Arun Kumar

Founder and Non-Executive Director

Arun Kumar is a first-generation entrepreneur and known for his ability to identify great opportunities in “difficult to operate” business domains. He founded Strides Pharma Science Limited (Strides) in 1990 and has since then led the company in building a global reputation with a differentiated business model and delivering value for its stakeholders (over $5B value creation for shareholders, including distribution of the most extensive dividend by a pharmaceutical company in India).

Besides founding Strides, Arun’s family office (setup in the early 2000s) ran a differentiated set of investments spread across several companies with a combined revenue base of over a billion dollars and an invested capital of over half a billion dollars. Arun is credited to have co-founded and built India’s largest fully integrated Animal Health Company, SeQuent Scientific Limited, in less than five years. Arun’s stake in SeQuent was divested to the Carlyle Group in May 2020.

Arun is the promoter of Solara Active Pharma Sciences, a pure-play API company, targeted to become India’s second-largest API business in less than four years. Recently, Arun’s family office has entered a strategic partnership with marquee investors to build a global biologics CDMO, specialty injectable and vaccine business with capabilities across several technology platforms. The businesses run under Arun’s leadership and ownership have presence in 100+ countries with 7000+ employees and over 25 global manufacturing facilities worldwide.

Arun is a recipient of “EY Entrepreneur Of The Year Award” in the healthcare sector in 2000, Business Today “India Best CEO Award” (in mid-sized companies category), and “The Best CEO in the Pharma & Healthcare Industry” in 2014.

Neeraj Sharma

CEO and Managing Director

In a distinguished career spanning of 28 years, Neeraj has resided and worked in pharma markets in India, South-East Asia, Latin America, and Europe. A seasoned professional, Neeraj has extensive General Management and P&L experience, steering businesses through pivotal stages such as market entry, growth leadership, turnarounds and M&A integration. His experience encompasses both highly regulated and emerging markets, providing him with a discerning perspective on the pharmaceutical industry. Neeraj brings a wealth of experience to his role as Managing Director at OneSource Specialty Pharma Limited.

Neeraj has been an integral part of the group for nearly 3 years (2021-24), overseeing the sterile injectable business – Steriscience, the Promoter entity. His strategic vision and leadership have contributed significantly to streamlining operations and driving growth within the organization.

In his previous role as the Head of Generics Business for Western Europe for Sun Pharma, Neeraj successfully spearheaded the establishment of a significant sterile injectables business in Europe, including numerous pioneering ready-to-use products.

Outside of work, Neeraj indulges in his favorite activities, including reading, working out and delving into the intricacies of Urdu poetry.

Bhushan Bopardikar

Non-Executive Director

Bhushan Bopardikar serves as Director at TPG Growth based in Mumbai and leads investments in the healthcare and consumer sectors. Prior to joining TPG in 2019, Bhushan had spent several years in private equity with firms like Eight Roads Ventures, the private equity arm of Fidelity, where he covered investments across India and South East Asia, and an Indian private equity firm, Samara Capital. Within healthcare Bhushan focuses on biotech, healthtech, nutraceuticals and animal health. Earlier, he also served as Vice President at Eight Roads Ventures. Educational details: BS. (Hons.) in Industrial Engineering and Economics, from Purdue University.

Mahadevan N

Non-Executive Director

Mahadevan (Mahad) is a Senior Advisor to TPG Capital, a global private equity fund manager with > $100B assets under its management. At TPG, Mahad focuses on the healthcare and life sciences sectors, evaluating new investments in the sector and driving value creation initiatives in portfolio companies in India. He also co-founded Akna Medical, the leading hospital-focused medical distribution platform in India, which was acquired by API Holdings (Pharmeasy).

Prior to TPG, Mahad spent over 15 years in the UK and India with Grant Thornton and PwC, on M&A, IPOs, capital raising and performance improvement/restructuring, with a focus on healthcare, pharma, logistics and other sectors. Mahad started his career with Hindustan Unilever Ltd, where he worked on a number of supply chain improvement projects. Mahad is an alumnus of Indian Institute Technology (IIT), Madras and Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Lucknow.

