Villoo Morawala-Patell

Villoo Morawala-Patell
Born	(1955-06-18) 18 June 1955 Navsari, India
Education	Osmania University, Bombay University, University of Strasbourg (University Louis Pasteur, Strasbourg), University of Ghent.
Occupation	Chairperson of Avesthagen
Awards	Officer of the National Order of Merit

Villoo Morawala-Patell is the founder and current Chairman and Managing Director of Indian Biotechnology company Avesthagen.

Dr Morawala-Patell started her career at the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), Hyderabad, in 1978. She obtained her PhD in 1993 from the University Louis Pasteur, Strasbourg, France, in Plant Molecular Biology, with a focus on the fundamental aspects of the wheat mitochondrial genome. The complexity and the simultaneous fluidity of the plant mitochondrial genome and the infinite possibilities thereof, ignited a passion in her to apply her findings to develop new products. After a brief Post-Doc at the Ghent University, Belgium, that sparked her entrepreneurial spirit, she returned to India with a mission to create a new platform as a meeting ground for Science and Humanities.

After establishing herself as an independent scientist, funded by Rockefeller Foundation, she set up an Advanced Molecular Biology and Transformation Laboratory for Rice workers in India. Working from the National Center for Biological Sciences, she subsequently expanded her laboratories at the University of Agricultural Sciences, Bangalore. She finally formed Avesthagen as a public-private model for sustainable innovation in 1998. By 2000, realising that the time was not ripe for such a model, she took the corporate route, and thus was born Avestha Gengraine Technologies Pvt Ltd, with world-class research laboratory facilities and a robust product portfolio, Avesthagen raised 40 million Euros in equity from blue chip investors. Later becoming Avesthagen Ltd, it is her true success story.

Her efforts to create an Indian based intellectual-property driven biotechnology company attracted more than 70 million USD in venture capital before largely collapsing around 2012 with a failed public offering, the exit of senior executives, the shutdown of manufacturing and the cessation of most research activities. Criminal and civil matters relating to Morawala-Patell and Avesthagen continue to be litigated through the courts.

Life and education

Dr Villoo Morawala-Patell was born in 1955, obtained her BSc from Osmania University, Hyderabad, in 1974, MSc from Bombay University in 1976, her PhD from University Louis Pasteur, Strasbourg, France in 1993 and Post Doc from the University of Ghent, Belgium, in 1994. Dr.Morawala-Patell earned a Master of Science degree in Medical Biochemistry from the University of Mumbai, then a PhD from the Institut de Biologie Moleculaire des Plantes (IBMP-CNRS), University of Strasbourg, France. Prior to obtaining her doctorate, Morawala-Patell worked as a Research Associate at ICRISAT (International Crop Research Institute for the Semi Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) for 10 years. After receiving her PhD, she returned to India, becoming a post-doctoral Rockefeller Fellow at the University of Ghent. Morawala-Patell was next a Visiting Scientist and Rockefeller Fellow at NCBS-TIFR, and Professor Emeritus at University of Agricultural Sciences, Bangalore.

Avesthagen

Morawala-Patell founded Avesthagen Limited in 1998. Over the next two decades, the company was the recipient of more than 70 million USD in venture capital and strategic global funding and grew to become one of India's foremost biotechnology companies with more than 650 employees. The company acquired a large portfolio of patents and intellectual property that it was unable to adequately commercialise leading to revenue crisis around 2012. A failed public offering saw a number of exits by senior executives and retrospective salary cuts to existing staff that led to several former staff filing criminal and civil charges against the company for breaching employment contracts and failing to make payments into employee provident funds.

Awards

• New Millennium Technology Leadership Initiative, Grant, CSIR, Govt of India, 2004;
• L’Oreal of France Award for ‘Women in Science’, 2004; USAID, Grant, 2005;
• The GR8! Women Award for Science & Technology by the Indian Television Academy
• The Outstanding Women Entrepreneur for the year 2005-2006 from FICCI;
• The BioSpectrum Entrepreneur of the Year Award, 2006;
• Award by the Adolfo Ibanez University conferred upon her at the opening of VentureLab by the President of Chile, Michelle Bachelet;
• Parsi Entrepreneur par Excellence Award by the Bombay Parsi Punchayet, 2008;
• Officer of the National Order of Merit by the President of the French Republic, 2008 (Officer of the National Order of Merit by the President of the French Republic)
• Karmaveer Puraskar as a Corporate Citizen for her contribution in the field of agriculture and healthcare,
• 2009 by iCONGO for Citizen Action and Social Justice;
• Outstanding Zarathushti Entrepreneur Award from WZCC, 200
• Dr.Morawala-Patell received the prestigious the Businesswoman of the Year Award 2010 for business excellence at Satya Brahma founded Pharmaleaders 3rd Annual Pharmaceutical Leadership Summit 2010 in Mumbai.