KaniKa TeKriWal
CEO & Co-Founder, JetSetGo AviationIn India, private aviation (and aviation in general) has always been tacitly
considered a gentlemen’s club and it was rare for women to rise to high
positions. However, Kanika’s business acumen and passion for aviation
enabled her to transform the private aviation market. She was only 17
when she set up the aviation division for a real estate major, on a part-
time stint with the company.
Later, while pursuing higher studies in business administration from
Coventry University in London and working simultaneously in business
development for an aviation company there, she realised the untapped
potential of the charter market in India. In 2014, Kanika launched JetSetGo,
which now operates India’s largest private jet fleet as the single largest
market stakeholder (20 per cent) among all players in the industry.
Her clients include tourists who want to be transported to remote spots
that airlines don’t cater to, executives who want to fly in for a meeting at
factories located in middle-of-nowhere terrain, and politicians on multi-
location election campaign trails. The 28-year-old has made it to Forbes’
30 Under 30, BBC’s 100 Most Inspirational Women and CNN’s 20 Under 40.Photo: soumik karlifelong misery. In 2011, Kanika
was having a laid-back ladies’
night-in with her mother, bingeing
on junk food and laughter, when
her medical test results arrived —
stating she had cancer. “In a few
minutes, my life was completely
turned around and everything
felt surreal,” she recalls. Though
she spent the following two days
absorbing the full impact of the
diagnosis, she also realised that
the only way to avoid falling into
an abyss was by reminding herself
of her goals. “I said to myself,” she
says, “It’s time to defeat cancer.
Fighting was my only option.”
Armed with raw tenacity,
she battled her way through
treatment, one optimistic visit to
the hospital at a time. She utilised
her bedridden days not in self-pity,
but in thinking up the details of
the private aviation enterprise she
planned to launch once she fully
recovered. “I spent those eight
months analysing, planning and
structuring my vision, and I made
it happen. In the end, it’s all about
making it happen.”
Power point: Kanika says that
the best way to triumph over
a tragedy is to imagine you
coming out of it not just as a
survivor but as a winner. “Once I
believe in something, my actions
automatically work towards
achieving it. So then the question
was no longer, “Will I recover?”
It quickly became, “Who will I be
when I do recover?”
Immerse yourself in
purpose, not pain
Sandhya has started a trust at
her hospital that helps widowed
and abandoned women pay for
their daughters’ education. “I can
understand their pain and want to
do my bit,” she says. Her empathy
stems from her own past — she
lost her husband to a sudden heart
http://www.outlookmoney.com March 2018 Outlook Money 37
Special