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Vanka thank you so much for joining us
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today you were one of the cofounders of
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the Wharton India Economic Forum 15
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years ago
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and was wondering what did you see then
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that spurred you to found the conference
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back then what would we see I mean I
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think you know when I came to warn it
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was very interesting to see the
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awareness of Indian it had just begun to
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emerge and the global scene the economic
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liberalization had started people felt
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there was enormous potential but there's
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still the awareness the knowledge the
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excitement was limited when you entered
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what's called the preeminent Business
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School globally and you see how limited
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the awareness about the country is you
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know there was a view that it would be
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great to have a event which will help
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educate people not only in Warren but
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throughout the u.s. about the
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opportunity in India there was also an
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other view that we need to create a
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greater interaction between the two
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countries so where business leaders and
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political leaders of both places can
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come and share views of what the
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opportunity is what the challenges are
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and more importantly to address what can
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be done better so I think it was a
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combination of education but it was also
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a combination of creating the future
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growth of India because without this
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it's not going to happen so I think that
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was a fundamental driver
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it was obviously a tall order first view
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was you know can you get the people that
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matter
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as with any event the success of it is
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driven by who's part of it we dream big
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and we always believed that unless you
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get the best
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to you know share their views you're not
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going to be successful but we were
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fortunate from the very beginning that
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we've had the you know top financial and
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political leaders from both sides of the
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globe come and share their views I mean
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it's easy today to see in 15 years I
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wouldn't think of any major Indian see
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who has not spoken at weave or any
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finance minister or governor of the
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Reserve Bank or the secretary assistant
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secretary of state like you have Blake
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or the many US CEOs will be in part of
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this event over the years so that was I
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think the primary driver the interesting
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part of is also India's changed over
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that 15 years and reef has had to change
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now you know as Rob Blake said the
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number of people who come even from
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vacation to the US has dramatically
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increase I mean to think like almost a
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million people from India comes just on
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vacation to the US but now it's more
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that I think it's gone from that India
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is you know emerged and the opportunity
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it's now talking about how both
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economies and business and strategically
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can benefit and what needs to be done to
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go from here
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so every year that's the role we've
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plays and that's why I think most people
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who want to hear what's happening in
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terms of the latest in India find this
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as a better venue than any other place
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and I'm you know very happy to see there
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Wharton you know playing that leading
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role year after year you spoke about
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some of the prominent leaders who have
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come to speak what are some of the
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changes you've seen over the years in
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terms of some of the companies that have
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had the spotlight not had the spotlight
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talk about some of those you know
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changes that you've seen over the years
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the first interesting thing I think most
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importantly I'll draw a parallel to the
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first year almost a lot of the speakers
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who came from India came to this
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conference and left after the conference
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and you might ask why is that relevant
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it just meant that they're so limited
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u.s.
