Dynamite News Akshata Murty: Who Is Rishi Sunak's Billionaire Fashion Designer Wife?
Rishi's wife Akshata Murty is the daughter of Indian billionaire Narayana Murthy, one of the country's best known businessmen. Read on for details:
New Delhi/London: Rishi Sunak's rise to the UK Premiership has attracted attention in India - and not just because he is the first British Asian Prime Minister.
Rishi's wife Akshata Murty is the daughter of Indian billionaire Narayana Murthy, one of the country's best known businessmen who has been dubbed the Bill Gates of India.
Sunak's father-in-law, N.R. Narayana Murthy, 76, co-founded tech giant Infosys in 1981. The outsourcing behemoth now worth around $75 billion helped drive India's transformation into the "back office of the world".
Sunak's mother-in-law Sudha meanwhile was Tata Motors' first female engineer after famously complaining via a postcard to the chairman about the firm's stipulation that "lady candidates need not apply".
Regarded as "India's favourite granny", she is a prolific author and a powerful force in social work, setting up 60,000 libraries and building 16,000 toilets -- and is reputed to be humble despite her own immense wealth.
Also Read |
Confident Son-In-Law Will Do Best For UK, Says Infosys' Narayana Murthy On Rishi Sunak
An heiress to a fortune worth billions, Akshata came under the spotlight when it emerged earlier this year that she held non-domiciled status, meaning she did not have to pay any tax on her earnings from outside the UK. She later agreed to pay UK taxes on her worldwide income.
Despite her family's immense wealth, Akshata came from more humble beginnings.
When she was just a few months old, Ms Murty was sent to live with her paternal grandparents as her mother, Sudha Murty, and her father advanced their careers in Mumbai.
A year later, Narayana co-founded Infosys, an IT services company which would make him one of India's richest individuals.
Akshata went on to study economics and French at the private liberal Claremont McKenna College in California. Akshata then earned a diploma at a fashion college before working at Deloitte and Unilever and studying for an MBA at Stanford University.
Also Read |
UK: PM Rishi Sunak lays off Home Secretary for criticism of Police on Pro-Palestine rallies
It was at university that she met Sunak. The couple married in 2009 and went on to have two daughters.
The 42-year-old began her career in finance in California before starting her own fashion label, Akshata Designs, which launched its first collection in 2011. She told Vogue India she worked with artists in remote Indian villages to create her designs, which were about "authenticity, craftsmanship and protecting a rich heritage".
Akshata's LinkedIn profile also lists her as a director of New & Lingwood, which sells high-end menswear.
She owns a 0.9% stake in Infosys, according to the company's latest annual report, which is estimated to be worth about £700m.
However, her husband's ascent to the top job in British politics means the interest in Akshata will only become more pronounced. (with Agency inputs)