Celebrating Pearl Tiwari's 26-Year Journey at Ambuja Foundation

Narotam Sekhsaria wasn't looking to make a donation.

When a determined young NGO professional walked into his office for the third year in a row seeking support for disadvantaged children, he saw something far more valuable than another funding proposal.

"She wasn't making a sales pitch," he recalls as the Founder and CEO of Ambuja Foundation. "She believed deeply in the cause she represented. She was so passionate. She was sincere."

Then came the sentence that changed everything. "Pearl, I won't give you a contribution. I want to give you a job." Neither of them could have imagined where that conversation would lead.

Twenty-six years later, the organisation Pearl Tiwari hands over is almost unrecognisable from the one she joined. What began as a small corporate foundation working alongside the plants of Ambuja Cements Ltd. has evolved into one of India's most respected rural development organisations—working across 14 states and 2 union territories, reaching almost 6.73 million people each year, and partnering with governments, corporates and communities to drive rural prosperity.

Yet Pearl would be the first to tell you that none of that was part of the plan.

A Calling That Began Long Before Ambuja Foundation

"My journey didn't begin at Ambuja Foundation," Pearl reflects. "As a schoolgirl, I volunteered to tutor tribal children who had fewer educational options than I did. At college, weekends were spent visiting old-age homes, working in villages and volunteering through the Social Service League."

Those experiences stayed with her. "They gave me the first dose of feeling good about using whatever skills I had to help people who didn't have the same opportunities."

That early sense of purpose led her to the Tata Institute of Social Sciences and into more than fifteen years in the development sector before she ever set foot in Ambuja Foundation.

When she accepted Narotam Sekhsaria's offer, she imagined she would stay only a few years. Instead, she found something she hadn't expected: the freedom to build.

"He really gave me the autonomy to do what I do best. He allowed me to steer the ship," she says. That trust transformed what was meant to be a short chapter into the defining work of her professional life.

Leading With Principle

For Narotam Sekhsaria, one quality has always defined Pearl's leadership. "She is a person of principle," he says. "She never asked anything for herself in twenty-six years."

Those principles shaped the way she built the Foundation. There were times when the commercial priorities of the parent company did not naturally align with those of the communities. But, as Mr Sekhsaria reflects, "Pearl was determined that communities could never become a means to an end. Trust had to be earned. Relationships had to be built with integrity."

That philosophy extended beyond programmes into the institution itself. Board Member B.L. Taparia remembers her unwavering commitment to governance and accountability.

"She was absolutely sincere in adopting the type of corporate practices and policies we wanted to implement. While there were genuine challenges in the field, she always found practical solutions—but she never compromised on compliance, transparency or doing things the right way."

Rajiv Gandhi, who served as Company Secretary & Compliance Officer at Ambuja Cements Ltd. for many years, saw the same values in her everyday leadership.

"In all my twenty years, I've never seen a person of Pearl's calibre who was so grounded and so humble," he reflects. "Everything she did was without any kind of limelight. She was only interested in Ambuja Foundation's work and how it could become better."

Stewarding Every Rupee

As Ambuja Foundation grew, so did the scale of its work. But Pearl never lost sight of the responsibility that came with every rupee entrusted to the organisation.

Taparia recalls how she continually challenged the Foundation to deliver more with less. "Pearl always believed we could achieve the same outcome at a quarter of the cost," he says. "She constantly challenged us to think differently about how we used our resources."

It wasn't about spending less for the sake of it. It was about ensuring that resources translated into the greatest possible value for communities.

But Pearl was equally determined to secure the resources the Foundation needed to do its work well. "She was very passionate about fighting for the budgets," says former MD of Ambuja Cements, Ajay Kapur. "She understood the corporate nuances and how to get what she needed for the Foundation. She could make a compelling case for what communities needed, back it with a deep understanding of the work and speak with the authority that came from knowing every detail."

That balance - frugality without compromising ambition - became one of her defining strengths. She was careful with every rupee, but never afraid to push for the resources required to deliver meaningful impact.

It was a discipline that helped build the confidence of the Board and partners, and ultimately allowed the Foundation to do more, reach further and build for the long term.

Building an Institution People Believed In

For Ajay Kapur, it was this combination of discipline and determination—and her ability to scale the Foundation—that enabled Pearl to leave such a mark on the organisation. "To grow it from ₹10–20 crore to ₹372 crore today—that is a remarkable achievement," he says.

According to Kapur, that growth was rooted in something less tangible: the credibility Pearl built around the Foundation and the respect she commanded within the corporate world.

"When Pearl walked in, all the members of the Ambuja Cements CSR Committee had a genuine respect for her and would eagerly listen," he recalls. "They were always astonished by the numbers and by her knowledge, passion and attention to detail. And she was someone who was full of energy and positivity."

That credibility helped the Foundation build partnerships well beyond the CSR of Ambuja Cements Ltd. - with so many other corporates and governments joining hands with the Foundation over time. Those partnerships, in turn, enabled the Foundation's work to expand into new geographies and reach communities far beyond its original footprint.

Pearl did not simply grow an organisation - she built the trust that allowed it to grow.

The Leaders She Leaves Behind

But perhaps Pearl's most enduring contribution was not a programme or a partnership, but the people she helped to grow.

For Narotam Sekhsaria, this was one of her greatest strengths. "She nurtured them," he says. "She made them leaders in their own areas of specialisation. She had a gift in this area."

Rather than simply recruiting ready-made experts from outside, Pearl invested in people internally - identifying potential, giving them responsibility, encouraging them to learn and creating an environment where they could grow into confident leaders. Today's leadership team, including new CEO Chandrakant Kumbhani, reflects that philosophy.

But Pearl also fought for her people. Taparia recalls how she challenged the Board to recognise that Foundation employees deserved the same respect, benefits and recognition as their corporate counterparts.

"She believed her people were every bit as committed, every bit as capable, and often working in far more difficult conditions," he says. "She made us realise they deserved to be treated accordingly."

The result was an organisation able to retain strong people and build leadership from within. "When Pearl superannuated, we didn't struggle to identify capable successors," Taparia says. "That speaks volumes about the team she built."

Perhaps that is the true measure of leadership - not building an organisation that depends on you, but one that is ready to thrive after you have stepped aside.

A Legacy That Endures

Pearl's leadership helped Ambuja Foundation earn the trust of governments, corporate partners and communities alike - building an institution with the credibility, systems and leadership strength to take its work far beyond where it began.

Narotam Sekhsaria puts her institutional legacy simply:

"I would not have dared to build such an elaborate platform without Pearl," he says. "The work we are doing today, where most of it is beyond Ambuja Cements locations, is because of Pearl and her team. That is the legacy she has delivered - for me, for Ambuja and for India."

Over twenty-six years, Pearl Tiwari has done far more than lead Ambuja Foundation. She has built an organisation defined by integrity, strengthened it through disciplined stewardship, nurtured leaders who will carry it forward and earned the trust of communities, partners and governments alike.

While programmes may evolve, new challenges emerge and new leaders come to shape the Foundation's future, the values she embedded will endure.

That is Pearl Tiwari's legacy.