Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw Net Worth: Founder of Biocon

Taking on the big challenge of building a biotech firm using innovative methods in healthcare, Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw has built an empire in the pharmaceutical world right here in India, and that is what makes her one of the very well-known businesswomen in the country. By converting Biocon from a small startup in a garage to a big company Biocon is today, she has achieved incredible growth in the biotechnology and biopharmaceutical sectors, that’s for sure. Just so you know though, a huge net worth of around $3.6 billion makes her one of the most prominent billionaires in the world today. However, Kiran’s journey is about much more than wealth, and that’s precisely what we are about to take a good look at. Here we go.

Early Life and Education

Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw is someone with an extraordinary journey, that we can say for sure. Why, though? Well, you see, from an early stage, she was a curious kid who liked science because of her father who was a specialist in Beer Brewing. Just because of that, she graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Zoology from Bangalore University in the year of 1973. Following that, instead of going on a normal path, she changed cities and moved to Melbourne in Australia to study brewing at Ballarat College, you know? At that time, in spite of women being the minority in the industry, she managed to pass her master brewing certification in the year of 1975.

The Birth of Biocon

As soon as she landed back in India, Kiran was faced with the huge barrier of securing the job she desired as a brewmaster just because she was a woman, you know? And sure, this made her realize that she would have to explore other opportunities and she eventually found out about Leslie Auchincloss, which we now know as the co-founder of Biocon Biochemicals. It was her responsibility to open a branch in India and Kiran took the opportunity. Later on, in the year 1978, she was able to initiate Biocon in her garage in Bangalore and the total investment was just Rs. 10,000. The initial phase of Biocon was on industrial enzymes with the hiring of only two people. Sure, it was quite difficult for her to convince the investors to support a young lady’s startup but with determination and her goal of making the company grow slowly and steadily, she did it.

Expansion into Biopharmaceuticals

Well if we talk about the success of Biocon in the field of industrial enzymes, Kiran saw a chance for gaining a cause that came through the introduction of biopharmaceuticals, you know? And just so you know, this led Biocon to further expand drug production directed at the creation of economic medicine; thus the focus was on insulin specifically for diabetes patients. Later down the line, the formation of Syngene, a contract research company, in 1994 was followed by the birth of Clinigene, which aimed at clinical research, in the year 2000. For sure, it was the year 2004 when Biocon achieved the great milestone of being the very first biotechnology company in India to get listed on the stock market which led to a considerably greater source of funds for further expansion.

Achievements and Recognition

To say that Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw’s impact on the biotechnology industry has been nothing short of HUGE is to put it lightly. Because of just that, in 2014, she was awarded the Othmer Gold Medal for her scientific breakthroughs and innovations. This honor was in addition to the Padma Shri she received in 1989 and the Padma Bhushan she received in 2005, the two highest Indian civilian awards. Moreover, she was featured in the TIMES’ “100 Most Influential People in the World” list in 2010, and Forbes has recognized her as one of the “Most Powerful Women”.