Upasana Kamineni is an Indian entrepreneur who is the Founder-URLife, Vice Chairperson CSR -Apollo Hospitals, and Managing Director-Family Health Plan Insurance TPA Ltd (FHPL). She is the wife of the famous actor Ram Charan.
Wiki/Biography
Upasana Kamineni Konidela (married name) was born on Thursday, 20 July 1989 (age 34 years; as of 2023) in Hyderabad. Her zodiac sign is Cancer.
Upasana Kamineni as a Child
She attained a degree in International Business Marketing & Management from Regent’s University, London.
Physical Appearance
Height (approx.): 5′ 6″
Eye Colour: Dark Brown
Hair Colour: Golden Brown (dyed)
Family
Parents & Siblings
Upasana Kamineni’s mother, Shobana Kamineni is the President of the Confederation of Indian Industry, and the Executive Vice-Chairperson of Apollo Hospitals. Her father, Anil Kamineni is the founder of KEI Group (a diversified logistics, leisure & infrastructure business). She has a brother named Puansh Kamineni, and a sister named Anushpala Kamineni.
Upasana Kamineni with her family
Her maternal grandfather, Prathap C. Reddy is Padma Vibhushan recipient and founder of India’s first corporate health care, Apollo Hospitals. Preetha Reddy (Vice-Chairperson of Apollo Hospitals), Sangita Reddy (Joint Managing Director of Apollo Hospitals), and Suneeta Reddy (Director at Apollo Hospitals) are her maternal aunts.
Upasana Kamineni with her Grandfather, Mother and aunts
Husband & Children
She got married to Ram Charan on 14 June 2012 at the Temple Trees Farm House, Chennai.
Upasana Kamineni and Ram Charan
On 20 June 2023, the couple welcomed their first child, a baby girl, at Apollo Hospital in Hyderabad. They named their daughter Klin Kaara Konidela in a traditional naming ceremony, which was inspired by the Lalitha Sahasranamam, a sacred mantra in the Hindu religion. According to reports, Mukesh Ambani and Nita Ambani presented the couple’s newborn with an extravagant golden cradle valued at Rs 1 crore.
Other Relatives
She is the daughter-in-law of the famous South Indian actor Chiranjeevi.
Upasana Kamineni and her family
Career
She is the founder of URLife , Vice-Chairperson, CSR, Apollo Hospitals , and Managing Director, Family Health Plan Insurance TPA Ltd. Upasana is the Vice Chairperson of Apollo Foundation, which diagnoses, treats, and educates people in need of medical care. She is also the Vice-Chairperson of Apollo Life, which is a healthcare and wellness site, which provides information related to health, wellness, and fitness.
Logo of Apollo Life
She is the owner and Editor-in-Chief of B Positive, a health and lifestyle magazine.
Upasana Kamineni Konidela, a next-gen entrepreneur, well-being curator, sustainability-activist, animal-conservationist and a distinguished-philanthropist from the Apollo Hospitals Family, believes in creating socialistic sustainable businesses that create a meaningful impact while giving back to society as a whole.
The Apollo Hospitals Group spearheads many first-of-its-kind initiatives in healing India; two of which are: The Apollo Foundation and URLife. The former believes in identifying, diagnosing, treating, and educating people in need of medical care. On the other hand, URLife is about making Urban India and the Indian workforce increase their productivity and manage their wellbeing harmoniously.
Upasana started URLife using herself and her organization as an example. Incorporating best wellbeing practices from around the world to help increase productivity of Corporate India is her main focus. Upasana firmly believes that the world can #HEALININDIA by exploring the wisdom of alternate medicine and healing.
Today URLife has the largest number of Occupational Health Centres in the country. URLife has been lauded for its remarkable feats in the wellness space and has accumulated accolades, Economic Times Retail Icon & Realty Award in 2017 being one of them.
The reputed BPositive magazine was the brainchild of Upasana Kamineni Konidela a decade ago. During the pandemic, she made a sustainable shift by opting to go digital to save the planet and reach a wider audience. Rebranded as URLife, the platform shares engaging content and will gradually evolve into an eCommerce product & service provider in the well-being space. URLife is committed to encouraging you to live UR life to the fullest, by harnessing the power of technology to promote healthy lifestyle choices!
