Forbes India Leadership Awards 2025 - LEADERSHIP CIRCUIT : Charting India's Next Leap from Bengaluru to Ahmedabad

From Bengaluru's code to Pune's smart factories, the Forbes India Leadership Circuit reveals how regional powerhouses are driving a resilient, decentralised, and collaborative blueprint for India's $5 trillion future.

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India's economy is on a meteoric rise, estimated to become a $5 trillion economy by 2025 and home to over 100 unicorns. This explosive growth, set against a backdrop of global uncertainty, underscores a critical need: strategic leadership and innovative thinking to navigate complex markets. It is in this context that the Forbes India Leadership Awards Leadership Circuit, presented by Federal Bank, was conceived. This exclusive, invite-only platform brought together the nation's most influential business minds across four dynamic cities—Bengaluru, Coimbatore, Pune, and Ahmedabad. Through candid conversations, these leaders exchanged knowledge, debated challenges, and shared their vision for the future, offering a unique snapshot of India's industrial and entrepreneurial spirit. The Circuit was more than a series of events; it was a nationwide boardroom meeting, charting the course for the next phase of India's growth story.

BENGALURU: The Vanguard of Innovation and Capital

As India's undisputed startup capital and AI innovation hub, Bengaluru set the stage for the Leadership Circuit. The city, home to over 7,000 startups, is grappling with its own success-infrastructure strains and intense competition from emerging hubs. Yet, its spirit remains unbroken. As MVS Murthy, Chief Marketing Officer of Federal Bank, noted, "We are at the cusp of India becoming a $7 trillion economy in the next 5 years and a $30 trillion economy by 2047," a vision that Bengaluru is central to.