‘What separates leaders is how they process challenge’: Deep Kalra

ALMA MATER, IIM Ahmedabad (1992)

Deep Kalra, Founder and chairman, MakeMyTrip

AFTER OVER THREE decades in the industry, I have come to see disruption not as isolated events but as a continuous recalibration of what is possible. Each wave of change has expanded the aperture for those willing to rethink fundamentals, while exposing the fragility of assumptions for those who weren’t.

The 1991 liberalisation was as much about policy shifts as it was about unlocking a mindset. For the first time, Indian businesses could think beyond protected markets. Ambition wasn’t constrained by quotas or licenses. What followed wasn’t just growth but a fundamental reimagining of scale and competitiveness. The internet amplified this, creating business models that couldn’t have existed before, and democratising access to information, capital and customers in ways that rewarded agility.

But disruption cuts both ways. The 2008 crisis reminded us that growth built without operational discipline is fragile. When credit markets froze, firms realised liquidity and fundamentals mattered more than top-line narratives. Covid-19 took this further, bringing entire sectors to a standstill while accelerating digital behaviours by years. Behaviours that took decades to build changed in months.

The common thread in these moments is that they rewarded clarity over complexity. Businesses that understood their core proposition and adapted delivery mechanisms thrived. The lesson isn’t about predicting disruption but building organisations that can read signals early and respond decisively. That capability decides who emerges stronger when the world shifts.

Today, AI is an enabler across the board. A small manufacturer can use predictive maintenance once exclusive to large factories. Real-time language translation is breaking down barriers that seemed insurmountable just years ago. Sophisticated capabilities are no longer gated by capital or scale.

The future is one where humans are empowered by machines. Successful companies will be those that blend technology with human insight; AI amplifying what people do best rather than replacing them.

The frameworks and knowledge you gain from b-school are valuable, but they’re the baseline. What will truly define your trajectory is how you navigate what comes after—the ambiguity, the pivots, the moments when the playbook doesn’t apply. Setbacks will come, that’s a given. What separates leaders is how they process challenges. The ones who build something lasting extract the learning without carrying the baggage. They adapt their approach while holding on to their core conviction.

The present generation has access to resources and networks that didn’t exist before. But, access creates opportunity, not advantage. That comes from judgment; knowing what deserves your energy, when to push forward, and when to step back. Build that through genuine curiosity, diverse experiences and staying open to learning from all interactions. Learning compounds quietly, often invisibly, until one day the distance between where you are and where you started becomes undeniable.

—As told to Abhinav Singh