The Apollo Foundation believes in giving back with respect and empathy, whether it’s taking care of forest guards who protect our wildlife or providing the abandoned elderly with adequate medical care. The Apollo Foundation takes great pride in conceptualizing the Brainchild of Dr Prathap C Reddy’s self-sustaining breakthrough model to help rural India stay healthy from womb to tomb – The Total Health Initiative.
With an International Business Marketing & Management degree from Regents University, London and Love for Health & Wellbeing, Upasana received the Femina Award for Recognition in Healthcare in 2017. She was also recognized as Tycoons of Tomorrow and felicitated by Forbes in 2018. Upasana has also been awarded the Dadasaheb Phalke Excellence Award for Philanthropist of the Year 2019.
She believes that Technology should be used as a strong tool to heal the world and, has expressed her views at various forums and stages such as The Sages & Scientists Conference in Beverly Hills, California. She spoke at AIMA – 41st National Management Convention on the theme of “Changing Times: Reinventing the India Story”; spoke at India Today Conclave South on “The Next Generation: Banking on the Youth”. Upasana is also a member of the YPO Hyderabad chapter and a member of CII – Telangana. Her transformation from fat to fit and ideologies on mental wellbeing has made her an influencer on almost all digital platforms.
Upasana Kamineni’s awards’
An adventure seeker, Upasana and her husband Ram Charan (Actor, Producer) are known as young inspirational influencers of South India. Their interests include fitness, mindful well-being and wildlife conservation. Upasana Kamineni Konidela is a third-generation entrepreneur and philanthropist from the Apollo Hospitals family in India. She believes in creating sustainable businesses rooted in social welfare that create a deep, long-term impact. Her heritage of healing and building community infrastructure is reflected in her business ventures and her giving practices. URLife is built on the idea of urban wellness and productivity, while the Apollo Foundation is based on the founder-chairperson of Apollo Hospitals, Dr Prathap C Reddy’s model of womb-to-tomb care.
Upasana Kamineni Konidela believes in creating sustainable businesses rooted in social welfare that create a deep, long-term impact. She is a third-generation entrepreneur and philanthropist from the Apollo Hospitals family in India.
Upasana’s professional life is an extension of herself, her values, and the way she lives her life. She believes that the world can #HealInIndia and that it is possible to #TransformURLife.
Today URLife has the highest number of occupational health centres in India, along with venturing into the food and fitness space, while Apollo Foundation works across the country in the urban, rural, and tribal contexts. Her philosophy is based on kindness: to herself, her family, her community, and the world she reaches through her social media presence. This fosters respect and empathy in the work she does and the communities she impacts.
While her education, at Regents University, UK, and Harvard University, USA, has given her the skills to run businesses, her energy comes from working with people, especially those who may not have the opportunities and access to reach their full potential.
She is also passionate about the environment and has expanded the Apollo Foundation’s mandate to include the rehabilitation of tribal people. WWF has nominated her as the Ambassador of Forest Department Heroes, and the Philanthropy Ambassador of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.
Upasana received the Femina Award for Recognition in Healthcare in 2017. She was recognized as one of the Tycoons of Tomorrow and felicitated by Forbes in 2018. In 2019 she was awarded the Dadasaheb Phalke Excellence Award for Philanthropist of the Year. She was also one of GQ magazine’s Heroes 2021, for leading work on the war against Covid-19.
She believes that technology should be used as a robust tool to heal the world and, has expressed her views at various forums such as The Sages & Scientists Conference in Beverly Hills and the India Today Conclave South.
She is also a member of the YPO Hyderabad chapter and of CII, Telangana.
An explorer of the world, Upasana and her actor-producer husband Ram Charan are known to be young inspirational influencers in South India.
Known For
- Vice Chairperson CSR of Apollo Hospitals Foundation which beliefs in dealing with dignity and empathy.
