Explore Business Standard
Narayana Murthy Infosys
Recently sworn-in Rajya Sabha MP Sudha Murty on Friday recalled how she gave her husband NR Narayana Murthy Rs 10,000 as seed capital to start IT company Infosys but chose to keep Rs 250 from her savings kitty as she thought she was taking a "risk" because of his previously failed venture. The 73-year old engineer-turned-philanthropist recounted that in 1981 when her husband told her that he wanted to start a software company, she had argued that both already had well-paying jobs. Murthy had assured her that he would not proceed without her approval, she said speaking at India Today conclave. I had Rs 10,250 in my savings. I saved Rs 250 for myself and gave him the rest because he failed in his earlier venture Softronics, so I took a risk, she said. Murthy told her to brace for a bumpy ride for the next three years, she said recounting the early days of the Indian IT services giant. My life drastically changed when he started Infosys, it was a responsibility, a commitment, she sai
Sudha Murty, who was on Friday nominated to the Rajya Sabha by the President, holds a 0.83 per cent stake in IT bellwether Infosys which at current prices is worth close to Rs 5,600 crore. The 73-year-old philanthropist is the wife of Infosys co-founder Narayana Murthy. She is the chairperson of the Murty Trust and has authored several books. According to the latest shareholding filed by Infosys with the BSE, she holds 3.45 crore shares of the company. At the last closing price of Rs 1,616.95 on the BSE, Murty's holding in Infosys is currently worth Rs 5,586.66 crore. Her husband Narayana Murthy owns 1.66 crore equity shares that are worth Rs 2,691 crore. Sudha Murty, who was awarded the Padma Shri in 2006 and Padma Bhushan in January this year, is also the mother-in-law of UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. While Padma Shri is the country's fourth-highest civilian award, Padma Bhushan is the second-highest civilian honour. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday morning took to the
When Narayana Murthy once visited the US for client work during the initial days of Infosys, a temperamental American businessman made him sleep on a large box in a windowless storeroom surrounded by cartons though his own home had four bedrooms. Indian-American author Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni has come out with a biography covering the early years of Sudha Murty's and Narayana Murthy's lives that is replete with many such nuggets about the iconic couple. Published by Juggernaut Books, "An Uncommon Love: The Early Life of Sudha and Narayana Murthy" is the story of the Murthys' early years - from their courtship to Infosys' founding years and from their marriage to parenthood. Donn Liles, who headed the New York-based company Data Basics Corporation, was a temperamental client and was especially unpleasant to Murthy at times. "He would often delay payments when he could, and Murthy would then be the target of his ire because he would hold his ground, refusing to budge on timely ...