In a rare display of personal vulnerability, Vedanta Group Chairman Anil Agarwal took to LinkedIn on May 26, 2025, to share a heartfelt message addressed to young Indian founders, reflecting on the solitude, pressure, and perseverance required in the entrepreneurial journey.
The post, which blends candid reflection with poetic Hindi, reads like a letter from one builder to another. “The journey you’ve chosen? It gets lonely,” Agarwal began, describing the early stages of entrepreneurship as akin to “living in a pressure cooker.”
“Every day, you make decisions that could move your dream forward or take it a step back. It feels like shouting into the void, like building in the dark.”
A Personal Note from Anil Agarwal’s Diary
Agarwal, who began his journey in the 1970s as a scrap metal trader before founding Sterlite Industries, shared a deeply personal memory from his early days in London:
“On the loneliest nights, find something that reminds you of home. For me, it was maaji ki shawl in a cold London flat.”
His message emphasized that loneliness is not a detour, but a marker of ambition and courage:
“Mount Everest ki chadhai pe bheed nahi hoti… the higher you climb, the fewer people you see. But that doesn’t mean you’re lost. It just means you’re on a rare path.”
The post concludes with a resonant sign-off:
“Safar bhale hi akela ho, raasta apna hona chahiye…”
Response to the Post
Since it was published, the post has garnered over 45,000 reactions and nearly 3,000 comments on LinkedIn (as of May 30, 2025). It has been widely appreciated across India’s professional and entrepreneurial circles for articulating the emotional reality of startup life, an aspect not often addressed by corporate leaders of Agarwal’s stature.
The Context Behind the Message
India’s startup ecosystem has expanded rapidly in the last decade. As of April 2025:
- Over 117,000 startups are recognized by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT).
- India ranks 3rd globally in number of startups, after the US and China.
However, the failure rate remains high. Multiple industry studies, including a 2024 report by iCALL-MH in partnership with Indian startup networks, indicate:
- 72% of early-stage founders experience emotional isolation.
- 44% report symptoms of anxiety or depression.
In this environment, a message from a veteran industrialist acknowledging these struggles has been described by many professionals as timely and reassuring.
Agarwal’s Journey: From Patna to Global Boardrooms
Anil Agarwal, born in Patna, Bihar, in 1954, started by joining his father’s scrap business before moving to Mumbai in the 1970s. In 1979, he founded Sterlite Industries, which later evolved into the diversified global conglomerate Vedanta Resources.
Today, Vedanta Ltd, listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange, operates in sectors including zinc, copper, aluminium, oil and gas, and semiconductors, with a global footprint across India, South Africa, Namibia, and the Middle East.
As of FY2024:
- Vedanta Ltd’s consolidated revenue was ₹1.52 lakh crore,
- Market capitalization stands at approximately ₹1.3 lakh crore (BSE, May 2025).
Despite facing regulatory and environmental challenges over the years, Agarwal remains a central figure in India’s industrial narrative and increasingly, in public discourse on entrepreneurship and nation-building.
In an age where success is often measured by valuations and investor rounds, Anil Agarwal’s post offers a quieter but more enduring truth, that the journey of building something meaningful is often solitary, uncertain, and deeply personal.
By speaking openly, he reminds India’s next generation of builders that while the climb may be steep and solitary, it is also significant.
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