Ahmedabad: Noted industrialist, philanthropist, and founding chairman of Rasna Group, Areez Khambatta, passed away in Ahmedabad late on Saturday due to cardiac arrest. The 85-year-old industrialist had suffered from a prolonged illness. He is survived by his wife, Persis, and children Piruz, Delna, and Ruzan.
A statement issued by the Rasna Group read: “With profound sorrow and grief, we announce the sad passing away of Areez Khambatta — the founder chairman of Rasna Group, chairman of Areez Khambatta Benevolent Trust and Rasna Foundation — to his heavenly abode on November 19, 2022.”
Khambatta was the former chairman of the World Alliance of Parsi Irani Zarthostis (WAPIZ). He also served as the past president of the Ahmedabad Parsi Panchayat and the vice president of the Federation of Parsi Zoroastrian Anjumans of India.
One of the early entrepreneurs of Gujarat, Khambatta ran a family-owned business in the soft-drink segment, which he eventually built into Pioma Industries, under which the soft-drink concentrate brand, Rasna, was founded. The brand is available across 60 countries and has been a market leader in a segment dominated by MNCs.