Noel Tata’s Daughters Join the Sir Ratan Tata Institute Board: Who Are Maya and Leah Tata?

Tata Trusts chairman Noel Naval Tata’s daughters Maya and Leah have been appointed to serve as trustees on the board of the Sir Ratan Tata Industrial Institute (SRTII) according to the Economic Times. Maya (36) and Leah (39) have replaced Arnaz Kotwal and Freddy Talati as trustees of SRTII. 

The move comes months after Noel Tata was appointed as the chairman of Tata Trusts in October last year after the demise of Ratan Tata. 

Their appointment has been made by the board members of the Sir Ratan Tata Trust (SRTT) comprising Noel Tata, Vijay Singh, Venu Srinivasan, Darius Khambata, Jehangir H. Jehangir and Mehli Mistry, the report said. According to SRTII’s trust deed, SRTT has the right to nominate three of the six board members of SRTII. 

Also Read: Who is Noel Tata, the New Chairman of Tata Trusts?

Noel Tata’s three children (Maya, Leah, and Neville) are currently present only on the boards of all the smaller Tata Trusts. Their appointment on the two major trusts including Sir Ratan Tata Trust and Allied Trusts and Sir Dorabji Tata Trust and Allied Trusts is still awaited. 

The appointment of Maya and Leah Tata on the board of trustees has sparked tensions with Arnaz Kotwal. The outgoing trustee, Kotwal reportedly wrote a letter to fellow trustees highlighting dissatisfaction with the way she was asked to resign to induct Noel Tata’s daughters. 

“Since I am now in Dubai and after considerable thought, I have acceded to Burjis’s request but was very saddened that none of you reached out to speak with me directly about this matter and I was blindsided by this communication from a virtual stranger under the direction of his CEO, Sidharth Sharma, both of whom have no nexus to SRTI,” the Economic Times reported, citing Kotwal’s letter to fellow trustees. 

Also Read: From Succession to Vision: How Ratan Tata Saw the Future of Tata Group

The move is reportedly to train Maya and Leah Tata for larger roles at the group level in the coming future. 

Who are Maya and Leah Tata? 

Maya Tata is the younger daughter of Noel Tata and niece of late industrialist Ratan Tata. She completed her education from the University of Warwick and the Bayes Business School before starting out her career at Tata Capital and later moved to Tata Digital. Her role in launching the Tata Neu App has been instrumental. Additionally, she is a board member of Tata Medical Centre Trust. 

Leah Tata is the eldest daughter of Noel Tata. After completing a master’s degree in marketing from the IE Business School, she started her career as an assistant sales manager at the Taj Hotels Resorts & Palaces in 2006. In her long-spanning career in Indian hotel industry, she has held multiple leadership positions. Along with her sister, she too serves as a trustee of the Tata Medical Centre Trust.