At age 36, Sudarshan Venu is set to become one of the youngest industrialists in India to be appointed as the chairman of a large and diversified industrial house. “Entrepreneurship runs in his veins, and he was always in a hurry to get into business,” said a long-time observer of the TVS Group.

That’s stating the obvious. For, he had the best teacher in town – his father Venu Srinivasan, the grand old statesman of Indian industry. In an interview to a television channel this week, Sudarshan acknowledged his father’s deep influence on him. “While it’s (TVS group’s success) is a collective achievement, it’s really the vision and values that my father had started TVS Motors with: a huge focus on quality, customer satisfaction, products and technology”.

“The love for bikes started early,” recalled an old-time observer. As a youngster, Sudarshan would ride around the house on a custom-built mini bike powered by a TVS Scooty engine—crafted especially for him by who else but his father.

Apart from the famous lineage, Sudarshan also equipped himself well. He joined TVS Motor in 2011 as vice-president after completing a master’s in Technology Management at Warwick Manufacturing Group, part of the University of Warwick in the UK. Before that, he graduated with honours from the prestigious Jerome Fisher Program in Management & Technology at the University of Pennsylvania—completing the five-year dual-degree course in just four years.
When Sudarshan joined the board as whole-time director in 2012, TVS Motor was a strong domestic player with a market share of around 13%. A decade later, the company commands close to 18% of the domestic two-wheeler market, while exports have surged nearly five-fold—from 270,000 units in FY12 to 1.25 million in FY25.

But it’s not just his Ivy League pedigree or business acumen that shaped his understanding of the auto sector—Sudarshan is, at heart, a motorcycle enthusiast. “Take him to any quiet corner of the world and put him on a bike—he’ll be in his element,” said a former TVS Motor employee who worked closely with him. Over the years, he has ridden across four continents.

Even as a child, weekends often meant visiting the factory, observing assembly lines, and spending time across departments. Growing up under the watchful eye of his father, he developed an early appreciation for engineering and operations. “He can talk about spare parts and supply chains as comfortably as he can about cash flow and balance sheets,” said another person who has worked with him.

While his rides took him around the globe, Sudarshan was equally clear that he wanted TVS Motor to be seen on the global map too. He has played a pivotal role in expanding the firm’s international footprint—across Asia, Africa, Latin America, and Europe. Today, TVS operates four manufacturing units (three in India and one in Indonesia), multiple distribution centres, and a presence in over 80 countries.

International business contributes about 35% of the company’s total revenue. “We don’t see ourselves as just an Indian company. We see ourselves as a global mobility player,” he says often. That vision has translated into action. In 2020, TVS Motor acquired the UK-based Norton Motorcycles and has since set up a new manufacturing facility in the UK. “It’s not just a business—this is a passion project for Sudarshan,” said a person aware of the development.

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Electrification and personal mobility are the other two pillars of Sudarshan’s long-term focus. “At a time when most of the industry was hesitant, Sudarshan pushed to invest in EV capabilities,” the former employee noted. That foresight is paying off.

TVS Motor, which sells the iQube electric scooter, retained its leadership in the EV segment for the second consecutive month in May 2025—selling 24,562 units and capturing 24% market share, more than doubling its volume year-on-year. The firm has also acquired European e-bike brands EGO Movement and Swiss E-Mobility Group. Those who’ve worked with both father and son note a difference in style.

“Venu Srinivasan is erudite and a charmer—he can talk to you for hours without you blinking,” one former colleague said. “Sudarshan, on the other hand, is more straightforward and to the point. He’s not a storyteller.”
Quiet, focused, and deeply reserved, Sudarshan lets his work—and sometimes his motorcycle—do the talking.