Who is Shailesh Chandra, the new MD & CEO of Tata Motors
Tata Motors has announced a major leadership reshuffle ahead of hiving off its commercial vehicle arm. Shailesh Chandra, architect of Tata’s EV push, will become MD & CEO, while Girish Wagh and PB Balaji take new roles.
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Tata Motors on Friday announced a leadership reshuffle as it prepares to demerge its commercial vehicle business into a separate listed company, TML Commercial Vehicles Limited (TMLCV), effective October 1, 2025. At the heart of the shake-up is Shailesh Chandra, who has been appointed Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Tata Motors for a three-year term beginning October 1.
The move signals the group’s sharper focus on passenger vehicles and the fast-expanding electric mobility segment, two areas Chandra has helped turn into Tata Motors’ growth engines.
From Production Manager to the Corner Office
Chandra’s journey with Tata Motors spans three decades. He joined the company in 1995 as a production manager and steadily moved across roles in vendor development and divisional leadership. By 2012, he was deputy general manager in the vice chairman’s office, before moving to Tata Sons a year later to work in group strategy.
In April 2016, he returned to Tata Motors as head of corporate strategy and business transformation. His defining rise came soon after, when he was elevated to lead the passenger vehicles (PV) unit and the newly-formed passenger electric mobility (PEM) arm.
Chandra has been the face of Tata’s electric revolution. Under his leadership, Tata Motors’ Nexon EV became India’s bestselling electric car, while the company laid out a roadmap for affordable EV adoption with its Tiago EV and the premium-focused Curvv EV lineup.
By 2022, he was CEO and MD of both the PV and PEM businesses, cementing Tata Motors’ leadership in India’s nascent but fast-growing EV segment.
Beyond Tata Motors, Chandra serves as a non-executive director on the boards of Tata Technologies and Fiat India Automobiles, and internationally on Trilix Srl in Italy and Tata Motors Design Tech Centre Plc in the UK.
Chandra holds a degree in mechanical engineering from Banaras Hindu University and an executive MBA from SP Jain Institute of Management and Research, Mumbai.
Tata Motors’ reshuffle also includes two other major moves. Girish Wagh, currently executive director, will take charge as MD & CEO of the newly listed TMLCV from October 1.
PB Balaji, group CFO, will step down on November 17 to become CEO of Jaguar Land Rover Automotive Plc in the UK. He will simultaneously join the boards of Tata Motors and TMLCV as a non-executive, non-independent director.
