Rishi Sunak’s rise to power has attracted attention in India not only because he is Britain’s first prime minister in Asia.
His wife Akshata Murty is the daughter of Indian billionaire Narayana Murthy, one of the country’s most famous businessmen, dubbed India’s Bill Gates.
Marty, the heiress to a multi-billion dollar fortune, came into the spotlight earlier this year when it was revealed that he holds non-resident status. She later agreed to pay British tax on her worldwide income.
Despite her family’s vast wealth, Mrs Murty was born more humble.
In a letter to his daughter published in a 2013 compilation, the father said how he heard the news from a colleague that she had been born in Hubli in April 1980 because the family could not afford a telephone. I remember Taka.
“Your mother and I were young at the time and had a hard time stepping into a career.
When she was just a few months old, Ms. Marty came to live with her paternal grandparents as her mother Sudha Marty and her father pursued careers in Mumbai.
A year later, Mr. Murthy co-founded Infosys, an IT services company that made him one of India’s richest individuals.
Marty’s high-achieving parents also focused on education and hard work for their two children. Murthy said his home didn’t have a TV to make time for “studying, reading, debating, meeting friends, etc.”
She then went on to study economics and French at the private liberal Claremont McKenna College in California. Marty then worked at Deloitte and Unilever after earning her diploma in fashion from her college and earned her MBA from Stanford University.
It was in college that she met Mr. Sunak. The couple got married in 2009 and had two daughters.
After starting her career in finance in California, the 42-year-old launched her own fashion label, Akshata Designs, launching her first collection in 2011. About “authenticity, craftsmanship and protection of our rich heritage”.
However, The Guardian reported that the business collapsed within three years.
One of her main business interests is the London-based branch of Catamaran Ventures, which was founded by Murty and Sunak in 2013 to invest in start-ups.
Companies House also lists Mr. Murty as the director of Digme Fitness, a pay-as-you-go gym chain.
The company was brought under control in February this year, despite receiving furlough funding after revenues fell due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Marty’s LinkedIn profile also lists her as the director of New and Ringwood, a high-end menswear retailer.
According to the company’s latest annual report, she owns a 0.9% stake in Infosys, valued at around £700 million.
Her company’s stake was controversial when the company was under pressure to cease operations in Moscow after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.In April the BBC announced that Infosys would close its Russian office. was informed.
More broadly, the couple’s vast wealth has led some to question whether Sunak hasn’t kept in touch with the public, especially during the cost of living crisis.
In the past, several Prime Minister consorts, including Theresa May’s husband Philip May, have been low profile.
Those who continued to do high-handed work after her husband, Tony, entered Number 10, like human rights attorney Shelly Blair, received much more attention. Mrs. Blair has often made headlines in her own right for her philanthropic work and her book deals.
So far, Marty doesn’t seem to be seeking the media spotlight, but recent controversies have forced him into the media spotlight.
However, her husband’s rise to the top of British politics means that interest in Mr. Marty is growing.
