Priti Devi is Governor, Board of Directors, United World College (SEA); Advisory Board Member of Global Institute for Tomorrow (HK); and Director, Decorator’s Notebooks. She speaks about growing up as Princess of Kapurthala, as well as her career and experiences in life.
Q. You grew up as the Princess of Kapurthala. Tell us about your childhood years.
A. One is blessed and fortunate to have a heritage that, while no longer recognised in democratic India, will always be a special one with a glorious and glamorous ancestry. Our parents brought us up with a strong sense of our heritage and background, but without any illusions of grandeur that might set us apart. We had a magical childhood in two elegant and sophisticated homes. Winter months were spent at The Villa in the plains of the Punjab in Kapurthala and summer months at The Chateau in Mussorie. It is in boarding school that we learnt our life lesson of being no different, we were just like every other child. That, I must admit, has always held us in great stead.
Q. You have worked with an oil major, Shell Company, for 12 years. Tell us about your responsibilities and experience there.
A. I started my career with Shell in India in 1997, working with the country chair under the guidance of my cherished mentor, Rattan Dayal. My role was to work for the country chairman’s office on External Affairs (Government Relations), Communications and Sustainable Development. A great deal of this work involved assisting the country chair with managing high level ministerial meetings and promoting Shell’s business agenda in the country.
In 2001, I moved to Singapore in a regional role with Shell’s Gas and Power business with a focus on North Asia (Russia, China, S. Korea, Japan and Taiwan). Shell had large LNG and other gas infrastructure projects in this region and there was a great deal of high level government lobbying and environmental planning around these projects. It was one of the most enjoyable stints I held at Shell, as my travels exposed me to some extraordinary insights on the positive influence that international corporations can wield, as well as the political machinations that exist with governments when huge sums of money are involved in large, strategic and capital intensive infrastructure projects.
My biggest takeaway from almost every country I visited (32 in all) was that we are all inherently similar—all working individuals, who want to build a brighter future for themselves and their families and be safe and happy in the surroundings they live in.
Q. Tell us about your involvement in social impact investing. What does that entail?
A. The important shifts in philanthropy today, have transformed the traditional philanthropists and large donor organisations into “impact investors”. Although this may not be uniformly evident in the way many businesses manage their “donations”, many high net-worth entrepreneurs today, are at the centre of this sea change in impact investing. They have brought about greater transparency and sustainability to programmes reliant on financial grants. However, what remains daunting and increasingly difficult in the developing world, is solving the social equity problem. Little in emerging economies has been done to manage the ever-widening gaps between the wealthy and poor.
Q. You are the modern-age princess known for her exquisite taste and style. Tell us about your home-design accessories venture, Decorator’s Notebooks.
A. I have always loved beautiful interiors, home accessories and decor. Perhaps it was something that was embedded in me from a very early age, living in homes that were so elegant and filled with beautiful accessories.
When I decided to end my corporate life and began building and decorating our home in Singapore, I realised that lots of fabrics, furniture, home accessories designs that appealed to me were not available in Singapore. Thus, we ended up importing things from so many different countries and varied artisanal stores that I decided to try and create an online store with exquisitely made products by craftsmen from across the globe who were finding it very expensive to sell their products in the rapidly changing and digitising retail landscape. So Decorator’snotebooks.com was born, with global talented artisans who needed access to a global market through a single platform.
Q. You have a daughter whom you have raised to be independent, with strong values. How did you make that happen?
A. That our daughter is bright, intelligent and grounded is a gift and of course I will accept a valiant joint effort in parenting with my husband Tarun, to instill the right values. One does not choose where one is born, but what one does with one’s life is really up at each one of us. Her strong social and environmental principles are her own.