Anil Agarwal's journey: A look at the mining mogul's legacy, leadership and resilience

Anil Agarwal is one of India's most well-known industrialists, known for being a key contributor in the country's robust metals, mining and natural resources sectors.

The founder and chairperson of Vedanta Group, Anil Agarwal started his journey from a humble background and shaped it to what can now be called a legacy.

Here is a look at his journey.

Anil Agarwal's legacy, leadership and resilience

Anil Agarwal was born in 1954 in Patna, Bihar, in a Marwadi family. He has two younger brothers. His father Dwarka Prasad Agarwal had a small aluminium business. When Anil Agarwal graduated from his school in Patna, he joined his father's business instead of going to college, making aluminium conductors.

At the young age of 19, he set sail to Mumbai to look for career opportunities. In the 1970s, he started his own business of scrap metals, selling cables he collected from other states to dealers in Mumbai.

His first break came in 1976, when he acquired Shamsher Sterling Corporation, a copper manufacturer, with a bank loan. Over the next decade, he founded Sterlite Industries, which became the first private sector company in India to set up a copper smelter and refinery.

To access international capital markets, Anil Agarwal and his team incorporated Vedanta Resources Plc in 2003 in London.

Agarwal built what we know as Vedanta brick-by-brick over decades and built a legacy business for himself, not refusing to give up when his companies faced charges from the Supreme Court and the public. Along the way, he married Kiran Agarwal and the couple had one son and a daughter.

He has pledged 75% of his family wealth to charity, and joined the Giving Pledge of Bill Gates along with his daughter Priya in 2021.

Over the years, Anil Agarwal not only made Vedanta one of India's leading conglomerates, he also crafted a family, legacy and leadership from scratch.

Here is a look at Anil Agarwal's family tree:

Dwarka Prasad Agarwal: Dwarka Prasad Agarwal is the father of Anil Agarwal. He had a small aluminum conductor business, and lived in Patna, where his sons also grew up.

Pravin Agarwal: Pravin Agarwal is the younger brother of Anil Agarwal and is a key figure in the Sterlite Group, which is part of Vedanta. He serves as Chairman of Sterlite Power and Vice-Chairman of Sterlite Technologies (STL).

Navin Agarwal: Navin Agarwal, the youngest brother of Anil Agarwal, is the executive vice chairman of Vedanta Limited. He is married to Ruchira Agarwal and has two sons - Naivedya and Ananya.

Anil Agarwal - Kiran Agarwal: Anil Agarwal, the founder of Vedanta Group, acts as the chairman of the company. The metals and mining magnate is credited with making his scrap metals business into one of India's most successful conglomerates. He married Kiran Agarwal and together they had two children — Agnivesh and Priya. Agnivesh Aggarwal recently passed away at the age of 49.

Agnivesh Agarwal: Agnivesh Agarwal was the eldest son of Anil Agarwal. He passed away in the United States after a sudden cardiac arrest, the family said on Wednesday. Agnivesh founded Fujeirah Gold, and was the Chairman of Hindustan Zinc.

Priya Agarwal Hebbar: Priya Agarwal Hebbar is the youngest daughter of Anil and Kiran Agarwal. She serves as the non-executive director at Vedanta and is the chairperson of Hindustan Zinc. She also co-founded Yoda, an animal care organisation. Priya got married to Akarsh Hebbar in 2013 and the couple have a daughter named Mahii.

Anil Agarwal net worth

According to the Forbes Real Time Billionaire's list, Anil Aggarwal has a net worth of $3.3 billion. Most of his wealth comes from his majority stake at Vedanta.

Anil Agarwal's son passes away

Anil Agarwal on Wednesday shared that his son Agnivesh passed away following a cardiac arrest at the age of 49 in the United States.

Agarwal described the day as "the darkest" of his life, saying his son had been recovering well after a skiing accident before the sudden medical setback claimed his life.

In an emotional post on X, Agarwal said Agnivesh was undergoing treatment at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York and was believed to be out of danger.

“We believed the worst was behind us. But fate had other plans, and a sudden cardiac arrest snatched our son away from us. No words can describe the pain of a parent who must bid goodbye to his child. A son is not meant to leave before his father. This loss has shattered us in ways we are still trying to comprehend,” he wrote.