New Delhi, Nov 4 (PTI) A multinational company’s conduct in India, three decades of telecom rivalry, two centuries of the stock market, and the founding of two companies -- Freshworks and Zomato -- are among the themes of the five titles shortlisted for the eighth edition of the 'Gaja Capital Business Book Prize' 2026.
The shortlisted book, announced on Wednesday, include "All In: Memoirs of the Freshworks Founder" by Girish Mathrubootham, "The Johnson & Johnson Files: The Indian Secrets of a Global Giant" by Kaunain Sheriff M and "Running Behind Lakshmi: The Search for Wealth in India’s Stock Market" by Adil Rustomjee.
"Telecom Wars: The Race to Capture a Billion Voices" by Deepali Gupta and "Unseen: The Untold Story of Deepinder Goyal and the Making of Zomato", by Megha Vishwanath are the other two books that made the cut.
"Three of these five books are about building something: a SaaS company in Chennai, a food delivery company in Gurugram, and the national telecom industry. The other two take the long view, across two centuries of India’s stock market and an investigative account of a multinational’s record in India.
"Good business writing celebrates what was built and asks how. This shortlist does both," Manish Sabharwal, chairman of the jury, said in a statement.
The jury for the prize this year comprise stalwarts from the worlds of industry, investments, academia, public policy, and governance. The winner of the award, to be announced next month, will receive a cash prize of Rs 20 lakh.
“This year’s list has a founder telling his own story, a journalist telling a founder’s story, another tracing an entire industry, an investigation into a global company’s conduct in India, and a history of India’s stock market itself. There is something here for everyone. Happy reading!” Gopal Jain, managing director and CEO of Gaja Capital, said.
Instituted in 2019 to encourage Indian entrepreneurs, writers, and journalists to tell their stories for the world, the award celebrates authors whose work significantly impacts the business landscape through insightful research and compelling narratives on entrepreneurship and leadership.
"Accelerating India's Development: A State-Led Roadmap for Effective Governance" by Karthik Muralidharan was the winner of the ‘Gaja Capital Business Book Prize’ 2025.
