I do serve on various boards and I'm very honest and frank, obviously, I am a very forthright person and I do, sort of, share my candid views on anything.

Indian business women like Indra Nooyi, Chanda Kochhar, Naina Lal Kidwai, Shikha Sharma, Swati Piramal, Anu Agha, Swati Piramal, Sulajja Firodia Motwani and Zia Mody have put India on the global firmament.

I faced a number of challenges whilst I built Biocon. Initially, I had credibility challenges where I couldn't get banks to fund me; I couldn't recruit people to work for a woman boss. Even in the businesses where I had to procure raw materials, they didn't want to deal with women.

I have a great team who has helped me build Biocon, I was very fortunate to be able to share my vision with a group of people who really were as excited about challenges as I was.

What really got me focused on cancer was when my best friend was diagnosed with breast cancer and even though she was a well-to-do person, I found that her treatment costs were crippling.

One of my objectives when I started Biocon was to make sure that I create a company for women scientists to pursue a vocation.

You have to build a culture of philanthropy. In a country like India, we need to be sensitive and caring about the poorer, more disadvantaged section of our country.