Inaugural USC India Awards honor visionary leaders

The inaugural USC India Awards earlier this month demonstrated the international reach of the Trojan Family as the university honored three leaders with decadeslong ties to USC whose work in technology shaped entire industries and communities.

At the event, USC Interim President Beong-Soo Kim presented N.R. Narayana Murthy, founder and former CEO of Infosys, with the first-ever USC-Ratan Tata Award, named for the late distinguished and philanthropic business leader who served as a USC life trustee. Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, founder and chair of Biocon Group, received the USC Business Management Award. Sandeep Tandon, founder and chairman of Syrma SGS Technology and founder and director of Infinx, received the USC Distinguished Alumni Award.

“One of the remarkable individuals we celebrate today, USC Trustee Mr. Ratan Tata, is no longer with us, but his incredible legacy lives on. Like Mr. Tata, the individuals we recognize and honor are helping to shape the future while deepening the connection between USC and India,” Kim said at the Mumbai event, which was presented by the USC Viterbi School of Engineering. Further demonstrating USC’s well-established bond with Tata, the committee hosting the awards included Tata Group Chairman Natarajan Chandrasekaran, as well as Bollywood icon and Padma Shri awardee Madhuri Dixit with her husband, health tech innovator and founder-investor Shriram Nene; they are USC Viterbi parents.

USC’s long-established presence in India has led to multiple collaborations with Indian institutions and expanded opportunities for students and professionals both in India and at the university. The university established the USC Viterbi India Advisory Board, the first-ever such advisory body for a U.S. engineering school. The advisory board has led to major collaborations with the Indian Institute of Science Bengaluru, IIT Hyderabad and BITS Pilani.

USC’s educational and professional relationship with India has been more than 50 years in the making, and the connections include the arts, business, law and more. The USC Marshall School of Business collaborates with the BITS School of Management and the SP Jain Institute of Management and Research, both in Mumbai. The Keck School of Medicine of USC has collaborated with Sir HN Reliance Foundation Hospital and Research Centre. The USC School of Cinematic Arts has the “USC and India: Partner the Future” mission, which promotes global arts collaboration, and the USC Gould School of Law’s relationship with O.P. Jindal Global University’s Jindal Global Law School in Sonipat has expanded access to its legal education programs.

“[This] event is not just about honoring the past. It’s also about looking forward to how much more we can accomplish together,” Kim said. “By building on our remarkable relationship, we can continue to solve the world’s most pressing problems, promote human values and spread opportunity to people across the globe.”

N.R. Narayana Murthy: The father of the Indian IT sector

A supporter and advisor to USC Viterbi for years, Murthy founded Infosys in 1981 and turned it into a global technology giant that transformed software delivery worldwide. Murthy has received several awards for his work in engineering, and in 2019 he was elected as a member of the prestigious American Academy of Arts and Sciences. He also is a foreign member of the U.S. National Academy of Engineering

His legacy reaches beyond the business world. As philanthropists with a deep concern for India’s social and economic progress and a strong proponent of ethical leadership, Murthy and his wife, Sudha, have funded numerous philanthropic initiatives, particularly in education, research and rural development, including a strengthening bond with USC and USC Viterbi.

“As great as his accomplishments as a business leader, Mr. Murthy’s commitment to human dignity and wisdom is even more remarkable,” Kim said. “Ratan Tata’s spirit of service lives on in Mr. Murthy and in his conviction that progress endures only when it is guided by compassion.”

Upon receiving his award, Murthy expressed gratitude to industrialist and philanthropist Tata. “I will certainly try and work hard to be worthy of this honor, this generosity and this affection by my hero, Ratan Tata … as well as this extraordinary university,” Murthy said.

Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw: From brewing to Biocon

Starting her career as a trained master brewer before pivoting to biopharmaceuticals, Mazumdar-Shaw founded Biocon in 1978 and grew it into one of the world’s largest producers of human insulin and India’s first biotech company to be publicly listed.

“She epitomizes how an entrepreneur who is an excellent engineer and an excellent scientist is able to apply engineering to change the world,” said Yannis Yortsos, dean of USC Viterbi, in a video address. “She was able to create something from nothing and make it a household name — very few people can actually claim that.”

In keeping with its mission to “heal the world,” Biocon is focused on developing affordable biopharmaceuticals and addressing chronic diseases, such as diabetes, cancer and autoimmune diseases. One of the company’s biggest achievements was the 2017 approval of the metastatic breast cancer treatment Ogivri by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

“My journey from brewing to biotechnology has been driven by one idea: Innovation must serve society,” Mazumdar-Shaw said. “At Biocon, our purpose is to make advanced therapies accessible and affordable to everyone so that no patient is denied the care they need.”

Mazumdar-Shaw, a member of the USC Viterbi India Advisory Board, emphasized how important the university’s relationship with her home country is and how much positive change it can create for the world.

“As we look ahead, I believe India and USC can together advance breakthroughs in biotech, digital health and … humanity-centric innovation,” she said.

Sandeep Tandon: Challenging the old order

Though he is best known for co-founding the digital-wallet firm Freecharge in 2010, Tandon is also a proud alumnus of USC Viterbi, holding bachelor’s and master’s degrees in electrical engineering. Because of his USC journey, Tandon has always been an advocate for education; he emphasized just how crucial USC was to his life.

“Great work comes from discipline, patience and being open to possibilities,” Tandon said. “USC shaped how I think, how I work and how I see possibility, the diversity, the abundance, the mindset, the underdog culture and, yes, even the Hollywood plot twists — they all shaped my journey.”

As the managing director of the Tandon Group — a technology catalyst that provides financial and managerial assistance to some 28 predominantly India-based startups — Tandon’s business philosophy is centered on challenging the old order, consistently questioning the status quo and pushing the limits of innovation.

“At USC, you’re always saying, ‘Why not?’ And not, ‘Should I?’” Tandon said. “USC always makes you feel like an underdog — you’re always the underdog who wants to push harder, go longer, push that extra mile, proving yourself.”