Global Leadership Team

Shailendra Malhotra
Global CEO

Shailendra has been the Global Chief Executive Officer of Himalaya Wellness Company since August 2020. Under Shailendra's leadership, Himalaya's purpose is to make wellness a part of every home.

As the Global CEO, Shailendra is responsible for leading the diversified Consumer Products, Pharmaceutical, and Animal Health business globally, with a presence in over 100 countries and touching the lives of millions of people.

Shailendra has also served as the CEO for Rest of the World Business (ROW) before his current role, where he was instrumental in setting up International Operations for the company across Russia, the Middle East, Africa, Europe, and Asia Pacific. He joined Himalaya in the year 2000.

Prior to Himalaya, Shailendra worked in roles of increasing responsibility across Marico and Asian Paints. Shailendra holds an MBA from IIM Bangalore and a BTech (Bachelor of Technology) from IIT Kanpur.

Nabeel Manal
CEO – The Americas

Nabeel, a third-generation member of Himalaya's founding family, joined Himalaya in 2004 and took responsibility for the Himalaya Americas region in 2006. He was quick to turn around the business by bringing in profitable growth in his very first year with the company.

Nabeel has been instrumental in putting together a team of passionate professionals to launch the first-ever Himalaya organic product line. He propelled Himalaya to gain significant market share in oral care and the stress/mood categories and spearheaded the construction of an energy-efficient LEED-Gold Americas headquarters. Nabeel pushed forward Himalaya's presence in natural product chains, major grocery stores, pharmacies, and online merchants. Under his leadership, Himalaya's points of sale in the US have risen from 2,000 to 12,000.

Nabeel spent six years with Aon Hewitt, a consulting firm, as an Analyst and Senior Consultant, before joining Himalaya in 2004. Nabeel holds a degree in Finance and Marketing from Trinity University, San Antonio, Texas, USA.

Jatin Brahmecha
Global CFO

Jatin is the Global Chief Financial Officer of Himalaya Wellness Company, with a focus on excellence and profitable growth. He engages closely with all business verticals to achieve higher profitability through various initiatives and projects. Jatin is also focusing on the standardization of processes and strengthening governance.

Prior to joining Himalaya, Jatin worked across strategic, analytical, and finance functions in the FMCG, Retail, and Pharmaceutical industries, across India, Indonesia, the Middle East, Africa, and US markets.

Jatin is passionate about travel, exploring various cuisines, and loves listening to Indian classical music.

Rahul Kapoor
Chief People Officer

Rahul joined Himalaya Wellness Company in March 2021 as Chief People Officer, based out of Dubai. As Head of HR, Rahul is responsible for leading the People and Culture agenda globally.

Rahul has 22 years of experience and joined Himalaya Wellness Company from Dr. Reddy's Lab (DRL), where he worked as VP & Head of HR for Emerging Markets, covering China, Russia, the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) countries, and Africa.

Prior to DRL, Rahul spent over 12 years at GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare, in a range of senior leadership roles at regional and country levels. His last role at GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare, was Executive Vice President HR India Subcontinent. Prior to this role, he worked as HR Director Southeast Asia, Japan, and South Korea with GSK, based out of Singapore. Rahul has also worked with GE Money and India Tobacco Company in roles of increasingly responsibility.

Rahul is passionate about cricket, traveling, and spending time with friends and family. Rahul holds a master's degree in HR from Symbiosis Institute of Business Management.

Kunal Sahgal
Chief Growth Officer

Kunal is the Chief Growth Officer of Himalaya Wellness Company and leads Innovation, Marketing, and Sustainability for the organization. His expertise lies in uncovering human insights and creating sharp communication and innovation that delights customers. Kunal is also passionate about establishing a clear Vision and Purpose for the various categories at Himalaya and driving our Digital and E-commerce agendas globally.

Prior to joining Himalaya, Kunal worked in various local, regional, and global roles based out of New York, London, Gurgaon, and Johannesburg with Reckitt. Prior to Reckitt, he worked with McCann in advertising and media out of Mumbai.

Kunal is passionate about his family, playing and watching live tennis, and traveling to new countries (55+ and counting). Kunal holds a master's degree in Marketing from Goizueta School of Business.

Dr. Rangesh
Director - Intellectual Property

Dr. Rangesh's journey with Himalaya began as a Medical Advisor in June 1998. He has contributed in various capacities such as Senior Medical Advisor, Head of New Product Initiatives, and Regulatory Affairs, and played a critical role in the development of Pharmaceutical, Personal Care, and Animal Health Product innovations.

