Baba Kalyani Named Indian of the Year 2025 in Business

Baba Kalyani, Chairman and Managing Director of Bharat Forge, has been named the Indian of the Year 2025 in Business, recognising his decades-long contribution to India’s industrial, economic, and defence manufacturing landscape.

The honour was presented by former NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant and Justice Indu Malhotra (Retd.), who praised Kalyani for transforming Bharat Forge from a domestic forging company into a global engineering powerhouse. The jury noted his leadership in advancing India’s indigenous defence capabilities and redefining global expectations of Indian manufacturing.

In his acceptance remarks, Kalyani dedicated the award to his grandmother and family, crediting them for instilling the values that guided his four-decade journey. He said India stands at a pivotal moment where innovation-led engineering and a strong product-driven ecosystem will shape the next phase of growth in defence and manufacturing.

He reiterated Bharat Forge’s commitment to expanding domestic capabilities, accelerating technological breakthroughs, and contributing to India’s emergence as a global defence power.