Pawan Munjal (born 1954) is an Indian industrialist and the executive chairman of Hero MotoCorp, the world’s largest maker of motorcycles and scooters by number sold. The son of the company’s founder, Brijmohan Lall Munjal, he ran the joint venture Hero Honda for a decade and, after the partnership with Honda ended in 2011, rebuilt the company as an independent manufacturer with its own technology and a presence in more than forty countries.
Quick Facts
| Full name | Pawan Kant Munjal |
| Born | 1954, India |
| Occupation | Industrialist |
| Post | Executive Chairman, Hero MotoCorp |
| Education | National Institute of Technology, Kurukshetra (B.E. Mechanical Engineering) |
| Father | Brijmohan Lall Munjal |
| Spouse | Aniesha Munjal |
| Children | 3 |
Early Life
Munjal is the third son of Brijmohan Lall Munjal, who with his brothers moved from Kamalia, now in Pakistan, to Ludhiana in the 1940s and built Hero Cycles into the world’s largest bicycle maker. Pawan studied mechanical engineering and joined the family business.
Career
In 1984 the Munjals formed a joint venture with Honda of Japan to make motorcycles at Dharuhera in Haryana. Its fuel-efficient 100cc bikes, sold with the line “Fill it, shut it, forget it”, suited Indian roads and incomes, and the Splendor became one of the best-selling motorcycles in the world. Pawan Munjal became managing director in 2001, the year Hero Honda became the world’s largest two-wheeler company by volume.
Honda had begun selling its own scooters and motorcycles in India, and in December 2010 the partners agreed to separate. The Munjals bought Honda’s 26 per cent stake, and the company was renamed Hero MotoCorp in 2011. Many expected it to struggle without Japanese engineering. Munjal invested in a research centre near Jaipur, opened in 2016, developed the company’s own engines, built plants in Colombia and Bangladesh and kept its lead in the Indian market. It produced its hundred-millionth vehicle in January 2021.
He became chairman after his father’s death in 2015. Hero launched the Vida range of electric scooters in 2022, invested in the electric-vehicle maker Ather Energy and formed a partnership with Harley-Davidson to make and sell its motorcycles in India.
In 2023 the Enforcement Directorate searched his premises in a case concerning foreign currency allegedly carried abroad by an associate. The company said it was cooperating with the authorities.
Sport
A keen golfer, he has made Hero a sponsor of international golf, including the Hero World Challenge hosted by Tiger Woods, as well as of football and hockey in India.
Frequently Asked Questions
When was Pawan Munjal born?
Pawan Munjal was born in 1954, India.
What is Pawan Munjal’s occupation?
Occupation: Industrialist.
Featured image: Pawan Munjal speaks at the St. Gallen Symposium, Switzerland, 2009. Photo by St. Gallen Symposium, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