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involvement beyond that conference they
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all were excited to come and share their
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views today the amount of business
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that's global of US companies
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going to India us political leaders I
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mean at that time I mean I don't know
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last time the u.s. president had gone to
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India versus now you know the first
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state visit of any foreign leader that's
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the US president host happens to be of
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an Indian leader and he happens to go to
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India within his first you know two
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years so that's the part which has
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changed the interaction the you know the
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focus of both areas of being so
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interlinked has dramatically increased
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so we went a time when people understood
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India and the both sides felt or will
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have greater collaboration so now it's
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already happened I mean for businesses
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on both sides for US businesses India is
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very important market for Indian
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businesses you know access to US markets
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both financial and otherwise he's very
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relevant and same thing on a strategic
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and political landscape India is now
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considered a real global player and its
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viewpoints are requested in that so I
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think that has changed a lot
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that means that India is now considered
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one of the most important economies on
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both sides and so I think that's there
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and the second thing I think which I
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touched on earlier in my comments is the
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confidence of people in India has
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increased dramatically that they have a
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role to play in the global economy and I
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think also the acceptance of global
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players that India is relevant in the
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global economy has also increased so in
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some perspective it's very exciting to
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see that change and it be very exciting
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to see you know what in 10 years when
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we're sitting here you know where the
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you know India would have gone from
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today so look into that crystal ball for
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a minute if you will what do you see
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5 10 years down the line as this
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conference continues and if there's
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someone you know on your wish list that
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you would love to come see you know at
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the conference to speak who might it be
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I mean I think a few things
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I'd like to you know see is in the next
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10 years
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I actually think what has happen is we
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went about 15 years ago when this
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conference was founded the India was
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just a place of opportunity it had a lot
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of people so obviously some part of that
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are going to be middle-class and they're
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going to be irrelevant nothing more than
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that
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and there was a little bit of IT
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outsourcing companies are gone now
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there's been a creation that with global
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companies they're real revenues real
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profits real and Indians have succeeded
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in global businesses India politically
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has had a role but it's still in that
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peripheral of not being sort of I would
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say it's clearly in the top ten
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economies in the world you know the
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question is is it the top two to five
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economies and I think there's no reason
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in the world that in the next ten years
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when we're sitting there would not be
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the top three or four important
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economies if you think about us China
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and India being sort of the top three so
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I think that's the next you know
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opportunity that we'll see and I think
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you'll also see I think the role of the
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Indian businesses being even more global
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I think you know it's great today to be
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able to I mean I was looking had to go
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for a wedding to Boston for Memorial Day
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and you know looking at hotels and its
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Taj Boston I mean so the fact that you
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know the Tata zone Land Rover and Jaguar
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I mean these are you know the Pier Hotel
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in New York this is the symbols of
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luxury of quality per se being part of
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an Indian business empire so I think you
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know what will be so exciting to see
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that in ten years from now the people
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accept a lot of things that's made in
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India or that's part of an Indian
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business and it's more common so I think
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that would be the great thing for us to
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see ten years it started now but it's on
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the fringe and in 10 years could it be
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much more prevalent that you know people
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would say joining Infosys and you know
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or others is just like joining Accenture
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or any other place our business school
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so I think that's the one opportunity
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clearly thinking that and I think I'm
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very confident will happen and I'm very
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confident we
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we'll attract the business leaders of
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tomorrow if you ask me I think one
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person that I would like to see was not
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being a treif obviously her son has
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spoken it we've but is Sonia Gandhi and
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I think one because she is a woman who
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didn't have our original roots in India
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it wasn't really have original interest
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in politics was married into it or you
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know gave birth to people who are into
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it but has helped shape and adapt
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herself under party to that changes that
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have happened it'd be great to see what
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parallels that you know she thinks about
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the same level of innovation interaction
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we've had again a lot of the finance
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minister same but we love to see the you
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know the Prime Minister of India also
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speak at the event that set aside I'm
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very pleased on the other spectrum I
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always felt that we've has done a very
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good job attracting the very elite from
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India almost as I said the who's who
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from the business world in the political
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world in India has spoken I would like
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this to be a stomping point for the
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who's who on this side of the Atlantic
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and I think it started and I think
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having secretary Blake is very positive
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but that is what I want to see the u.s.
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major company CEOs and the u.s.
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political landscape you know why not
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have Secretary of State and Hillary
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Clinton and people of that nature be at
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this event and talking more about the
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relevance and importance of India and
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not only in the economic perspective but
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politically and strategically and I
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think as I talked to the organizers of
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reef you know Ivan creates them that the
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governor of Pennsylvania should be part
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of the event the mayor Philadelphia
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should be part they should be proud that
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we've and which is part of you know
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Philadelphia and Pennsylvania is hosting
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this and the Senators and everything so
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I think I do think that because of the
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importance of India you will see that in
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the next 10 years the tremendous
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increase I think of participation from
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us players thank you so much for joining
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us thank you very much thank you for
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having me
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you
