Daijiworld Media Network – Mangaluru
Mangaluru, Jul 14: Ananth Pai, director of Bharath Beedi Works Limited in city, passed away on Sunday, July 14 in Indore, Madhya Pradesh.
Ananth Pai had gone to Indore to take part in a seminar and he breathed his last there due to cardiac arrest.
He is survived by his wife Suma Ananth Pai, daughter Anvitha, younger brother Anand G Pai and two sisters.
He was a grandson of B Manjunath Pai, Founder of Bharath Group.
Ananth Ganapathi Pai was born on April 6, 1973 as the eldest son of our former chairman and managing director Ganapathi Pai and Smt. Geetha Pai.
He started his career in Bharath Group of Companies in 1994. He was presently serving as the Executive Director heading marketing and finance departments of Bharath Group which comprises various group companies like Bharath Beedi Works Pvt. Ltd., Bharath Auto Cars Pvt. Ltd. (Dealers for Maruti Suzuki cars), Alakananda Printers Pvt. Ltd. (Bharath Bookmark chain of bookshops), Bharath Printers and Karkala Investments Pvt. Ltd. He was the Director of Bharath Builders and Cineplex Pvt. Ltd (Bharath Big Cinemas multiplex).
He was an exceptionally gifted financial expert and took keen interest in the stock market. He guided the growth of the group companies with vision and foresight. He was in-charge of Strategic Planning and Diversification of the Group, and also handled the investment portfolio. Bharath Builders was his brainchild and he has the credit of pioneering the first modern shopping mall of Mangalore, namely Bharath Mall at Bejai. It was also one of the first malls to be established in entire South India in 2006.
Ananth Pai was much loved for his soft spoken and gentle personality. He was a good communicator and orator. He had most recently delivered a prestigious presentation during the Oxford Business and Poverty Conference organized by the University of Oxford at the Sheldonian Theatre on May 29, 2019. He spoke on how the prosperity paradox can be used in India as a model to create good jobs for poor rural women.
Ananth Pai had inherited a generous and philanthropic streak and involved himself in charitable, social and cultural spheres. He was a trustee of B Manjunath Pai Cultural Foundation and Manjunath Damodar Pai Charitable Trust among other charity institutions.