Mumbai, Dec 23: Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) Chairman Mukesh Ambani on Saturday, in a celebratory event to mark 40 years of formation of the company, said the efforts of his father Dhirubhai Ambani transformed it into a company employing 250,000 employees. It was indeed the creation of his vision. He emphasised that the associates of Dhirubhai Ambani worked against impossible odds to turn it into an industry giant.
Read full text of his speech
Good evening, my Reliance Family.
Amitji, I have no words to express my joy.
You truly created a surreal experience.
Please accept our deepest gratitude, on behalf of the entire Reliance family.
Before we start our celebrations of kal, aaj aur kal, this evening, it is my privilege to honour the leaders who have made Reliance.
Friends,
Reliance is the creation of the vision of one individual ─ my father, and our founder, Shri Dhirubhai Ambani.We owe to him all the progress we have made in the last forty years.Reliance stands on his strong and ever-supportive shoulders.
Jo kabhi keval ek karmayogi ki kalpana thi….Aaj sakaar ho gayi. Ek soch…..Samrajya mein badal gayi.
It is because of him that Reliance has grown — from 1 employee to over 2,50,000 employees; from initial investment of Rs 1000 to a company of over Rs 6 lakh crore, and from operations in only one city to 28,000 cities and towns, and over four lakh villages.
My father is a timeless legend, an Indian icon. An eternal inspiration to Indians from all generations – Kal, aaj aur kal. We shall forever remain true to his vision, his ideals, his principles.
Aaj is khushi ke mauke par, mein hum sab ki taraf se papa ko pranam karta hu. Aur hum subke liye unka ashirwad chahathun.
Friends,
Today let us also remember with gratitude all those who worked with papa — the great pioneers of Reliance. They often worked against impossible odds. The resources they had were meagre compared to what we have today.
But they never lacked ambition, passion, dedication, humility, indomitable commitment. And also the dream to make Reliance the pride of India. I would like to remember and pay my respects to:
Rasikbhai – my first boss who trained me and taught me some of the best lessons of life;
Natubhai – my father’s younger brother, who looked after finance;
And above all, Ramnikbhai – my father’s elder brother.
This first generation defined the DNA of Reliance. They believed in investing in talent – and making talented people part of the Reliance Family.
I would like to mention some of them.
Manubhai – who redefined loyalty to Reliance and its mission;
Indubhai – who was the futurist and always thought of future trends even in the 60s;
SP Chakraborty – who taught us to embrace technology and innovation;
VV Bhatt – the iconic people leader;
KK Malhotra – who institutionalised processes and systems at Reliance.
Balu, HS Kohli ji and many others, who still work 12 hours a day.
Some of the pioneers of Reliance yesterday are on the screen behind me. There are many more! Let us today, as one large Reliance family salute them, pay our respects and seek their blessings.
Aaj reliance ki iss pioners ko salaam karne ka, aur unke ashirward lene ka din hai. Jin logon ki mehnat aur wafadari par aaj reliance garv se sar utha kar khada hai.
Let us give all these leaders a standing ovation! Ramnikbhai, the eldest in the Reliance family, who is 92 years old, has made special efforts to be with us and bless us and celebrate our kal, aaj aur kal. May I request Anant, to present him with a floral bouquet on all our behalf.