- Wellbeing Curator, Founder & Managing Director of URLife a holistic well-being platform and a forerunner in corporate wellness
- Managing Director of Family Health Plan Insurance TPA Limited (FHPL) India’s most sought after and technology-driven TPA
- Ambassador of Forest Frontline Heroes (India) and Philanthropy Ambassador (AP & Telangana) at WWF India, continuously working to provide support to forest heroes.
Controversy
In 2016, rumours about her and Ram Charan getting divorced surfaced in public. Later, during an interview, Upasana cleared the rumours saying that she didn’t care about what everyone wrote about them and she and her husband loved each other.
Awards & Honours
- Mahatma Gandhi Award for Leadership in Corporate Social Responsibility in 2019
Upasana Kamineni with Mahatma Gandhi Award
- Dadasaheb Phalke – Philanthropist of the Year award in 2019
Upasana Kamineni with her Dadasaheb Phalke – Philanthropist of the Year award
- Femina Recognition in Healthcare Awards in 2017
Favourites
- Food: Kachchi Biryani, Hyderabadi Biryani, Pucci Biryani of Awadh, Dum Pukht, Samosa
- Fashion Brand: Louis Vuitton
Facts
- Her nickname is ‘Upsi.’
- As a child, Upasana wanted to work with Apollo Hospitals. As a teen, she decided to become a fashion designer. Soon, Upasana realised that she was a better shopper than a designer and went back to her family business.
- Since her childhood, she had been an obese person. While talking about her obesity and weight loss story, she said-
I was huge as a child growing up in America! When I moved to London, I decided I had to complete a full round of Hyde Park, and also finish the London Marathon. In the bargain I wrecked my knees. So, the will was there but I wasn’t doing it right. I was 95 kg, so I decided to cut carbs completely. That didn’t work. So I cut out rice and wheat, and ate oats instead, and that worked so well for me. Then I added a bit of high protein. I walked to college instead of using my car, or a cab or the Tube.”
- Upasana was engaged in philanthropy from a very young age. When she was a student, she started a movement called ‘U Exchange,’ where she used to collect old textbooks and notebooks and give them to the children in the Naxal areas.
- She also launched JIYO app with Deepak Chopra, the Indian born American author and medical advocate. It is an app which tracks stress and wellness levels of an individual and sends them a ‘wellness prescription.’
Upasana Kamineni-Jiyo App
- She is a close friend with designers Anamika Khanna, Abu Jani, Sandeep Khosla, and Tarun Tahiliani.
Upasana Kamineni with Tarun Tahiliani
- Upasana and Tamannaah Bhatia are best friends. Seeing Tamannaah’s performance in “Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy,” Upasana gifted her a giant crystal ring, which was touted as the world’s fifth largest diamond ring that cost Rs. 2 crore. Surprisingly, in July 2023, Tamannaah took to Twitter to reveal that the gifted item was not a diamond ring but rather a bottle opener.
Tamannaah showing her giant crystal ring given by Upasana Kamineni
- Charan and Upasana met through common friends at a sports club in London. They both became friends and their friendship developed in love. Later, they both decided to marry. She calls Charan ‘Mr. C’ with love.
- Charan is a famous actor and people considered Upasana to be unworthy of him as she was a fatty at the time of their marriage, which used to hurt her. However, she tried hard and managed to lose weight and became an inspiration for many.
- She likes animals and believes in loving and respecting them as humans.
Upasana Kamineni playing with lions
- She owns more than 5 dogs.
Upasana Kamineni with her dogs
- Upasana loves horses and has a horse named, Daisy. Daisy is a Falabella (a miniature breed of horse) and was gifted to her by Ram Charan after one month of their marriage.
Upasana Kamineni and her Horse
- She is an adventure seeker and likes driving, horse riding, sea diving, playing polo, and watching films.
- In an interview, she confessed that had she not been in the healthcare business, she would have become a waitress and lived on an island by the beach.
- She also likes interior designing and has designed the interiors of one of the wellness centres that she has set up.
Categories: Biography
Source: HIS Education