RIL CMD Mukesh D Ambani's keynote speech at the launch of Arundhati Bhattacharya's memoirs - INDOMITABLE / Aparaajita

RIL CMD Mukesh D Ambani’s keynote speech at the launch of of the Hindi edition of the book ‘Indomitable’ or ‘Aparajita’, authored by Arundhati Bhattacharya, held today (September 10, 2026) at the BSE Auditorium in Mumbai.
“It gives me great joy to be with all of you today for the celebration and the launch of the Hindi edition of Smt Arundhati Bhattacharya’s memoir, “INDOMITABLE.”
 The English title describes her perfectly: indomitable—a person whom no hurdles can halt, no adversity can defeat.
But I believe the Hindi title is even more powerful:
अपराजिता।
जो कभी पराजित नहीं हो सकती।
जिसने जीवन में कभी हार नहीं मानी।
Arundhatiji, today we celebrate not only your book, but also the courage, values and leadership your life represents.
Let us congratulate Arundhatiji and I promise all of you that I’m not a banker.
So if the applause is loud and long, I will not charge interest.
So, Arundhatiji, a very long applause.
Dear Friends,
This occasion has been five years in the making.
Arundhatiji had invited me to launch the English edition in 2021, but COVID had other plans.
Today, I can finally fulfil the commitment I made to her over five years ago.
So, I’m happy.
More importantly, the Hindi edition takes her story to the young women and men of Bharat in our cities, towns, districts and villages.
अरुंधति जी, आपकी हिंदी आत्मकथा भी बेस्टसेलर बनेगी—यह तो तय है।
Distinguished Guests,
I have known Arundhatiji closely through her association with Reliance and now being on the Reliance Board for many years.
Every interaction with her has been positive and uplifting.
Since joining the Reliance Board in 2018, she has enriched our deliberations with her experience and independence of mind.
She brings optimism into every boardroom discussion with the confidence of a leader who has faced complexity and found a way forward.
Usually, in the corporate world, a person who identifies three new problems also adds 30 slides to explain these problems — and sometimes to my mind that creates a fourth problem!
But Arundhatiji is always a problem-solver.
She listens carefully.
She speaks candidly.
She challenges constructively.
She is a strategic thinker who understands the present clearly and sees the future early.
She asks not only, “What is happening?” but also, “What will this lead to, and how must we act for the best outcome?”
Dear Friends,
She has consistently encouraged us to promote diversity as a source of stronger leadership and better decisions from Day 1 in 2018.
Today, at Reliance, we are proud to have many more women leaders at senior levels across Reliance.
And I can tell you, friends, that women bring a rare kind of EQ — Empathy Quotient to negotiate any real-life situation.
It’s now my firm conviction that our world needs more Emotional Quotient than Intellectual Quotient — which is to say, more women in leadership positions.
Arundhatiji also encourages young leaders, giving them space and confidence to carry greater responsibility.
Over the years, my daughter Isha has become a great admirer—indeed, a fan—of Arundhatiji’s wisdom, directioness and generosity towards the next generation.
Dear friends,
Arundhatiji is gentle, but beneath that exterior is a very steely personality.
Perhaps it came from her childhood in the steel cities of Bhilai and Bokaro.
Her father was an upright engineer who worked in what Nehruji called the temples of modern India.
Arundhatiji has carried that legacy forward by leading another such temple—the State Bank of India.
In 2013, she became the first woman Chairperson in SBI’s history of more than two centuries, leading this vast institution through change with courage, empathy and clarity.
She did not choose banking.
As she says banking chose her.
Arundhatiji mastered natural intelligence, which I have experienced and in this age of AI, I still believe that AI can never replace Human Natural Intelligence that all of us have.
Through four decades of dedicated service, she rose to the Chairperson’s office at Nariman Point.
As she herself says the journey was never easy.
She faced demanding postings, frequent transfers and the pressures of a working mother.
At difficult moments, she considered giving up—but never did.
Her family stood like a rock behind her.
It is often said, “Behind every successful man there is a strong woman.”
But in Arundhatiji’s case, we can say, “Behind this extraordinarily successful woman stands a strong man.”
Therefore, let us give a big round of applause to her husband, Professor Pratimoy Bhattacharya, and also to their loving daughter, Sukrita, who really made a speech out of the heart.
Sukrita, I enjoyed that.
Friends,
 Arundhatiji’s life offers valuable lessons for our families, our institutions and our nation.
 And there are four in the book that I will highlight, that I particularly relate to, because they are also very close to my heart.
The first is the strength of family values.
Arundhati ji writes with gratitude about those who shaped her value-system and sustained her in difficult times.
I have experienced the same truth.
Whatever I have achieved rests on the values I received from my parents, the partnership of my wife Nita, and the strength of my family.
In business, people often speak of capital.
Family is our first and most enduring capital—emotional, moral and spiritual.
Hence, the takeaway from this book is simple: always be there for your family, express gratitude, and never confuse professional success with personal self-sufficiency.
The second lesson is: do not externalise blame.
Arundhatiji recalls an incident at school when she blamed others for an outcome.
A teacher advised her to look within and find the lesson hidden in failure.
