NAME: AZIM H. PREMJI AGE: 60 DESIGNATION: Chairman STATE: Wipro Corporation

Looking at Azim Premji, one could never tell that he is India's richest man. he doesn't wear Savile Row suits, doesn't travel with a retinue of aides, and doesn't even drive a luxury car. Until recently, he rode a beat-up Ford Escort, before he exchanged it for a Toyota Corolla. If there's anything that matches his Spartan lifestyle, it's his outspokenness. He has crossed paths with powers that be over issues ranging from Bangalore's dilapidated infrastructure to the communal riots in Gujarat to now reservation for OBCs (other backward classes). Yet, if Premji continues to be looked up to, it's because of what he's been able to achieve at Wipro. From a vanaspati company once, Wipro has transformed into an IT giant with Rs 10,625 crore in revenues and 59,800 employees. It boasts of a market cap of Rs 81,400 crore, putting Premji's personal net worth at Rs 66,750 crore, thanks to his 82 per cent ownership of the company. But Premji possibly delights in a different bit of statistics: At last count, there were at least 120 tech companies either founded or headed by ex-Wiproites. No other company in India can claim to be an entrepreneur factory like Wipro.

Premji has two sons, Rishad and Tariq, but neither of them is involved in the business. On earlier occasions, he's told Business Today that he would rather have his sons inherit his wealth than try to run Wipro if they weren't capable enough. According to Premji, "ownership and management are two different issues". Says Anant Koppar, President of Mphasis Technologies and an ex-Wiproite: "What strikes me most about him is that he leads by example. He applies the same set of tough rules to everybody including himself."

Slowly, but surely, Premji is beginning to put his enormous wealth to good use. He has set up the Azim Premji Foundation, which works in the areas of improving elementary education. He's also making personal investments outside of philanthropy. Himatsingka Seide and JM Financial are two financial investments he's made in the recent past (his attempt to pick up a 26 per cent stake in Devi Shetty's Health City failed over valuations). Premji turns 61 in July, but there's plenty for him to do within and outside of Wipro.