kirloskar, who died of a heart attack on 29 November 2022.
Wiki/Biography
Geetanjali Kirloskar was born on Thursday, 14 October 1965 (age 58 years; as of 2023) in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh. Her zodiac sign is Libra. She did her schooling at Lawrence School, Sanawar. She pursued a bachelor’s degree in commerce at the University of Pune. According to her, she used to actively participate in sports and dramatics in her school. Playing games and participating in dramas became very helpful for her because she was able to inspect her competitive side.
Geetanjali Kirloskar (left) when she was a youngster
Physical Appearance
Height (approx.): 5′ 9″
Hair Colour: Black
Eye Colour: Black
Family
She belongs to a bureaucratic-diplomatic background.
Parents & Siblings
Her father was from a royal family of Sangli in Maharashtra and her mother is a Kashmiri.
Geetanjali Kirloskar (left) with Manasi (centre) and her mother (right)
She has two sisters.
Geetanjali Kirloskar with her sisters
Husband & Children
Geetanjali was married to Vikram Kirloskar, who was the vice chairperson of Toyota Kirloskar Motor. He died in 2022.
Geetanjali Kirloskar with Vikram Kirloskar
Her daughter’s name is Manasi Kirloskar, who is the director at Kirloskar Joint Venture Pvt Ltd.
Geetanjali Kirloskar with her daughter
Religion
Geetanjali follows Hinduism.
Geetanjali Kirloskar’s Instagram post about her religious views
Career
Advertising
Before becoming a businesswoman, she used to work in advertising. She worked in Pratibha Advertising, owned by The Kirloskars. The company was later named Quadrant Communications by the Lintas, who were a major shareholder in Pratibha Advertising. She became the chief executive of Quadrant Communications. While she was working there, she attended seminars at an advertising agency in London to train in brand strategy development and client servicing. After coming back from London, she came out with the concept ‘Lintertainment.’ The strategy was to focus on creating a story around the brand. She worked for many years for Quadrant Communications and after quitting, she joined the Indo-Japan Initiative as a chairperson. The initiative was started after demand from Indian companies to learn to work with the Japanese because at that time, the Kirloskars were the only company working with Japanese. She started IJI receiving funding from a few companies including Infosys, Bharat Forge, Canon, Mitsui, and Citizen. Under the initiative, there were many seminars and events for Indian companies to understand the Japanese style of manufacturing and teach the Japanese about Indian cuisine or apparel.
Businesswoman
In 2022, she became the chairperson of Toyota Tsusho Insurance Broker India Ltd and the Director of Kirloskar Systems Limited. She was also the chairperson of Kirloskar Technologies Ltd. She set up Sakra World Hospital in Bangalore and became the chairperson of the hospital.
Acting
Geetanjali made her acting debut in 1992 with the Kannada film Cheluvi.
Geetanjali Kirloskar in the film ‘Cheluvi’
In 2003, she made a cameo as the victim’s wife in the film Samay.
Geetanjali Kirloskar in the film Samay (2003)
She hosted 38 episodes of a talk show titled Life’s Like That on Times Now.
Honour
In 2022, she received First Class of the Order of the Lion of Finland by the Grand Master of the Order.
Geetanjali Kirloskar receiving First Class of the Order of the Lion of Finland
Favourites
- Brands: Chanel, Stella McCartney and Balmain
- Business Leader: Akio Toyoda (President and CEO of Toyota Motor Corporation)
- Politician: Margaret Thatcher
Facts/Trivia
- Geetanjali and Vikram Kirloskar were known as the power couple. In an interview, Geetanjali talked about how she agreed to marry Vikram and said that they met through a common friend who organized a party, which both of them attended. Their family also wanted them to know each other so they introduced them. When she looked at him, she liked his personality a lot. Meanwhile, Vikram was also attracted to her because she was a writer and actor. After the party ended, Vikram asked if he could drop Geetanjali home. She agreed to it so that they could spend some time together. They created a good bond during that time. In the interview, she further added that initially, she was not sure about the marriage but when she got to know that Vikram would not stop her from studying further and working after marriage, she agreed.
- She follows a non-vegetarian diet, but when she got married, she was a vegetarian. Her in-laws used to eat non-vegetarian food regularly. She felt very uncomfortable during the start of the marriage, but after some years, she also started eating non-vegetarian.
- According to her, working in advertising was easier for her than working in her family business. In an interview, she stated that she did not face any gender biases when she was working in advertising and media, but while working in the family business, many male employees were uncomfortable working under a female boss.
- In 2021, the Health and Family Welfare and Medical Education Department appointed her as the head of the CSR committee.
Geetanjali Kirloskar being appointed as the head of the CSR committee
- The Government of Karnataka applauded her efforts in providing a unique modular 100-bed centre for COVID-19 patients.
- In December 2022, Geetanjali penned a “eulogy” that was published in the Times Of India as a tribute to her late husband, Vikram Kirloskar, who passed away in November 2022. In the letter, she expressed that she didn’t want to feel sad about his death, but wanted to celebrate her relationship and memories with him.
Geetanjali Kirloskar’s eulogy
- She likes travelling and playing golf.
Geetanjali Kirloskar playing golf
- Geetanjali loves drinking wine and frequently shares pictures of herself and Vikram enjoying wine together on social media.
Geetanjali Kirloskar enjoying wine with her husband
- She and her husband were enthusiastic travellers who travelled around the world after they got married.
Geetanjali Kirloskar travelling with her husband
- In an interview, she said that whenever she visits New York, Singapore, and Europe, she likes shopping there.
- She isn’t fond of cooking. In an interview, she said that her husband used to prepare lunch and dinner for her and their daughter on weekends.