Dr. Gopakumar Nair

Non-Executive, Independent Director

Dr. Nair is a Ph.D from National Chemical Laboratory (NCL), Pune and has Diploma in Management & Patent Law. Dr. Nair is also a Law (LL.B) graduate from Mumbai University and LL.M from Jindal Global Law School. He is IPR Committee Chairman of Indian Drug Manufacturers’ Association (IDMA). 40 years in Pharma Industry as Director, Managing Director & Chairman of various public limited pharma companies, Dr. Nair has also served Industry Associations for more than 35 years in various capacities, latest as President of Indian Drug Manufacturers’ Association (IDMA), during 1999-2000. Dr. Nair is also Editor and Editorial Board Member of various publications and journals, relating to pharma, biotech and chemicals, including IDMA Bulletin and INDIAN DRUGS. In the field of Intellectual Properties, Dr. Nair was the Dean of Institute of Intellectual Property Studies (IIPS) at Hyderabad, India. Presently he heads his own IP boutique firm, Gopakumar Nair Associates and is also CEO of Patent Gurukul, reputed and well-known training centre for Patents. Dr. Nair is a registered Patent & Trademark Agent and also Scientific Adviser to the Patent Office under Rule 103 of the Patents Rules, 2003. He is also associated with various Educational Institutions such as President, Bharat Education Society, with schools & colleges under its ambit. Dr. Nair is a founder of CIPROM (Centre for Intellectual Property Management) of which he is presently the Hon. Chairman.

Ms. Rajashri Ojha

Non-Executive, Independent Director

Ms. Rajashri Ojha is a Global RA GMP consultant and a Lead Auditor & Trainer with over 33+years of very versatile experience in pharma industry. Starting her career from Scientist in R & D, Analytical & Formulation, QA-QM, till handling GLOBAL regulatory Affairs and getting marketing approvals across the globe. She has over 3 decades of rich experience working for leading organizations like RAAJ GPRAC, SPECTRUM Pharmatech, SYNERGY, UAE, COGNIZANT, FAMYCARE , NOVARTIS, GSK-TCS, GLENMARK, SANDOZ/ CIBA-Geigy, UNICHEM Laboratories and LOCAL FDA, Bandra. She Offers various industrial training programs and has Trained more than 25,500 candidates till now on various aspects of GLOBAL Regulatory Affairs Ms. Rajashri is also associated with many leading education institutes/colleges in India as a ‘Guest faculty’. She is a Visiting faculty Adjunct Professor at JSS University, NIPER, IIHMR, KLE,BCP,JJTU, MET, IIPM, HKCP, VES, SIES, ICT, IICT, IIHMR, HKCP, BNCP, NMIMS etc. Also, a member of IPA, DIA, IDMA, RAPS, TOPRA, OMICS, FIP, UBM, Global Compliance Panel, IMS, IBC, Alliance India and Chaired many scientific sessions organized for National and International Conferences.

Rashmi H. Barbhaiya

Non-Executive, Independent Director

Dr. Rashmi H. Barbhaiya is a seasoned pharmaceutical executive with a global track record of driving innovation, drug development, and building successful pharma and CRO companies. He began his career with Bristol-Myers, where he spent 21 years contributing to the discovery and development of drugs for various diseases, including AIDS, cancer, and hypertension. His background combines management and entrepreneurial acumen, honed through decades of leading high-stakes pharma initiatives.

In 2002, Dr. Barbhaiya joined Ranbaxy in India as President of R&D, where he led a 900-person team and built an R&D alliance with GSK—the first of its kind for an Indian company. He was instrumental in Ranbaxy’s collaboration with the Medicines for Malaria Venture, which resulted in a cost-effective malaria treatment. Dr. Barbhaiya later co-founded Advinus Therapeutics, an innovative venture blending drug discovery with early-stage clinical services, and established partnerships with global pharma giants such as Merck and Novartis.

Dr. Barbhaiya’s recent roles include serving on advisory boards and scientific committees for various organizations focused on neglected diseases, antimicrobial resistance, and biotech innovation. He co-founded Apinovo Pharma Innovations, a company dedicated to revitalizing U.S.-based API manufacturing. A highly regarded scientist, he holds a Ph.D. in Clinical Pharmacology from the University of London and has over 150 scientific publications.

Bharat D Shah

Non-Executive, Non Independent Director

Bharat Shah holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Science from University of Mumbai and a Diploma in Applied Chemistry from Borough Polytechnic, London.

Bharat has a rich experience in the financial services sector and has expertise in the fields of banking, finance, real estate and securities market.

Bharat has been with HDFC Bank since its inception and has played a key role in the formation of the bank. He joined HDFC Bank as an Executive Director in December 1994.

Presently, he is the Chairman of 3M India Limited and Exide Industries Limited. He is also an independent director with HDFC Credila.