As a little girl in Srinagar, Pamela Tikku had an opportunity that in many ways formed the basis of what she wanted to do in life. Her father was responsible for executing a very prestigious project at that time – the Salal Hydroelectric Power Station, which is a run-of-the-river hydropower project on the Chenab River in Jammu and Kashmir. And she had an exposure to the marvel being built from close quarters.
For inspiration, she didn’t have to look too far. Although her grandfather was a renowned businessman in Srinagar, her father and uncles – both on the paternal and maternal sides – were engineers. Beyond academics, she was also encouraged to pursue her love for sports, and she went on to represent her school Kendriya Vidyalaya nationally in volleyball and basketball.
A woman with very less inhibitions, Tikku was never deterred by setbacks or unfavourable situations. She was a single girl in a batch of 80 students in mechanical engineering at REC, Jaipur. Later, during campus interviews, she was rejected by heavyweight companies like Reliance and Bharat Petroleum just because she was a girl. She took that on her stride too.
Armed with an engineering degree, she made her move to Delhi and was the first engineer to be recruited by component maker Rico Auto in 1993. She changed tracks a couple of years later to work with the erstwhile Honda Siel Cars India (now Honda Cars India), but when Honda shifted base to Greater Noida, it became impossible for her to commute with a young child at home.
Her stint with the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) exposed her to the regulatory and policy side of the industry. She made rapid strides, taking critical initiatives, learning and picking up expertise on the way. She then moved to NATRIP, and later to ICAT in 2010 to head its powertrain department.
The Chief Business Officer at ICAT today, Tikku believes there is nothing a woman can’t do. The key is to ensure they prove their merit, and not shy away from any responsibility.
For someone who has faced every adversity in her life with a positive attitude, Tikku calls herself a ‘lone wolf’. This is her leadership journey.