She followed that advice throughout her life.
At Reliance, too, every major achievement has passed through phases when things did not go to plan.
My father Dhirubhai, who really was, like when we look at the Bombay Stock Exchange and when we look at the 80’s, he was the one who believed in the Indian investor.
I had just come back, Ramamurthy sahab, from Stanford and I was a very idealistic young man in the late 70’s.
And this place was run like it, we’ll have another session for it.
But this place was run in a very different way.
And I told my father how will this go on.
And he’s the one who said have faith and let me tell you that all these dhotiwalas will change to suitwalas.
And we will be proud of what India will achieve in the Capital market.
And believe me, 50 years from then, we are one of the largest Capital markets and it’s a privilege for me to be here.
That was his vision at that point in time and that really has happened.
So, in terms of what my father taught me was that setbacks are not verdicts; they are feedback.
When something fails, ask three questions:
Why did I miss?
What will I change?
And how quickly can I act?
Blame may protect that ego for a day; responsibility builds the future.
The third lesson is to remain a lifelong learner.
Be it banking or any other enterprise, everything is changing rapidly.
As Arundhatiji tells us in her book, learning, unlearning and re-learning in this dynamic environment is like “repairing a running car”.
She not only excelled at this personally but also helped a 200-year-old institution reinvent itself for a Young New India.
My takeaway for everyone is simple: always remain a student.
Learn from younger people, from technology, and especially from what makes you uncomfortable.
The fourth lesson is about people and leadership.
Arundhatiji understood that institutions change only when their people participate in that change with self-motivation and enthusiasm.
Her principle at SBI was simple yet profound: “Collaboration inside and competition outside.”
At Reliance, I have learnt that no vision — however bold — can be realised by one single person.
Everyone must feel part of that vision and its execution.
Leadership is not about collecting followers; it is about creating more leaders.
Arundhatiji, in her book, gives us a sure-shot leadership creation mantra:
“Put the right people in the right roles, give them a demanding mission, empower them, and stand behind courageous decisions taken with the right intent and you will achieve the
impossible.”
Friends,
I have always believed स्त्री शक्ति is भारत की शक्ति.
India is moving decisively from women’s development to women-led development.
Women are no longer merely beneficiaries of progress; they are its architects—leading in business, science, sport, our armed forces and communities across Bharat.
I saw this strength in my mother, Kokilaben.
I see it in Nita’s institution-building, and in Isha and the young women of her generation, whose confidence makes me deeply optimistic about India’s future.
My conviction is simple: when the women of India rise, India rises.
And when the women of India become unstoppable, India becomes unstoppable.
Arundhatiji’s life gives this conviction a human face.
She broke a historic barrier, but she did not stop at being the first.
The best “firsts” do not close the door behind them; they hold it open for thousands of others to come in.
Through her contribution on Reliance’s Board, her leadership at Salesforce India, and her support for younger leaders, she continues to do exactly that every day.
Arundhatiji, thank you for your friendship, your optimism, your wise counsel to all of us at Reliance, your commitment to diversity and your faith in young leaders.
Thank you also for giving India a story that is honest, courageous and full of hope and positivity.
Friends,
Each of us will face moments when the road is difficult, the outcome uncertain and the temptation to give up very real.
At that moment, remember the spirit of अपराजिता.
We may not control every circumstance, but we can always summon our courage, intensify our effort, and rise again.
Let us leave today with four promises:
To value those who stand beside us.
To take responsibility instead of assigning blame.
To remain students throughout our lives.
And to open doors for those who come after us.
If millions of Indians make these promises—especially the young women of Bharat—no challenge will be too great, no dream too distant and no future beyond our reach.
Let us build an India where every girl can dream without limits, every woman can lead without barriers, and every citizen can say with confidence:
कठिनाई आएगी, लेकिन हम रुकेंगे नहीं।
असफलता आएगी, लेकिन हम झुकेंगे नहीं।
हम उठेंगे, हम सीखेंगे, और हम जीतेंगे।
This is the message of Arundhatiji’s indomitable life.
That is the spirit of an indomitable India.
Distinguished Guests,
I would like to conclude with an appeal and a commitment.
The book we are celebrating today is not an ordinary autobiography.
It is a call to action.
Arundhatiji’s achievements against all odds are a source of inspiration for working mothers around the world.
Nevertheless, they also remind Corporate India that it still has a very long way to go in ensuring that women get what they deserve.
Therefore, I wish to appeal to all my fellow business leaders today.
Let us collectively launch an effective initiative to strengthen the ecosystem that supports Working Women and Working Mothers in Corporate India.
I request Arundhati ji and other accomplished sisters like her to guide this initiative.
आप leadersihp लीजिये, हम आप को follow करेंगे।
Nita and Isha, are both working mothers.
While they are not here today, they have asked me to convey to you that Reliance Foundation will fully participate in this initiative along with all other organisations.
Let us help and empower thousands of Indomitable Women Leaders to build and run the New Temples of Viksit Bharat.
My warmest congratulations to you, Arundhati ji; to Pratimoy ji; and to dear Sukrita; and to everyone who has brought this Hindi edition to the readers.
बहुत-बहुत बधाइयाँ।“