Mahindra ticked all the right boxes with the 2nd-gen Thar and the credit for that goes to the team behind it that was led by an IIT Bombay alumna Ramkripa Ananthan, who is also known as Kripa Ananthan.
IIT graduates are leading a few of the biggest companies in the world and these sharp minds have given us a few of the most popular products of the past few decades. One such product designed by an IIT Bombay alumna is ruling over the lifestyle SUV market of India since the launch of the new gen model. The vehicle we are talking about is the iconic Mahindra Thar which is one of most desired SUVs in the country. Since the launch of its 2nd-gen model, the Mahindra Thar has scaled new heights. Although Mahindra Thar has a really long legacy, it is currently more popular than ever as the old-gen model had a few key things missing that was hindering it from becoming a people’s favourite. Mahindra ticked all the right boxes with the 2nd-gen Thar and the credit for that goes to the team behind it that was led by an IIT Bombay alumna Ramkripa Ananthan, who is also known as Kripa Ananthan.
Ramkripa Ananthan is a known face in the automotive industry and she is currently working as Head of Design at Ola Electric. She has helped Mahindra revolutionise the SUV segment with three popular Mahindra products - Mahindra Thar, Mahindra XUV 700 and Mahindra Scorpio. Ananthan also designed a personal vehicle portfolio by introducing the Mahindra XUV 300 compact SUV and the Marazzo MPV that were conceptualised along with international teams based in Ssangyong and MANA.
Ramkripa Ananthan completed her Mechanical Engineering degree from Birla Institute of Technology and after completing her Master of Design programme from IIT Bombay, she got placed at Mahindra and Mahindra Limited. Ananthan started her career in 1997 as an interior designer at Mahindra. In 2005, she was appointed as Head of Design and in that role she designed the popular Mahindra XUV 500 SUV. After almost 10 years in that role, Ramkripa Ananthan was promoted to the role of Chief Designer after which she recreated iconic designs for three products- Thar, XUV 700, and Scorpio.
After her brief stint of 2 years at that role, she left to set up her own design studio called the KRUX Studio. The KRUX Studio has so far unveiled a micro-mobility concept vehicle called the Two2 that has been created using upcycled parts. Ananthan has also joined Ola Electric as Head of Design.
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