Gautam Adani 

     Gautam Shantilal Adani, an Indian tycoon, is renowned as the creator and leader of the Adani Group, a diverse multinational corporation engaged in port development and operations within India. Adani's close association with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his governing Bharatiya Janata Party has been widely acknowledged.

Early life:

Adani, born on 24 June 1962 in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, hails from a Gujarati Jain family. His parents, Shantilal Adani and Shantaben Adani, migrated from the town of Tharad in the northern part of Gujarat. Adani has 7 siblings, and his father was a small textile merchant. He received his education at Sheth Chimanlal Nagindas Vidyalaya school in Ahmedabad. Although he initially enrolled for a bachelor's degree in commerce at Gujarat University, he decided to drop out after the second year as he was more interested in pursuing a business career rather than joining his father's textile business.

Career:

    Adani relocated to Mumbai in 1978 during his teenage years to work as a diamond sorter for Mahendra Brothers. Three years later, his older brother Mahasukhbhai Adani purchased a plastics unit in Ahmedabad and offered him the opportunity to oversee its operations. This endeavor served as Adani's entry point into global trade through the importation of polyvinyl chloride (PVC).

    By 1985, he began importing primary polymers for small-scale industries. In 1988, Adani founded Adani Exports, which is now recognized as Adani Enterprises, the holding company of the Adani Group. Initially, the company focused on agricultural and power commodities.

    With the implementation of economic liberalization policies in 1991, his company experienced favorable conditions for growth. As a result, Adani expanded the business into trading metals, textiles, and agricultural products.

Personal life:

    Gautam Adani is wedded to Priti Adani. The pair is blessed with two sons, Karan Adani and Jeet Adani.

    In January 1998, Adani and a colleague named Shantilal Patel were reportedly abducted and held captive for ransom. The kidnapping was attributed to two former criminals, Fazl-ur-Rehman and Bhogilal Darji. However, they were acquitted by an Indian court in 2018 due to the absence of Adani and Patel during the depositions, despite multiple court summons.

    On 26 November 2008, while dining with another businessman at 21:50 in the restaurant of Taj Mahal Palace Hotel in Mumbai, Adani found himself in the midst of a terrorist attack. The attackers were a mere 15 feet (4.6 m) away from him. Adani sought refuge in the hotel kitchen and later in the restroom, emerging unharmed at 08:45 the following day.

Quotes: 

•Business is all about risk taking and managing uncertainties and turbulence.

•I could never take orders from anyone.

•Being an entrepreneur is my dream job, as it tests ones tenacity.

•Either you sit on the pile of cash, or you invest in large projects.

•Infrastructure sector is all about building assets for the country. It is part of nation building.

•From my experience in working with bureaucrats and politicians, if you are a credible business group, they will definitely help you.