Dr. Rangesh is Director - Intellectual Property, based in Dubai, who worked to establish the Himalaya Global Research Centre in Dubai Science Park.

Before joining Himalaya, Dr. Rangesh was an Ayurveda Consultant and worked as a Lecturer in Ayurveda Medical Colleges in Bangalore and Mysore.

Dr. Rangesh has completed his bachelor's degree and Doctor of Medicine (MD) in Ayurveda from Bangalore University. He has an Executive General Management Program certificate from IIM, Bangalore, and Bullet Proof Manager certificate from Crestcom. He is also a recipient of the Fellow of Royal Asiatic Society, London.

Jean Francois Porracchia
Chief R&D Officer

Jean Francois is a passionate health care leader, and he joined Himalaya in November 2021 as Chief R&D Officer.

Jean Francois is a seasoned R&D professional with over 25 years of experience with global organizations like Johnson & Johnson and Unilever. During his career, Jean Francois has held regional and global leadership roles and has worked across culturally diverse geographies like the Americas and parts of Europe.

Jean Francois is a certified Six Sigma black belt and has built and led multiple functional teams, and the R&D function globally and regionally. He has operated across categories – Over-the-Counter, Personal and Skin Care, Digestive Health, and Vitamins and Minerals, with consumer focus and operational excellence. Innovation, a Can-Do Attitude, People Development, and Simplicity are his guiding principles.

Jayashree Ullal
CFO & COO - India

Jayashree started her journey with Himalaya in 1998. She has worked in various capacities and has played a key role in the planning and execution of the business and finance strategies.

Jayashree has over 25 years of experience in managing Finance and Information Technology for Himalaya India. She is currently responsible for Himalaya India's Finance and Operations.

Jayashree is a Fellow Chartered Accountant from the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India and has a Bachelor of Commerce degree from Bangalore University, India. She has won several gold medals and accolades for her academic excellence. She also has a Program certificate from IIM (Indian Institute of Management), Bangalore, and a Bullet Proof Manager certification from Crestcom.

Rajesh Krishnamurthy
Business Director - CPD, India

Rajesh joined Himalaya in 2012 as Business Head, Consumer Products Division (CPD). He has driven the expansion of CPD, positioning Himalaya as a trusted household brand.

Rajesh has helped develop the Face Cleansing, Lip Care, Oral Care, Hair Care, Hygiene, and Men's Personal Care categories. He has restructured the Marketing and Sales organization to achieve market share growth in core categories, distribution expansion, and efficient execution capabilities. In 2020, Rajesh was given the additional responsibility of integrating BabyCare and the Wellness Division into CPD and now leads the One CPD team as Business Director.

Before joining Himalaya, Rajesh handled the Marketing and Sales functions of Colgate Palmolive (CP) across Malaysia, Singapore, Philippines, and Thailand. Over a 15-year career with CP, he was promoted to the position of Marketing Director, Venezuela, and then, India. Rajesh is a management graduate from the Asian Institute of Management and has an engineering degree from Vellore Institute of Technology.

Ripan Puri
Business Director – Pharmaceuticals, India

Ripan Puri joined Himalaya Wellness Company in April 2023 and leads the Pharmaceuticals Division in India.

Ripan is responsible for driving the growth trajectory of India's Pharmaceuticals business with effective market strategies to make Himalaya a leadership brand across all segments.

In his career spanning over 27 years, Ripan has worked in various roles in leading multinational pharmaceutical companies including Cipla, Baxter, MSD Pharmaceuticals, Novartis, Dr. Reddy's, and Abbott. During his career, Ripan had successfully handled P&L responsibilities, new product launches, business restructuring, and coaching key talent for the leadership pipeline.

Prior to joining Himalaya, Ripan was associated with Boehringer Ingelheim as Director-Business Unit Diabetes and Public Market. He has championed and pioneered the Diabetes and Public Market businesses with complete P&L responsibility, which were the largest and most significant businesses of the company.

Ripan completed his MBA from the Institute of Management Studies, Ghaziabad, with a major in marketing. Ripan is an avid traveler.

Vikas Bansi
Business Head - OTX, India

Vikas joined Himalaya Wellness Company in May 2022 and leads the OTX (Over-the-Counter) Business in India.

He has been instrumental in mapping the OTX growth framework and developing the go-to-market strategy for the India business.

In his career spanning 19 years, he has successfully handled P&L responsibilities, brand management roles and trade channels across the FMCG, Consumer Health, Nutraceutical, and Pharma lines of businesses, with leading organizations, including Indian Tobacco Company (ITC), Johnson & Johnson, Abbott, and Jubilant.

