Mumbai: India Inc. is entering a defining moment – shaped by imagination, innovation, governance and a new sense of global ambition. Reflecting this momentum, NDTV Profit has announced the nominees for the Business Leadership Awards 2026; an exceptional line-up of leaders, companies and institutions whose work is helping shape India’s next phase of growth.
Since 2006, the NDTV Profit Business Leadership Awards have stood among India’s most respected business honours, recognising leadership that has contributed to enterprise, markets, governance, innovation and long-term national growth.
The 2026 nominations reflect the full sweep of India Inc. They bring together legacy institutions and new economy disruptors, market leaders and reformers, wealth creators and innovators, public sector champions and private enterprise builders.
The categories span artificial intelligence, financial services, green growth, IPOs, philanthropy, entertainment, reform, self-reliance and leadership across public and private enterprises.
The winners have already been selected by a distinguish jury chaired by Sunil Bharti Mittal, Founder and Chairman, Bharti Enterprises. The others in the jury are Noel Tata, Chairman, Tata Trusts; Cyril Shroff, Managing Partner, Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas; Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, Chairperson, Biocon Group; U.K. Sinha, Former Chairman, SEBI; Jayant Sinha, President, Everstone Group, Visiting Professor at the London School of Economics and Former Union Minister; Ramesh Damani, Value Investor and Member, BSE; and C.S. Setty, Chairperson, State Bank of India.
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will be the Chief Guest at the event to announce the winners on July 26, 2026, in Mumbai.
Speaking on the nominations, Rahul Kanwal, CEO and Editor-in-Chief, NDTV, said, “The NDTV Profit Business Leadership Awards have always celebrated leadership that matters – leadership that builds institutions, creates value, strengthens trust and contributes to India’s larger growth story. This year’s nominees represent the full spectrum of India Inc. – legacy companies, new economy disruptors, market leaders, reformers, wealth creators, innovators and public purpose champions. The winners have been selected after a rigorous jury process, and we look forward to celebrating them on July 26 in Mumbai.”
The nominees for AI Champion of the Year — Sarvam AI, Neysa, Fractal Analytics, Qure AI, Karya and Emergent — reflect the rapid rise of Indian innovation in artificial intelligence and deep technology.
In the Wealth Creator of the Year category, the nominees include BSE, Transformers & Rectifiers India, MCX India, Himadri Speciality Chemical, Gallantt Ispat, Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Neuland Laboratories.
The New Economy Leader of the Year category features Eternal, Policy Bazaar, Nykaa, CarTrade Tech and Delhivery — companies that have helped define new models of digital consumption, commerce, services and scale.
For Financial Powerhouse of the Year (non-PSU), the nominees include Shriram Finance, BSE, ICICI Bank, Axis Bank, Cholamandalam Investment and Finance, Bajaj Finance and HDFC Bank.
And nominees for the Financial Powerhouse of the Year (PSU) are: Punjab National Bank, Indian Bank, Union Bank of India, Power Finance Corporation, Canara Bank, State Bank of India and Bank of Baroda.
The IPO of the Year shortlist includes Meesho, Groww, ICICI Pru AMC, LG Electronics, Lenskart Solutions, HDB Financial and Tata Capital.
In the Green Champion of the Year category, the nominees include Lupin, Tech Mahindra, Godrej Consumer, Godrej Properties, Firstsource Solutions and Mahindra Group. The category recognises companies advancing sustainability, responsibility and long-term environmental commitment.
The Trailblazer of the Year category recognises women leaders who have pushed boundaries in business, enterprise and leadership. The nominees include Geetanjali Kirloskar, Roshni Nadar Malhotra, Falguni Nayar, Mallika Srinivasan, Vibha Padalkar and Prabha Narasimhan.
For Philanthropist of the Year, the nominees include Shiv Nadar, Azim Premji, Rohini and Nandan Nilekani, Nithin and Nikhil Kamath, and Susmita Bagchi.
The Reformer of the Year nominees include Ashwini Vaishnaw, Yogi Adityanath, Devendra Fadnavis, N. Chandrababu Naidu and Himanta Biswa Sarma.
For India’s Atmanirbharta Champion, the nominees include ONGC, Tata Electronics, HAL, Dr. Reddy’s and Wockhardt, recognising organisations contributing to India’s self-reliance and strategic capability.
The nominees for Business Leader of the Year (PSU) are: Capt. Jagmohan of Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders , Manoj Jain of Bharat Electronics Limited, K. Sadashiv Murthy of BHEL, Gurdeep Singh of NTPC and Arun Kumar Singh of ONGC.
The nominees in the Business Leader of the Year (non-PSU) category are: Anish Shah of Mahindra Group, K.N. Radhakrishnan of TVS Motors, P. Venkatesalu of Trent, Inder T. Jaisinghani of Polycab, Vinita Gupta of Lupin, Rajiv Bajaj of Bajaj Auto, Hisashi Takeuchi of Maruti Suzuki and S.N. Subrahmanyan of L&T
Tamanna Inamdar, Managing Editor, NDTV Profit, said, “These nominations capture the many forces shaping Indian business today – technology, capital, governance, sustainability, entrepreneurship and ambition. At NDTV Profit, we look at business not only through numbers and markets, but through the people, decisions and institutions behind those numbers. The nominee list this year reflects a country that is winning on the global stage, with leaders and companies that are not only responding to change, but actively defining the next era of growth.”
The NDTV Profit Business Leadership Awards 2026 will celebrate leadership that is consequential, credible and impactful. As India enters its next phase of growth, the Awards will recognise the people and institutions helping shape the country’s business confidence, economic ambition and global relevance.
The winners of the NDTV Profit Business Leadership Awards 2026 will be announced on July 26 in Mumbai, across the NDTV Network.
-Based on Press Release
