Meet Adar Poonawalla, the force behind India’s fight with coronavirus

Cyrus Poonawalla founded the Serum Institute of India in 1966, which is now at the forefront of the COVID-19 fight in India. His is an unusual story of success.

Poonawalla was not always into medicine, but the son of a horse breeder was passionate about helping people and it translated into a company that’s focused on vaccines, on preventing ailments.

Cyrus Poonawalla is the awardee of an honorary degree of the Doctor of Science by the University of Oxford in the UK.

Under his U.K.-educated son Adar, Serum's CEO, the company has joined the race to produce a Covid-19 vaccine with an $800 million investment.

Today Serum produces more than 1.5 billion doses of vaccines every year. Under his son Adar’s direction, the company is now involved in the global war against the novel coronavirus – they have made a $800 million investment in the offering.

In 2017, Adar Poonawalla decided he would be part of a programme that doled out vaccines every year for public consumption. The idea germinated with the success of Serum Institute’s Oral Polio Vaccine in 2014.

Earlier this year, Adar posted a video about his institute’s latest roll-out, the coronavirus vaccine, which he tried himself. “I wish India and Sri @narendramodi ji great success in launching the world’s largest Covid vaccination roll out. It brings me great pride that # Covishield is part of this historic effort and to endorse its safety and efficacy. I join our health workers in taking the vaccine myself,” Poonawalla wrote on Twitter.

Adar Poonawalla’s wife, entrepreneur and philanthropist is a celebrity in her own right, with stints at prestigious galas such as the Met.

And Adar has been featured in Forbes Asia's Heroes of Philanthropy list and is a brand ambassador for the ‘Clean India’ campaign.

Adar, who turned 40 on January 14, spent his special day with his wife, sons and father, Cyrus Poonawalla.