Vikas has an MBA in Marketing from Jamnalal Bajaj Institute of Management, Mumbai, and has completed leadership certification programs from INSEAD and Harvard University.

He passionately follows cricket and likes to play chess and spend time with his family, exploring travel destinations.

Dr. Sandip Joshi
Business Head – Animal Health Division

Dr. Sandip Joshi holds a bachelor's degree in Veterinary Sciences and Animal Health from the College of Veterinary Science & Animal Husbandry and has completed a Post Graduate Program in Management Studies from Welingkar School of Management, Mumbai. With a career spanning 24 years, Dr. Sandip has worked in various leadership roles across Animal Health with leading companies, namely Bayer Pharmaceuticals, Alembic Ltd., and Century Pharmaceuticals.

During his career journey, Dr. Sandip has been instrumental in scaling up and turning around businesses, launching innovative products, and leading and developing a high-performing team. Dr. Sandip joins Himalaya from Poultry Zoetis India Ltd. as Business Unit Director.

Dr. Sandip is responsible for driving the growth of the Animal Health Division in India.

Dr. Sandip is a trained vocalist and an ardent music lover. He is an avid traveler and loves to cook for his family.

Naveen Gupta
CEO - APAC

Naveen Gupta joined Himalaya as CEO Asia Pacific (APAC) in December 2022.

Naveen comes with over 26 years of work experience, performing roles of increasing responsibility across geographies.

An engineer from Delhi College of Engineering and an MBA graduate from Indian Institute of Foreign Trade – Delhi, Naveen worked for 20 years with Godrej covering geographies including India, Indonesia, the Middle East, Africa, and the United States. He worked as President Director with Godrej Indonesia from 2010 to 2017 and then as CEO Godrej for Africa, the USA, and the Middle East Business from 2017 to 2020.

Naveen joined Himalaya from Creador Indonesia (private equity), where he worked for two years as Managing Director, responsible for Indonesian investments.

Naveen has travelled to more than 60 countries and is passionate about understanding cross country cultures and trying out new cuisines.

Sajeev Kaura
Business Director CPD - Middle East, Turkey, Africa & Pakistan

Sajeev is the Business Director for Consumer Products Division, for the Middle East, Turkey, Africa, and Pakistan regions. He is responsible for devising and executing strategies to accelerate business growth and market shares of identified core categories in all strategic countries. Sajeev joined Himalaya in 2014 as VP - Sales for the region and has expanded the presence of brand Himalaya in the countries where we operate. He has also created considerable value by strengthening relationships with external partners in key countries.

 

Prior to joining Himalaya, Sajeev worked in international markets with Ferrero, Proctor & Gamble, and Gillette in various leadership positions, where he managed sales and several consumer and trade marketing roles. Sajeev has lived and worked in India, Dubai, South Africa, and Luxembourg.

Sajeev holds a bachelor's degree from Delhi University.

Sandeep Mehta
Business Director Pharmaceuticals - Middle East, Turkey, Africa & Pakistan

Since April 2015, Sandeep has served as the Business Director of Pharmaceuticals for the Middle East, Turkey, Africa, and Pakistan regions. He spearheads Himalaya's strategy, leveraging synergies across the prescription and consumer health businesses.

In the more than two decades of his professional life, Sandeep has established a solid track record of growing large businesses and building mega brands across Asia, Latin America, Africa, the Middle East, Eastern Europe, and Russia/Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). He has a strong understanding of cross-functional fields like strategy, portfolio, product development, and alliances in addition to being an accomplished commercial leader.

Prior to joining Himalaya, he worked with Ranbaxy/Daiichi Sankyo as Director, Business Strategy. In his earlier roles, Sandeep has worked with Novartis and GlaxoSmithKline.

Sandeep holds a microbiology degree from Delhi University and an MBA from the Institute of Management Technology.

Abhish Chandhok
Business Director – Europe

Abhish Chandhok joined Himalaya in 2015 as General Manager - Marketing for Russia, the Middle East, and Africa. In 2021, he moved to Himalaya's European headquarters in Poland to head the operations as Business Director.

Abhish is an alumnus of BITS Pilani and Symbiosis, Pune, and has over 25 years of experience in Sales, Marketing, and General Management. He has worked with multinational consumer companies like Henkel, Nokia, and Microsoft in leadership roles. His assignments have seen him lead teams in India, Dubai, Saudi Arabia, Germany, and now in Poland.