B.H. <strong>Melwani</strong> CHAIRMAN B.H. <strong>Melwani</strong>, born in 1923 in Sind, India, was appointed by Chandiram <strong>Melwani</strong> to head the Singapore office in 1942. Though B.H. <strong>Melwani</strong> retired from the company in 1947, he was drawn to the business once again when Chandiram’s son, Moti <strong>Melwani</strong>, took over the business. Always one with the community, he has since been active in social welfare projects with the Rotary Club. He was Chairman of the Singapore Tourist Association (forerunner of the Singapore Tourist Promotion Board); President of the Rotary Club and the Sindhi Merchant’s Association; Vice President of the Singapore Indian Chamber of Commerce; council member of the Singapore Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry; and member of both the Free Trade Zone committee and the Hindu Advisory Board. B.H. is also a founder member of the Tourist Promotion Board. Directors R. Dhinakaran MANAGING DIRECTOR R. Dhinakaran, is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) of Singapore, besides holding a Masters Degree in Business Administration (MBA). He joined the group as Financial Controller in early eighties and over the years took business leadership roles steering the group through ups and downs besides taking over as the Managing Director of the group in 2001 overseeing the business interest across Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia. Today the group is respected as a bell-weather fashion retail group with a wide range of brands in its portfolio catering to every section of the society. Dhinakaran also known as Dhina is also the Vice President of the Singapore Retailers Association (SRA), Vice President of Institute of Certified Public Accountant of Singapore (ICPAS) and Chairman of <strong>Corporate</strong> Governance Committee(ICPAS), Board Member and Chairman of Audit & Risk Committee of the Workforce Development Agency (WDA), a Statutory Board under the Ministry of Manpower, Singapore, Vice Chairman of the Hindu Advisory Board, a Statutory Board under the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports (MCYS), Member of the IRAS Taxpayer Feedback Panel, Singapore, Council Member of the Charity Council of Singapore under MCYS, Board Member to the South- East Asia Regional Board (SEARB) of Chartered Institute of Management Accountants, UK, Trustee - SIM University Education Fund (SUEF) and a Nominated Member of Parliament (NMP) of Singapore. Dhina, a veteran of retail industry in the region has leveraged his skills and experiences to lead the group’ business besides making significant contributions to the society through his various public roles in non-profit and industry bodies. Tara <strong>Melwani</strong> DIRECTOR Tara <strong>Melwani</strong>, eldest daughter of Singapore’s renowned entrepreneur, the late Moti <strong>Melwani</strong>, has been involved in philanthropic endeavours and community work whilst gathering a plethora of skills in her family-owned business since 1989. Tara stepped down from her position as managing director of <strong>Jay</strong> <strong>Gee</strong> Enterprises in 2001 to pursue her interest in humanitarian projects under the guidance of her spiritual teacher, Lama Zopa Rinpoche. She currently serves on the Executive board of the <strong>Jay</strong> <strong>Gee</strong> <strong>Melwani</strong> <strong>Group</strong>. Since 2004, she has been organizing His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s public talks in Bangalore and Mumbai, India on behalf of the Foundation for the Preservation of the Mahayana Tradition (FPMT Inc) and a three-day teaching event in Dharamsala (2007) for the people of South East Asia. FPMT Inc is headquartered in Portland, USA and Tara serves as a board member. Tara runs the M.B. <strong>Melwani</strong> Family Trust which provides education for disadvantaged Sindhi refugee children from slum areas and poor families in twelve cities around India and corresponds with prisoners in USA who are interested in exploring, studying and practicing Buddhism. She sits on the executive committee of The Vegetarian Society (Singapore) which is committed to educating the public about the benefits of reducing meat consumption. She is also the Chairwoman of Essential Education, an initiative of The Foundation for Developing Compassion and Wisdom, a UK non-profit organisation set up in January 2005. Working at the grassroots, it provides resources, training and connections for use in schools and colleges, healthcare, hospices and drug rehab, prisons, workplace and the home. Shabnam <strong>Melwani</strong>-Reis DIRECTOR A graduate of Boston University, Shabnam’s career spans the music television, new media and fashion industries. As Director of Communications for MTV Asia (1995-1999), she supervised regional communications teams and is also credited for building the high profile of MTV in the Asia- Pacific during that period. An entrepreneur in her own right, Shabnam co-founded a digital music distribution company Soundbuzz in 2000 alongside three others which was acquired in 2008 by Motorola. Shabnam was awarded the ‘Young Communicator Of The Year’ Award at the Asian Public Relations Awards in 1998 and Newsweek magazine named her in July 2000 as one of the new ‘Faces of Success’ in Asia. In 2001, she was listed as one of “25 Young, Wired & Rich” in Asiaweek and in the same year, was the first recipient of Singapore Tatler’s ‘Trendsetter” award. Shabnam was also named as one of 10 ‘Most Stylish’ women in Singapore by Harper’s Bazaar in its 2002 inaugural list. In Harper’s Bazaar’s October 2005 issue, Shabnam was listed as one of ‘Asia’s Smartest Heiresses who encapsulate Style and Substance.’ In April 2006, Harper’s Bazaar named her as one of Singapore’s Power Broker’s who are “young, smart and steadily rising to become this generation’s industry movers and shakers” in the field of Fashion. In April 2006, The International Herald Tribune named Shabnam as Asia’s New Cosmopolitan who is one of “this continent’s influencers and innovators”. In July 2010, Her World also named her as Best Dressed in Singapore. ES TA BLISHED 1883
Our Managing Director “Trust, Understanding and Integrity are of the utmost importance in our relationship with our business partners. With these, we can build a strong and timeless brand.” R. Dhinakaran ES TA BLISHED 1883
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