Celebrating Sanjiv Puri: The strategist who reimagined ITC, quietly and completely

In a world often lit by loud ambition and dazzling disruptions, Sanjiv Puri has always walked a quieter path. One marked by intent, not impulse. Precision, not performance. And above all, a belief that true leadership whispers, it doesn’t shout.

Today, as he turns a year older, the Chairman and Managing Director of ITC stands at the helm of one of India’s most iconic conglomerates, not just having protected its legacy, but redefined it for generations to come.

A Mind Built for the Long Game

Puri is an engineer by training, but a strategist at heart. A graduate of IIT Kanpur and the Wharton School, his thinking is both rigorous and reflective, shaped by decades of experience across ITC’s complex verticals. From tobacco to tech, from Nepal to North India, he climbed the ranks by solving problems others hadn’t yet seen.

When he took over as CEO in 2017, and later as Chairman, ITC was still seen by many as a tobacco-heavy behemoth. But Sanjiv Puri didn’t settle for legacy. He saw the possibility and rewrote the blueprint.

Today, nearly two-thirds of ITC’s revenue flows from non-cigarette businesses. And yet, this shift wasn’t just about numbers. It was about narrative. Puri knew that a company with ITC’s reach had the power and responsibility to touch Indian lives in more meaningful ways.

The Power of Thoughtful Disruption

Puri didn’t rush to change. He layered it.

He turned a conservative FMCG player into a ₹32,500 crore consumer giant. He empowered his teams to make fast, data-led decisions. He embedded technology into every corner not to look modern, but to be smarter. From Project Astra and Sixth Sense to agile launches like Savlon’s pandemic pivot, the company began moving with the speed of a startup and the strength of a conglomerate.

And then came the boldest stroke: the demerger of ITC Hotels, creating strategic value while retaining synergies. It was classic Puri, decisive, deliberate and deeply thought through.

This wasn’t innovation for headlines. It was a quiet masterclass in business reinvention.

A Leader Rooted in Purpose

Yet what sets Sanjiv Puri apart is not just his mind, it’s his grounding.

In boardrooms, he speaks of shareholder value. Outside them, he speaks of farmer incomes, climate resilience and inclusive growth. Under his watch, ITC has become not just a company that sells but one that builds: livelihoods, ecosystems and futures.

His digital agriculture platform, ITC MAARS, touches rural India in real time. His emphasis on sustainability, from water positivity to plastic neutrality, is not just CSR, but core strategy. And when others pulled back during COVID, ITC trained over 3.8 lakh farmers in digital skills.

This is a chairman who sees numbers as people. Who sees supply chains as stories.

The Stillness Behind the Strategy

Puri’s genius, colleagues say, lies in his ability to listen to markets, to teams and to silence. Each morning, he practices yoga and meditation. Not as ritual, but as renewal. In a volatile world, it keeps his focus steady and decisions sharp.

He doesn’t chase spotlight or social media acclaim. He believes in legacy. In building systems that endure. In teams that outlast titles.

When he speaks, it’s often softly. But when he acts, it shifts the company’s orbit.

The India Within ITCand the World Beyond

Puri believes that ITC’s greatest strength is not just in its products, but in its proximity to India’s soul. From Aashirvaad atta to Agarbattis, from education to eco-forests, ITC lives in Indian homes and hearts. Under his leadership, that trust has become scale.

But he’s not looking inward. He’s laying tracks for global ambition. ITC is now export-ready, IP-driven, digitally lit and talent-forward. The future, he believes, belongs to Indian companies who think globally and build responsibly.

Legacy, Rewritten

As Sanjiv Puri turns a year older, he does so not with fanfare but with fulfillment. The tobacco major he inherited is now a future-forward enterprise that touches every facet of Indian life. It is at once an economic engine and a cultural force.

But more than that, it is a reflection of the man himself- calm, considered and quietly radical.

For those who believe transformation must be loud, Puri offers a counterpoint: that the greatest changes happen quietly, in rooms where ego bows to clarity and ambition aligns with service.

On this birthday, India doesn’t just celebrate a leader. It celebrates a legacy built not in a hurry, but with honour.