Uday Kotak Urges India: Innovate and Disrupt for Economic Power

At the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Annual Business Summit in New Delhi on May 12, 2026, veteran banker Uday Kotak delivered a significant message to India Inc, urging a paradigm shift in the country's economic strategy. He provocatively called for 'more Brahma and Mahesh, less Vishnu' to build a truly powerful Indian economy. Drawing from Hindu mythology, Kotak explained the metaphorical significance: Brahma represents the creator, Mahesh (Shiva) the destroyer or transformer, and Vishnu the preserver. His core argument was that India has been too much in a 'comfort zone' of preservation, relying heavily on foreign capital and a mindset of maintaining the status quo. He stressed the urgent need to embrace creation and disruption ('Brahma and Mahesh quotients') to navigate an increasingly 'tribal' and fragmented global order, rather than solely depending on Vishnu, the preserver. Kotak highlighted that a truly self-reliant India, or 'Aatmanirbhar Bharat,' cannot depend on the money or power of other nations. He linked this to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's appeal to celebrate weddings domestically, suggesting a deeper message about economic self-sufficiency. He pointed out the vulnerability exposed by global events, such as the control of strategic straits impacting international trade, as a clear indicator of the need for India to strengthen its intrinsic economic foundations. The banking doyen advocated for building a robust domestic pool of long-term risk capital, emphasizing that India has financialized too early and become overly focused on short-term profits, quarterly earnings, and stock prices. Instead, he urged companies to adopt a three-to-five-year perspective, reinvesting profits into sustainable growth and building strong businesses, rather than merely managing large treasuries or chasing short-term market gains. Kotak also underscored the critical importance of strengthening India's corporate balance sheets and profitability, asserting that a country's success in the emerging global landscape will depend on its control over assets and the ability of its companies to generate resources. He cited the United States' power as stemming not just from the dollar's reserve currency status, but from its dominant corporations and technology ecosystems like Microsoft, WhatsApp, and Apple, which produce products and services essential globally. This implies a need for India to foster its own world-class, technologically innovative companies and brands. Further, Kotak had previously urged stronger investment in research and development (R&D) and a significant push for homegrown capabilities across all sectors. He noted that while India has excelled in entrepreneurship and services, there are structural gaps in research, innovation, productization, and particularly in 'middle manufacturing' (projects with capital expenditure between Rs 100-1000 crore). This underinvestment hinders India's journey towards true economic self-reliance, making the country still reliant on imported technology and resources despite the 'Atmanirbhar Bharat' push. Kotak also cautioned against a tendency in India to swing between excessive optimism and pessimism. He suggested that the common belief that global crises will eventually lead to a 'reversion to mean' (where things return to normal) might be a dangerous assumption in the current environment. He warned that even a low probability of structural change in the global order could have a very high impact, urging businesses and policymakers not to ignore these 'tail risks'. This call for proactive engagement and strategic foresight, moving beyond a reactive preservationist stance, forms the crux of his 'Brahma and Mahesh' philosophy. The news is highly relevant to an Indian audience, particularly those in business, finance, and policy-making, as it addresses fundamental aspects of the nation's economic future.

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