a ri ng CLOSE UP Keeping It Real

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1 E:\SAVVY\SAVVY JULY 2015\close up\close UP.indd 1 CLOSE UP Amother, philanthropist and humanitarian, Meera Gandhi essays the many roles she plays with grace and passion. We caught up with this savvy woman for an insight into her life and the amazing work she s doing. Keeping It Real In a snapshot, Meera describes herself as a maverick and someone who drums to her own beat. She avers, I m definitely not in a box. Luckily, I have the luxury to define my own life. If I say I m going to do something, I do it. I m a big believer in the saying: If you want to go fast, go alone; but If you want to go far, take people with you. New York, New York Meera married her childhood sweetheart Vikram Gandhi and in 1987, the two left! So a ri ng In a tête-à-tête with Amber Dias, philanthropist Meera Gandhi opens up about her awesome life and the work she is doing through The Giving Back Foundation. India for the US in pursuit of their MBAs. Meera recalls, I was 21, he was 22, we didn t know anyone and went to this new country with no money and the hope of

2 E:\SAVVY\SAVVY JULY 2015\close up\close UP.indd 2 RIGHT Glimpses of one of Meera s many homes... This is Ledgewood in Upstate New York

3 E:\SAVVY\SAVVY JULY 2015\close up\close UP.indd 3 I don t believe in flogging people when they re down; I believe in giving them a hand and pulling them up. making a life. It wasn t easy at first, but we did well. We were in Boston for two years. During that time, our first child was born. I started out my career in banking but I decided to switch from banking to fashion. We then moved to New York and I ve been based there for the last 30 years. And Meera s fabulous home in New York happens to be a very special one. She says, I am very fortunate to live in this incredible townhouse that the late Eleanor Roosevelt lived in and owned. It was also the house where the Declaration of Human Rights was formulated. It s an astounding house and I can t believe that it s my home. Finding an Anchor However, at some point, Meera found her life getting out of control and her search for an anchor led her to an amazing mansion style home just an hour-and-a-half away from New York. She explains, In the last few years, Vikram s job took us to Hong Kong, where we lived for three-and-a-half years. At the same time, we opened a home in London because our daughter was at United World Colleges (UWC) and our son had started at Harrow boarding school. Also Vikram wanted to open another place in Delhi, for his business. I felt like everything was a bit out of control. We were living on four continents and I was beginning to feel displaced. She adds, At the same time, my charity work was continuing, and while I was in New York at Hyde Park, I found this house on the Hudson. It s around 10 acres and needed a lot of work, but had gorgeous, haunting views. It was the perfect home where we could get away on weekends. I was thinking of it as a place where our family could gather when we came from all over the world. It s the oldest home in the entire Hudson valley. Lending A Hand Drawing her inspiration from Mother Teresa, Meera has been heavily involved in charity work including raising money for the New York City Ballet and doing work for the Happy Home School for the Blind in India. But what inspired her to start an organization of her own? She reveals, When we were living in Hong Kong, I felt very lonely and displaced. It made me think about those who were isolated without power, money or education and prompted me to think that I had to do more. Adding, I have to give the credit for the formalization of the foundation to my husband. We set up The Giving Back Foundation and very generously, he put some millions into it and I started out on a very high springboard because we were a funded foundation. The name The Giving Back Foundation has an interesting ring to it, we say, and Meera avers, From the time Vikram and With international singer Marc Anthony and entrepreneur Henry Cardenas

4 E:\SAVVY\SAVVY JULY 2015\close up\close UP.indd 4 RIGHT society. She reveals, One of our projects is the Girl s Leadership Project at the Eleanor Roosevelt Centre. But one of our biggest projects, both capital-intensive and work-wise, is in New Delhi, India. We handle the St Michael s Giving Back School. It was first run by the Church of Northern India and we have taken over the responsibility of the school s upkeep from them. We don t tell them how to run it day-to-day, but we scrutinize the accounts every year. Meera with Suhel Seth (2nd from left) and friends Meera s organisation has tied-up with the Stardust musical concert to be held in London on September 5, She is set to invite personalities like Cherie Blair, Sting, Bono and many others to the concert. I left for New York 30 years ago, it has been such a trajectory of success. We had a great marriage, three incredible kids, everything we touched was successful. We were trying to give back in our own way, so the name just stuck. Charity Matters And indeed, Meera is definitely giving a lot back to Leading By Example Meera s passion for helping people is unwavering and she believes in inspiring people by the way she lives her life. She explains, Like they say, you have to walk the beat. I always tell people who work for me that I would never ask you to do something that I would not do myself. I think that inspires respect. I like being involved. I like to pick up the phone and see what the organization is doing. She adds, I believe if you re truly comfortable with yourself, then there s no bullshit. This is me. I like myself and chances are, you ll like me too. I don t believe in flogging people when they re down; I believe in giving them a hand and pulling them up. Recently, I had some hiccups with my own marriage and my own situation, but I ve dealt with it with a lot of dignity. I ve taken it in my stride. Personal Note Work aside, Meera also has varied interests like yoga, meditating and reading history. But her main priority is always her three kids - Kiran, Kanika and Kabir. She reveals, When it comes to my kids, I drop everything and I m there for them. They are now grown-up. Kiran is 26, she s at Harvard Business School kicking ass; Kanika is at Brown getting her Master s in Public Policy. And Kabir is interested in astrophysics and has got savvy july 2015

5 E:\SAVVY\SAVVY JULY 2015\close up\close UP.indd 5 an early admission into Harvard. They work hard for themselves and are very grounded. They look to me for guidance and advice. Vikram was away a lot when they were growing up, but he s provided an incredible life for them. Balancing Act But at the end of the day, striking a balance between her many interests, her kids and the foundation, can t be easy. Meera begs to differ. She says, I don t struggle with finding a balance. My father was an admiral in the Indian Navy and we grew up with discipline, so I understand the discipline of work. I m competent and I m educated thanks to my parents and my in-laws who insisted that I get an MBA too. With businessman Rajiv Agarwal, son Kabir and daughter Kanika When it comes to my kids, I drop everything and I m there for them. My kids look to me for guidance and advice. However, though Meera seldom talks about them, her initial years in the US were not as simple. She reveals, Yes, the first few years were tough. We didn t live in the city, we had a small house in the suburbs. Kiran was only two months old. I would wake up at 4 a.m, feed my baby, make breakfast etc before we took the train to Manhattan. I would be in the office by 6:15 a.m and promptly leave by 6 p.m. Everyone in the office looked down on me for it, thinking I was a clock watcher, but I didn t have a choice. I would get home, hold my little one and cook dinner. After that I would be up pretty much the whole night with Kiran and then the same routine would begin the next day. I also had to do the grocery shopping and clean the house. I didn t have help then, so my weekends would be spent vacuuming, swabbing and dusting. But when we moved into the city, things got a little easier. Starry Affair Meera s next venture is a tie-up with Stardust magazine for a fabulous musical concert in London on September 5, I m really excited about the concert. I would love to invite personalities like Cherie Blair, Sting, Bono and many others to the concert. In fact, I have been brainstorming with Nari Hira about giving out a Giving Back Award to these incredible people. But it doesn t quite end there for Meera... She s bursting with plans for the future. Signing off, she gives us a little sneak peek into some of the ideas she s playing with. What I would love to do is a Giving Back television show. As for the foundation, I want it to grow in the women empowerment theme and also expand it to the empowerment of young people. savvy july 2015