Ghanshyam Das Birla was one of the most famous Indian businessmen from the time when India was trying to get rid of the British Empire. He was from the Birla family and started the Birla Empire, which is worth a lot of money. He was born in the small town of Pilani, India, to a poor family. His grandfather was in the business of lending money, which was common in that area. But Birla wanted to do more, so he took him to Calcutta. He started a jute business in Calcutta and became so successful that an Indian businessman at the time could not have done as well. This led to one success after another, and soon he was making things, selling tea, running a bank, making chemicals, making cement, and more. The Birla Empire is what it is today because of its early work. His great business sense earned him the Padma Vibhushan, which is India’s second-highest civilian honor.
Early years and childhood
Ghanshyam Das Birla was born in the small village of Pilani in the Indian state of Rajasthan. He was born into a family of Marwari Maheshwari. His grandfather was a Marwari businessman who made a living by lending money.
Ghanshyam Birla’s Career
Birla left Pilani for Calcutta because he wanted to start his own business and show how good he was. He was able to start a business selling cotton, and as his business grew, he went back to Pilani and had a mansion built for his family.
Later, Birla took over the family business and decided to grow it. He added manufacturing to the business, which had been based on lending money. He started a jute business even though British laws and policies at the time helped European merchants more than Indian businesspeople.
He kept his business from being closed down by British and Scottish merchants many times. They tried to be monopolists by bothering him and hurting his jute business. During World War I, when the British Empire as a whole had trouble getting supplies, Birla’s business did very well.
With this kind of success, Birla decided to expand his business even more. In 1919, he put in 5 million Indian Rupees to set up the Birla Brothers Limited. In the same year, he opened a factory in Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh.
He was a successful businessman who also worked in politics and did volunteer work. He was chosen to serve in the Central Legislative Assembly in 1926. He was the first president of the group Mahatma Gandhi started called Harijan Sevak Sangh.
With all of his business success, Birla started to be a little riskier with his business decisions. In 1940, he took a chance and started Hindustan Motors. After India gained its independence, Birla went into the tea business and started his own textile business.
In 1943, he started the United Commercial Bank, a commercial bank with Indian capital and management. It is now called the UCO bank, and it is one of India’s oldest and largest commercial banks.
He started many schools, including the Birla Engineering College, which is now called the Birla Institute of Technology and Science in Pilani, and the Technological Institute of Textiles and Sciences in Bhiwani.
Works of note
Birla brought a lot of new ideas to India during his time there. For example, he started a manufacturing business in Calcutta at a time when British and Scottish merchants were given preference over Indian businessmen. He slowly grew it to include cement, chemicals, rayon, steel tubes, tea, banking, and other businesses.
Awards & Achievements
In 1957, the Indian government gave Birla the Padma Vibhushan, which is the country’s second-highest civilian honor.
Personal History and Legacies
During his life, he got married twice. His first wife, Durga Devi, gave birth to three sons: Laxmi Niwas, Sudershan Kumar, and Siddharth. His second wife, Maheshwari Devi, gave birth to K.K. Birla and Basant Kumar.
He died on June 11, 1983, when he was 90 years old.
Estimated Net worth
Ghanshyam Das Birla’s estimated net worth is $9 million, and his main sources of income are from being a politician, a revolutionary, and a businessperson. We don’t have enough information about Ghanshyam Das Birla’s cars or his way of life.
Trivia
This great businessman backed Mahatma Gandhi and his ideas for a long time. Gandhi was killed while he was staying at his home in New Delhi.
The Birla Haveli is the name of the house in Pilani that Ghanshyam Das Birla built with money from the jute factory in Calcutta.