Vedanta's Anil Agarwal's Daughter On Facing Racism In London School; Here's What His Father Advised Her
Despite the emotional challenges she faced, Priya discovered solace in her father's advice. “My father told me two things. He said to succeed, I have to find comfort in discomfort
Priya Agarwal Hebbar, the daughter of Vedanta chairman Anil Agarwal, openly discussed her distressing encounters with racism and bullying during her formative years in London in a recent interview. “When I was 7-8 years old, my parents decided to shift to London. They decided to put me in a weekly boarding school. No one wanted to sit next to me. There were girls who used to look at me and laugh. I was bullied. I was a part of a very, very difficult racist time. I used to cry,” she said during a candid interview with Mint.
Despite the emotional challenges she faced, Priya discovered solace in her father's advice. “My father told me two things. He said to succeed, I have to find comfort in discomfort. In a new country like that, and if I need to be looked at in a positive light, I have to be 25 per cent better than everybody else,” she said. These words served as a guiding light for Priya, leading her to forge friendships with individuals who had previously marginalised her.
Priya's transformation from a victim of bullying to a self-assured leader in a predominantly male-centric field stands as a remarkable testament to her resilience. “Finding comfort in discomfort is something that I have taken, and I have embedded, and that is what I want to do in a male-dominated industry like mining. I want women to dominate,” she affirmed.
Anil Agarwal, a prominent business figure, commands significant attention due to his family's considerable net worth, estimated at $2.01 billion by Forbes in 2022. Alongside his wife and children, including Priya Agarwal, who serves as a non-executive Director at Vedanta, the Agarwal family's influence extends across various sectors. Priya, in addition to her professional role, shares her familial ties with a brother named Agnivesh and is married to Akarsh Hebbar, further enhancing her connections within the business community.
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