Maya and Leah Tata, daughters of Tata Trusts Chairman Noel Tata, have been appointed to the board of trustees of the Sir Ratan Tata Industrial Institute (SRTII), a subsidiary of the Sir Ratan Tata Trust. They replace Arnaz Kotwal and Freddy Talati, who have stepped down from their trustee positions, according to a report by a news publication.
The recent appointments of Maya and Leah Tata to the board have reportedly sparked an internal rift. According to the report, Kotwal expressed dissatisfaction with how she was asked to resign to make way for the new members. In a letter to fellow trustees, Kotwal wrote that she was “blindsided” by the decision and felt hurt that no one directly reached out to her.
With this move, Noel Tata’s children are now present on the boards of all smaller Tata Trusts, though they have not yet been inducted into the boards of the two major ones: Sir Ratan Tata Trust and Allied Trusts, and Sir Dorabji Tata Trust and Allied Trusts.
Leah (39), Maya (36), and Neville (32), are the three children of Noel Tata, who was named chairman of Tata Trusts in October 2024.
Meet the three children of Noel Tata:
Leah Tata
Leah Tata, the eldest daughter of Noel and Aloo Tata, currently serves as the Vice President at The Indian Hotels Company Limited (IHCL), the hospitality arm of Tata Group. She completed her master’s in marketing from IE Business School in Madrid, Spain. Leah joined Tata Group in 2006, and earlier in her career, she worked as an Assistant Manager at Taj Hotels, a key brand under IHCL.
Maya Tata
Maya Tata is an alumna of Bayes Business School in London and the University of Warwick in Coventry, England. She has experience working with Tata Digital and Tata Opportunities Fund, playing a pivotal role in the launch of the Tata Neu app, a digital platform. Maya also serves on the board of Tata Medical Center Trust, which manages the Kolkata-based Tata Medical Center, a charitable initiative focused on healthcare.
Neville Tata
Neville Tata is involved in the retail sector at Tata Group. He works with Trent Ltd, the conglomerate’s primary retail arm founded by his grandmother, Simone Tata. Neville currently leads operations at Star Bazaar, a retail chain under Trent, and previously managed the operations of Zudio. He, like his sister Maya, graduated from Bayes Business School in London.
Neville is married to Manasi Kirloskar, daughter of the late Vikram Kirloskar and a director at Toyota Industries Engine India Limited. Manasi, 34, was recognized as the UN’s Young Business Champion for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in 2018 and holds a bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts from the Rhode Island School of Design in the US.
What is SRTII?
The SRTII was founded in 1928 by Lady Navajbai Tata and the Stri Zarthostri Mandal with the aim of providing employment opportunities for underprivileged women. The institute offers various vocational training programs, including courses in cooking, tailoring, embroidery, and Montessori teacher training, to help women gain skills and financial independence.
