Finance: Deepak Parekh

ROB ELLIOTT/AFP/Getty Images

Finance: Deepak Parekh

Age: 64
Chairman, Housing Development Finance

Parekh is the head of the country's leading mortgage house. The chartered accountant and avid bridge player commands great respect from India Inc., sitting on the boards of many multinationals, such as Siemens, Hindustan Unilever, Castrol, and GlaxoSmithkline. To lend a large dose of credibility to the beleaguered Satyam Computer Services, the government appointed Parekh as one of the board members of the IT company. When Wilbur L. Ross Jr., the American investor who turns around damaged assets, scrutinizes a possible target in India, he turns to his adviser—Parekh.