Gaja Capital Business Book Prize Announces the Shortlist for 2025

The Gaja Capital Business Book Prize, which celebrates excellence in business writing that captures the essence of entrepreneurship, leadership, and innovation in India, today announced the shortlist for its 7th edition.

This year’s shortlist presents a compelling mix of narratives that explore India’s economic transformation, corporate ingenuity, and the stories behind some of the country’s most iconic enterprises such as Asian Paints and Tanishq. From visionary founders to policy architects, the selected works reflect the ideas, institutions, and individuals shaping India’s growth story.

The shortlisted titles are: “Accelerating India’s Development: A State-Led Roadmap for Effective Governance” by Karthik Muralidharan, which presents a bold blueprint for India’s next phase of economic growth through structural reforms, investment-led expansion, and inclusive development; “The Rise of Asian Paints: Champaklal Choksey, A Doyen of the Indian Paints Industry” by Anupam Gupta, offering a rare inside view into how one of India’s most admired companies mastered innovation, distribution, and design thinking to create a world-class brand; “Engineering a Nation: The Life and Career of M. Visvesvaraya (1861-1962)” by Aparajith Ramnath, which explores India’s industrial and infrastructural transformation and the role of engineering excellence in nation-building; “The Tanishq Story: Inside India’s No.1 Jewellery Brand” by C.K. Venkataraman, chronicling the creation of one of India’s most trusted jewellery brands through customer insight, design innovation, and ethical leadership; and “The Startup Code: Taking Your Company from Seed to Scale” by Mukesh Bansal, which decodes the mindset, frameworks, and failures that define India’s vibrant startup ecosystem and the founders shaping its future.

Manish Sabharwal, Chairman of the Jury, commented, “The 2025 shortlist reflects India’s economic imagination — stories that go beyond success to show resilience, reinvention, and leadership at scale. In an age of noise, these books remind us of the power of ideas, execution, and character.”

Gopal Jain, Managing Partner & Co-Founder of Gaja Capital, commented, “The books in the  shortlist beautifully capture the full spectrum of India's business narrative. From the foundational role of infrastructure and governance to the execution brilliance of iconic brands and the bold ambition of our startup ecosystem. These stories remind us why India remains one of the world's most exciting growth markets.”

The winner of the 2025 Gaja Capital Business Book Prize will be announced later this year. The award continues to honour works that celebrate entrepreneurial spirit and thought leadership in Indian business, carrying a prize purse of INR 20 lakhs. 

The jury for the seventh edition comprises eminent leaders from industry, investments, public policy, and academia: Manish Sabharwal (Vice-Chairman, TeamLease – Chairman, Jury), Imran Jafar (Co-founder & Managing Partner, Gaja Capital), Arindam Bhattacharya (Senior Advisor & Emeritus Partner, BCG), Dr. Lakshmi Venu (Managing Director, Sundaram-Clayton Ltd.), Dr. Sangita Reddy (Joint Managing Director, Apollo Hospitals), Neelkanth Mishra (Chief Economist, Axis Capital), Prithvi Haldea (Founder Chairman, Praxis Consulting), Shailesh Haribhakti (Founder & Managing Partner, Shailesh Haribhakti & Associates), and U.K. Sinha (Former Chairman, SEBI & Head of the RBI Expert Committee on MSMEs).